ruirui

my redline CX i built up for my wife is with SRAM X0 36-22t + 11/36 rear. but now as she rides more.. she feels the front crank is a bit too much for her. can i put a 50/34 up front and just lengthen the 10 speed chain?

cny-bikeman

Absolutely do not go to a 50 tooth, as the last cog and probably the next one will be essentially useless. I'd go no higher than a 46.

HillRider

Your wife now has an 88 gear-inch high gear which, is quite low if she has a downhill and/or stiff tailwind to ride. A cadence of 100 rpm gives her about 26 mph. However a 50T chainring increases that to 122 gear-inches or 36 mph at 100 rpm and that's much too high for any one who isn't a very strong rider. As cny-bikeman recommended a 44 or 46T chainring will increase her high gear significantly without putting it so high as to be useless.

ruirui

thanks guys.. another way i was thinking is maybe just upgrade the chainring to 42-28t. wifey runs out of gears when going downhill.. which the fastest she's taken was 35mph.

https://www.sram.com/sram/mountain/p...crankset#specs

but not sure which brands i can use without breaking the bank?

or better off to just sell it and get a Rival22 with 46/36t?

oldbobcat

For a 2x MTB setup, you're not going to find rings larger than 42/28, and if you did, the XO FD wouldn't work with them. Best to get a road/cyclocross crankset and the appropriate front derailleur. If this is as I suspect, a 2x10 configuration, get the 2x10 Rival or Force components, not 22.

ruirui

oldbobcat: why not the 22 version? not much different between the 22 version vs the old rival or force.. is there?