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I recently bought a road bike for training purposes, have been out on it once and I must say it wasn't an enjoyable experience. Hated the drop bars (they felt borderline dangerous) and the brakes reminded me of those on my raleigh yukon 20 years ago.
That said, the big thing that absolutely ruined me was the gearing, I have a 53/40 chain set and biggest cog on the back is 24. What type of hill is that lot going to get me up? Not a very steep one according to my first outing.
Now I realise the answer to this is probably MTFU, its for training purposes etc etc, but for someone recently back into biking who likes to spin his way up hills i'm wondering what a more sensible combo might be. I'm assuming I can't just add another cog to the chainset to make it a triple (or can I..it has a triple front mech) so could I put something more akin to MTB gearing on it up front ie 44/32? or is that a sh1t idea?
53/40? is it a very old bike?? What have you bought???
Just put a compact chainset (50/34) on it. Drop bars are super stable once you've learnt to bend, and road brakes are usually plenty powerful enough (change the blocks and make sure that they're not set up do that the levers only have about 3mm of pull before the pads touch the rims).
and a 24t on the back would make it strange cassette too.
The answer [i]IS[/i] MTFU I'm afraid.
Otherwise buy a triple/compact chainset. Compact is cheaper but has massive gaps between gears and offers neither the top end of a triple or double or the low end of a triple. However, it's more popular purely because there's a stigma about triples.
Triple will offer you a broader range but it's unlikely that your shifter will take it. Your shifter will probably have 2 clicks, implying it'll work with 3 rings, but won't- there's a trim function to stop the chain rubbing. Unless it's a new Sora or Tiagra, which will work with a triple just fine.
Get a compact on the front 53:34 and a cassette that goes to up to 27 on the back. You get used to drop bars. What levers and calipers are they? The higher end Shimano stuff is powerful in my experience.
sounds like you bought a fairly posh racing bike (sure it's 53/40 or 53/39 ??)
you'll get used to the drops - unless bike is too long for you
gearing - you can get a 27 tooth cassette for road bikes or else a mtb cassette plus mtb mech would work I think
(or get a compact or triple chainset instead of your (though triple might require a new front shifter too)
... or you could put a mtb chainset on, I guess 😯
i am guessing you have 53x39 as a 40 would be very odd?
39x24 is a reasonable gear for a reasonably strong rider.
First thing yes MTFU, riding road is about strength, but it does take time to get.
Options, you can change the chainset, compact or triple, triple will need a change of bottom bracket. Compact 50x34 would give quite a small gear but would still leave you with something for flatter roads. An alternative is to change the cassette, probably limited to 27tooth though by the rear mech.
At end of the day, depends on how fit you are and where you are riding and how much you are willing to hurt yourself.
in the words of greg lemond, it never gets easier, you just go faster.
edit,
are you sure about the 24, last time i can remember seeing a 24 cassette was a regina 5spd block 20+ years ago.
Its a second hand trek from about 2006. The 'small cog' is like a dinner plate. If my front mech and shifter wont support a triple (it clicks twice but as above probably doesn't) then I'm not going to be able to justify replacing them given the bike was fairly cheap. Will I be shunned for putting on a Mtb chainset???
Its all ultegra kit, and the brakes are set up well (although small hands make the leavers a bit tricky to reach), I guess i'm just spoiled by my huge disks on the mtb.
put on WTF you like (assuming it fits), ignore anyone who moans
DFoes the front mech have a band to fit it or bolt straight onto the frame - you might not get it low enough if it's direct mount (or even with a band if the seat tube flares at the bottom end)
I'm not going to be able to justify replacing them given the bike was fairly cheap.
Eh? It's an ultegra Trek, it's not crap, nor worth only what you paid for it.
mtb chainset unlikely to fit/work, but if your sti does have 2 proper clicks (not just trim clicks) a triple would be OK. Is it HTII, yes?
suggestion of a compact is probably the simplest.
The fact remains that lots of road bikes are sold with gearing that's more suited to racing than the average punter. I've lost count of the number of threads here and elsewhere on how to lower road bike gearing.
Merlin had some Tiagra compacts for £40, you'll probably need a new BB too so £50ish all in
You shouldn't need a triple. Get a 50/34 chainset and a 27 cassette on the back assuming the mech can handle it that combination should get you up most things.
It feels like 2 clicks, I'll maybe have a play with the limiter and see how much movement I can get out of the mech (which isn't direct mount)
Whilst its all good kit it only cost me 300 quid, hence my reluctance to spend a fortune on it. Having said that I saw a cheap triple in the classifieds the other day, so might be an option
50/36 Compact with a 27 cassette works fine for humphing 15 stone of me up the hills. Though a triple would come in handy.
