current gearing choice

[SteveP]

oh boy, heres one to get people crazy.

latest on my current fast bike ( tarmac )..
130 crank but 50/ 39
cassette ..finally bumped from 12-23 to a 12-25.

i totally love the 50t big ring..
i have always used a 52 only.

now i can use the 50 for whole club rides.. just use the middle of the cassette mostly.
easy can pedal up to around 32mph in the 50-12... never go above that anyway.

digging it big time.

[Heisenberg]

Last year (first racing) I ran a 53/39 with an 11-23, racing and training in Utah with a litany of HC climbs, mashing up everything a la old-school Euro/South American.

This year, I found myself gravitating towards easier gearing and higher cadences (when legs are fresh, usually around 100-105rpm). First it was the 11-25 over the winter, and now I'm pretty comfy on an 11-27. I'm really tempted to jump to a mid-compact (52/36) with an 11-26 next season. I'll be wintering in Colombia, so it might be something of a necessity...

[velobran]

Flat Lander here.

53/39
12/25 (or 12/23 depending on wheelset). The 25 is for when I go north.

[Chance Legstrong]

52/36 and ain't looking back (except to see those who were dropped)

[christian]

53/39 and 12-25 10sp
50/34 and 13-29 10sp when I did D2R2. Otherwise, I can't stand that compact stuff.

[72gmc]

I ride for adventure and alone time with my dirty thoughts. 50, 48, 42, and 36 on the chainring menu. Various cassettes.

[Christian Lalor]

Fat and out of shape, but I ride for fun and like to climb: 50/34 and a 12/29

[suhacycles]

Fat and out of shape, but I ride for fun and like to climb: 50/34 and a 12/29

Where do you get a 12-29 cassette? 10 spd?

Man, I miss the days when we used to make junior gears and could pull cogs off the rack and make whatever reasonable combination...

[Scott G.]

In order of bike age
1937, 46 with a 13-22
1954, 48/34 with a 13-24
197x, 42 with a 17
2005, 48/36/24 with a 12-27
2008, 48/36/24 with a 12-32

[hidayanra]

while racing, it is usually 53/39 with 12-23, but since I'm not racing this year

53/38 with 12-27
46 with 14 on the rollers
39 with 11-34 for commuting
39/26 with 11-32 on the squishy bike

[roseyscot]

you can do it with miche cassettes (though their quality is crap)

Where do you get a 12-29 cassette? 10 spd?

Man, I miss the days when we used to make junior gears and could pull cogs off the rack and make whatever reasonable combination...

[Christian Lalor]

Where do you get a 12-29 cassette? 10 spd?

11-speed Campy Chorus

[andrew flowers]

53/39 and 11-23 on the road bike, 42 and 11-25 on the cx, 47-17 on the fixie. My park bike currently uses 22-12 but I think I'm going to swap it to 24 or 25

[nahtnoj]

I'm really tempted to jump to a mid-compact (52/36) with an 11-26 next season. I'll be wintering in Colombia, so it might be something of a necessity...

Not that you need advice from the likes of me, but I love this chainring combo. Allows me to settle into a more comfortable cadence on climbs. 34 is often too low and 39 too high.

[MarkC]

TT 54/42 11-21 (172.5mm, cadence 95+)

Road 53/39 13-26 training, 12-25 or 11-21 racing (172.5mm, 90+ RPM)

Favorite gearing for road bikes: 48/36 11-21 or 12-23 The 48 was a bit too spinny for racing so I switched back to 53/39. But love the 48/36 with the tighter ratio rear cluster for general riding. It's also a bit lighter and I didn't note any increased cog or chainring wear. Might be slightly less efficient than 53/52/50 but not that I could tell in a meaningful way.

[Bob Ross]

bike #1: 50/34 with 11-26 (10-speed)
bike #2: 50/34 with 11-28 (10-speed)
bike #3: 53/39 with 13-28 (7-speed)

bike #4 is still a good ways away, so I'm whiling away the time by agonizing over gearing for that build. Part of me thinks I should get a contemporary 11-speed 53/39 ...and then when I'm slogging up a hill I wonder what would ever possess me to want to ride a standard double ever, since I'm only getting older. I keep wondering about the 52/36, but have heard a couple semi-compelling arguments for avoiding those, so still on the fence. Ah well, plenty of time to decide...

[TJ]

52/38 with a 12-25. Thinking of trying a 52/36 this off season

[sparky33]

Wow, I feel like a p@$%ssy. 46/30 by 12-27

and I'm intimidated by my new bike which is 50/34 by 11-28.

[rabo]

Just finally broke down and ordered a 34/50 compact. There are some steep climbs blocking out otherwise great rides here, and I noticed I sometimes skip those rides because of the torture coming back over a 23% climb. So 34/50 with an 11-28 on the tour bike it will be.
(Hearing Contador used a 32 in the back a few times in the Vuelta made me feel much better about the capitulation to the small gears)

[Dave Wofford]

50/34 with 12/25 the last three years (I like going off road/in the woods and heading up to the county roads in the Blue Ridge mountains a few times a year)

switching to 50/36 with an 11/26 this winter so not as severe of a change when I drop down to the small ring.