- This topic has 43 replies, 19 voices, and was last updated 14 years ago by colnagokid.
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44 front chain rings. Can you "go" bigger?
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Ti29erFree MemberPosted 14 years ago
I have an XTR chain set with a 44 front chain ring.
Is there a reason no one seems to make bigger rings?
Or does anyone make bigger rings and if so, can they be used at all? Do you need a long rear mech' or am I barking up the wrong tree here?KINGTUTFree MemberPosted 14 years agoYou can get a 46T for touring, why you'd want it on a normal MTB I'm not sure.
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoMainly because there's no real need offroad – even top XC racers don't spin out a 44×11.
Back in the day, pre-compact when a cassette's smallest sprocket was a 12, 48s weren't uncommon but that's the same ratio.
You can get bigger rings nowadays still but they're not normal so you'll have to look a bit harder for them – companies like TA make them IIRC. Worth a look at SJS cycles too who sell them for touring (since you should only really need it that big for road riding).
A normal long mtb rear mech will be fine assuming you're not going silly and fitting a 52 or something.
njee20Free MemberPosted 14 years agoWhich generation of XTR? If it's M960 you're stuck, if it's M970 you can fit what you want in the way of a bigger one.
I've got a 40t big ring, and don't feel the need for bigger.
z1ppyFull MemberPosted 14 years agoI run a 46 chainring (middleburn) on one of my bikes, I like it as I can get up some decent speeds but have big legs so it suits me.
[too slow]Ppl will be a long quote speed figures as to how silly it is to run even a 44 chainring as you 'just' won't go that fast for any distance.
Obviously they've never ridden with my m8 Jimmy, I need all the help I can get when trying to keep up (ok it's the flat midlands).As for rear mech, no as long as you have a long cage one, you'll be fine.
48 chainring are also available but really are more suited for road usage.clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoJust how fast is your mate?!
I'm happy to quote figures 🙂 I also have big legs 🙂
44×11 would be comfortable even if you're grinding along at 70rpm cadence, producing a speed of 22mph (70/min x 4 (ratio) x 2.1m (approx circumference of 26" wheel) = 588m/min = 35.3km/h = 22mph). Up that to a more reasonable 80 cadence and the speed is 25mph!
So you're suggesting that your mate rides for extended periods at 22 to 25mph offroad? He needs to get on to British Cycling and tell them he's offering a guaranteed gold medal at the World Champs! 🙂
z1ppyFull MemberPosted 14 years agohe's a very fast road rider come mtb-er, what can I say, I find having the bigger ring helps to even things out.
You also need to bear in mind we have lots of long flat canal stretchs to get between trails, I like em and have replaced it once already.sofatesterFree MemberPosted 14 years agoBig legs = Speed 🙄
If that was the case there would be some really fast guys in my local McD's and KFC! 😆
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoz1ppy, it sounds to me like you need to learn to spin more rather than just stick a bigger chainring on 🙂
traildogFree MemberPosted 14 years agoWell, it's whatever works for you and if you like a 46 then fine. That answers the original post, yes you can go bigger.
I'm more interested in going smaller as I find a 44 too big. Mainly in terms of clearance, a 44 outer takes quite a bit of beating. I'm interested to know where njee20 got that 40T ring from? I quite fancy giving one of those a try!z1ppyFull MemberPosted 14 years agomaybe so, but I like it and will stick with it, and all I was doing was answering the OP without be-littleing the question, as per most replies on here.
BigDummyFree MemberPosted 14 years agoAnother question (possibly silly). How small can big chainrings go? I'm running 22/36/bash at the moment, which I quite like but wondering whether 22/32/38 or thereabouts might not make sense. I went double because I was mainly using the big ring to tension the chain downhill not because I needed a bash on there particularly.
sofatesterFree MemberPosted 14 years agomaybe so, but I like it and will stick with it, and all I was doing was answering the OP without be-littleing the question, as per most replies on here.
ooooh get you! 😉
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoI answered it too 🙂
And just questioning the need isn't belittling unless you're a really sensitive soul,just trying to stop someone wasting money on something that they don't really need. Plus, the OP did actually ask if there was a reason why people don't have them!
njee20Free MemberPosted 14 years agoThat answers the original post, yes you can go bigger.
As long as it's the latest iteration of XTR, otherwise you can't.
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoFWIW, I've recently gone to a 2×9 setup 24/36 and 11-34 – pretty much all the gears that I need for offroad (actually, and on road since I do spin 🙂 )
Shak47Full MemberPosted 14 years agoIf you have an XTR M960 you can get a 45t Rotor Q Ring to fit as oppossed to the standard 44t.
http://www.velotechservices.co.uk sell them.
Been replacing my old XTR rings on a few bikes with these, really like the apparently smoother pedalling action, particularly uphills.
bikerbruceFree MemberPosted 14 years agoyou must live somewhere where riding is downhill…unless your far far stronger and faster than absalon who runs a 40t outer ring.Ring up phil dixon because im sure he'd like to see your big legs ;)maybe just practise pushing a smaller gear..its all over better for you.