One thing to remember as you hurtle down a steep descent towards a 90 right, is that no matter how well you set up the brakes on the road bike, it will not slow down as well as 8" discs with M4 calipers.
On the flip side, years of mtb'ing help greatly as you scrabble round the grass verge !
what cynic-al said, trying to fit an MTB chainset will run into all sorts of problems with chainline not matching between mech & chainset & an mtb mech will not work with a road shifter, Merlin are doing tiagra compact chainsets for £35 at the mo & if that ain't enough get yourself a bigger cassette too
stick with it bud,just bought my first road bike a couple of months back and am now facing a serious addiction,been riding mtbs 20 years and can't see myself going back
i went out first on the road bike and thought the drop bars were a dangerous joke and i'd be better off just grabbing the front wheel with my hands and stopping rather than use the useless brakes(ultegra!)which seem like they were a liability BUT all this is in comparison to formula the ones and lovely wide bars and buttery suspension but somehow after a while it all starts to come together and you get used to everything,i've got a compact dura ace crank on mine,makes things a little easier on the climbs although i did 37 miles yesterday and only used the inner cog on the final climb home(i live on a hill!),my legs have never been this strong and somehow you get used to the power needed to turn over the cranks,in fact i feel i should have gone with a "normal" road instead of the compact because i find myself spinning out on the big descents round our way,i only got the compact because i was a little afraid of walking up the hills,so stick with it and scare your missus with your soon to be had "ripped quads of iron!"grrr
my recently bought road bike has a compact and I have put a 12-32 on the back, so I can spin up hills mtb style.
I can see that a 28 will probably get you up most things (to around 20% ?) with some standing, but the 32 offers the equivalent of the 28 for sitting and spinning imho.
If you are using it for training then the 32 is useful for later in the ride when you are knackered or if, as I did today, you session each steep hill you come to several times - the last time up you will probably resort to the 32 at some point.
As you get stronger on the bike and find the 32 rarely used then swap it out for something up to 27/28.
And my koolstop salmon pads seem to be working well.
I got a 11-34 and an XT derailleur on the back matching ultegra front. Works absolutely fine and I can get up [i]anything.[/i]
Whilst its all good kit it only cost me 300 quid, hence my reluctance to spend a fortune on it.
Maybe it's the LBS employee in me, I NEVER EVER understand this logic. You got something decent, cheap, and refuse to spend the money you saved to make it actually work for you?
But hey, if you want money in your pocket and a bike you don't like, up to you.
Mine does !an mtb mech will not work with a road shifter
rapid rise 9sp xtr - absolutely fine
been riding mtbs 20 years and can't see myself going back
opposite way round - once next weeks sportive is done (accompanying a friend from work) I can't wait to get back to the mountain bike.
A compact with a 27 or 28 rear cassette will get you up any hill in the uk if you are reasonably fit.
If the hills round by you arent so steep then just get a 27 or 28 tooth cassette for the back. Again, your 39/27 will get you up any hill in the uk, you just have to be a bit fitter.
edit, 9 speed setup all OK. 10 speed may not be.
I may have a 48/34 tooth, 3 month old, lightly used, SRAM Apex Crankset (with brand new BB) for sale if you're interested? They're £100+ on Merlin, I'd be looking for half that. E-mail is my username at gmail.com
If you don't want to spend the cash, then you just need to HTFU.
I'm riding 53/39 and a 12-25 cassette around the Peaks and can get up everything I want to, including Winnats. No it's not easy - it's not supposed to be, its supposed to be fast. Yes, I could probably be "more efficient" (whatever that means) by using a compact, but I can't afford to replace a Record carbon chainset and a Chorus cassette with equivalent kit, so I just shut up and get on with it. I'm neither especially fit or strong either.
As far as the brakes go - decent pads, new cables will probably sort the majority of the problems.
Dropbars? Yes they take some getting used to. It took me a good few months to get flexible enough to spend a decent amount of time down on the hooks, but you spend most of the time on the flats and hoods anyway. Hard cornering is much better from the drops though.
Yeah. Mtfu.
Posted similar recently. Riding an old roadie with 53;39 and a very low cassette (8 sp, 23T bottom gear). Bought a nes cassette 11-25, although tbh was getting used to honking it up S Wales steep lanes
It does seem strange that even entry level bikes are often specced with really narrow gearing... It's a bit like making entry level 1x9 mountain bikes IMO. And after all, it's easier to modify a bike to narrow the gears than to widen them (replace cassette, shorten chain; instead of replace cassette, lengthen chain, possibly replace mech)
It does seem strange that even entry level bikes are often specced with really narrow gearing...
