Cyclocross - Cyclocross Crank Ratio...help!

Hey I've got an old Schwinn Sprint Bike with vertical dropouts and i wanna convert it into a ss cyclocross bike. I'm a little bit confused on what gear ratio i should run on it...i had in mind something close to a 40/17 but im not sure if that will work for cyclocross well or not. I've ridden my friends bianchi San Jose which i believe has a 42/16 on the freewheel setup and that felt pretty comfortable but i was still considering getting a ratio that is just a little bit smaller so i can climb easier. What ratio do u think i should run on the bike? Im in need of help greatly...i definatley dont wanna buy a new crank and freewheel that im not comfortable with!

Hey I've got an old Schwinn Sprint Bike with vertical dropouts and i wanna convert it into a ss cyclocross bike. I'm a little bit confused on what gear ratio i should run on it...i had in mind something close to a 40/17 but im not sure if that will work for cyclocross well or not. I've ridden my friends bianchi San Jose which i believe has a 42/16 on the freewheel setup and that felt pretty comfortable but i was still considering getting a ratio that is just a little bit smaller so i can climb easier. What ratio do u think i should run on the bike? Im in need of help greatly...i definatley dont wanna buy a new crank and freewheel that im not comfortable with!


If you actually intend on racing it, 42/16 is too big, unless you're a monster. 40/17 is more reasonable. I got my best SS results using 39/18.

thanks for the help but do u have any crank recommendations, especially a crank that i could get under or around 100 that is a 39t. what are u using?

I would look for a used road crank. They come with a 39 and a 53.