Ti29erFree MemberPosted 14 years agohttp://www.rotoruk.co.uk/qrings.html
Think I might give it a try for an event that's going to see quite a lot of fire trails in order to link a little single track along its 100 mile length.
I'd take the 29er which eats miles before breakfast, & then some, but for 13hrs in the saddle I am opting for the 26er which is a little more forgiving over long rides but has a number of damaged teeth on the 44 ring – so that was the reasoning for the post.
Not being a big spinner, I seem to prefer to press a slightly bigger gear/ring, just how I ride of late I think.
Cheers, and I'll post back and tell you how it works out, if I do buy it.clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoSpinning's more efficient and your legs will hurt less at the end of a long ride. Requires more aerobic fitness (you'll feel more breathy) to get the best out of it though which is one reason why unfit people like to push big gears. Simples.
kiwijohnFull MemberPosted 14 years agoI'll let my riding do the talking, but I blew my freehub winning an uphill sprint last night.
sofatesterFree MemberPosted 14 years agoI'll let my riding do the talking, but I blew my freehub winning an uphill sprint last night
Willy waving will win no favours on here, neither will shoddy mechanics 😉
lightmanFree MemberPosted 14 years agoI recently put a road bike triple on my mtb 32/42/52
It was a tight squeeze for the chain stays, but with a few spins the chain rings dont scrape of the chain stays any more!
The reason i put this on, is because i use my mtb for chaingangs and i was seriously spinning out at 34mph and i could only hold that and not go any faster, so in tail wind/down hill sections when the speed went over that, i got dropped.
Now with 52×11 i have no problems, other than the extra weight when we hit the hills.Ive had no other issues, other than putting 3 or 4 links back on the chain.
njee20Free MemberPosted 14 years agoNow with 52×11 i have no problems, other than the extra weight when we hit the hills
Do you really notice that!? No I didn't think so.
That will only work if you have a 68mm b/b, and I'm not sure I like the idea of intentionally taking chunks out of ones chainstays! Each to their own though.
lightmanFree MemberPosted 14 years agoDo you really notice that!? No I didn't think so.
I meant the extra weight of the 36lb mtb over the 17lb road bike!!!!!!!!!
njee20Free MemberPosted 14 years agoAaah! That makes a lot more sense.
What on earth are you doing riding a 36lb MTB on road rides? How unpleasant.
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agokiwijohn – Member
You saying I'm unfit?Lol – no I wasn't. I was simply saying that unfit people tend to push big gears because they find they get out of breath if they spin small gears fast. Fit people can mash big gears if they like, they'll just probably not be as quick as they could be if they trained themselves to spin 😉
Ti29erFree MemberPosted 14 years agoI recall reading in one of Armstrong's 2x books about how Miguel Indurain pushed higher gears than he did, where he (Armstrong) would have a higher spinning cadence.
Nothing about "I'm fitter therefore I spin faster than that unfit bloke, Miguel".
Different methods, different bodies, different bikes and mechanics and strengths.Anyhow, I'll let you know what an eliptical front 45 ring feels like as I've ordered one.
Zooooom!CaptainFlashheartFree MemberPosted 14 years agoAnyone else remember the loony tunes massive rings by Paragon that used to be raced at Mammoth?
AidyFree MemberPosted 14 years agoLol – no I wasn't. I was simply saying that unfit people tend to push big gears because they find they get out of breath if they spin small gears fast. Fit people can mash big gears if they like, they'll just probably not be as quick as they could be if they trained themselves to spin
We assume you only use the granny ring and 32/34 tooth sprocket, then?
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoThe thing is a lot of the big gear pushing is a bit of a myth. Big Mig was a bit of a grinder, but a bit of a grinder for a pro roadies is generally spinning more than most non-pros and if you look at cadences most of the time, you'll see that the pro grinders are only really grinding when working really hard – eg most of the time in the peloton, they're actually spinning along at 90ish rpm.
Even Jan Ullrich, the consummate grinder typically used to spin at 80+ except when really under the cosh when he'd drop to 70ish.
We assume you only use the granny ring and 32/34 tooth sprocket, then?
It goes without saying that there's a cadence over which you become less efficient again 🙂 However, if you really needed me to say that to understand, Aidy, over a certain cadence you start to get less efficient 😉
MargeFree MemberPosted 14 years agoHave you ever seen the cadence of team columbias' Bert Grabsch (World time trial champ). Looks almost painful to watch but seems to work for him….
clubberFree MemberPosted 14 years agoYes but again, only for a relatively short time (1hr max, typically more like 40mins) – he didn't ride the whole tour like that.
Ti29erFree MemberPosted 14 years agoWell, it's fitted & felt a little strange at first.
SITS this w/end so I might be able to tell you how it rides.
However, the real test is on my local trails where I know timed sections intimately and will be able to give you a better indication of its performance – expect that maybe Wednesday.
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