But most people who buy these bikes probably dont live and ride in the Lake District or the Peak District.
Other hills are available.
I know, what Im getting at is most are probably sold to americans who ride round the Nevada Salt Flats
Just start with a 27 rear cassette and get on with riding
I'm riding 53/39 and a 12-25 cassette around the Peaks and can get up everything I want to, including Winnats. No it's not easy - it's not supposed to be, its supposed to be fast. Yes, I could probably be "more efficient" (whatever that means) by using a compact
More efficient means faster 🙂
I just gurn up everything with a 46:17 fixie, then spit my teeth out at the top......
Plus, I have tiger blood in my bidon......
DrP
(the blood thing may not be true...)
Just because it is possible to get up something like winnats with a 25 at the back it does't make it a good idea.
I have a triple on my secteur. I can get up all the nasty climbs round here in the middle ring but I'm nearly 10% faster if I spin them in the granny ring.
I just gurn up everything with a 46:17 fixie, then spit my teeth out at the top......
Plus, I have tiger blood in my bidon......
I have lance's blood in my bidon. I can get up winnets pass with the brakes on.
My first "adult" road bike has 52-38 and a 7 speed 28-12 cassette, and hopeless Tektro rim caliper brakes it has been relegated to occasional use since I built a Kaffenback with Avis BB7 Road disc brakes front and back and a compact chainset with 28-11 over 10 cogs on the back.
It takes a wee bit of getting used to the rim brakes after spending most of the year on Disc Shod bikes with a good gearing range, I think you've just had a bit of a culture shock!
So basically, ride it and get used to the (lack of) brakes, ride on the hoods covering the brakes (you don't have to use the drops, and really most rarely use them) and when it comes to gearing, you can measure progress by wrapping a tape measure round your thigh (oh and timing your self).
Just because it is possible to get up something like winnats with a 25 at the back it does't make it a good idea.
No, just because you can't get up Winnats doesn't mean someone else can't. And don't bring up the Pro thing, and say wiggo and Froome are using tiny gears and spinning. UK climbs are nothing like the alps or pyrennes. Makes more sense to look at the Ardennes and the way pros ride those climbs. Spinning is more efficient but out of the saddle in a bigger gear is faster. You generate more power out of the saddle than you do in the saddle.
Spinning is more efficient but out of the saddle in a bigger gear is faster. You generate more power out of the saddle than you do in the saddle.
Hence why keeping a high cadence is the best way. You lift you heart rate too much to do extended climbing out the saddle in a high gear, in the end staying in the saddle using a gear you can spin is faster over a long climb. Might not be too good for the bottom mind.
Hence why keeping a high cadence is the best way. You lift you heart rate too much to do extended climbing out the saddle in a high gear, in the end staying in the saddle using a gear you can spin is faster over a long climb. Might not be too good for the bottom mind.
and in most of the uk there aren't that many long climbs, so climbing out of the saddle is possible, the extended period being less than the climb, time and place, the skill is knowing when to climb in the saddle and when not to.
The climb I tend to start a road ride with is 7 miles long and 1500ft up. Spinning works for me.
I put a 12-28 cassette on my compact that will get me up most climbs, unfortunately I failed to get up the steepest section of the Bwlch y Groes pass on the Wild Wales, my mate who has a triple and 3stone lighter cleaned it, maybe if I had a 12-32 I could of done it, I thought the 12-28 was the max I could get 🙁
Just because it is possible to get up something like winnats with a 25 at the back it does't make it a good idea.
Agreed, and trust me 2/3rds the way up, it feels like a really, really, really, bad idea.
What I'm trying to suggest to the OP, is that if he doesn't want to splash the cash on new bits, then he takes option B which is to stick with what he's got and just get on with it - the existing gears are useable with the addition of some bloodymindedness.
FWIW, once I've killed the existing cassette, chain and rings, I will probably give compact a try, but until then, I'll carry on as I am. Be interesting to see whether being "more efficient" does make me faster, or if having lower gears available means I can be lazy and back off the pace more than I currently do, thus making me slower.
(interesting note from the STW weekender. I was running a 1x10 setup, and with all the short sharp climbs, I was really having to beast myself to get up them. As a result I was passing loads of people who were sitting and spinning. If the race had been a lap or 2 longer, I suspect they would have reovertaken me when I no longer had the stamina to power the bigger gear.)