rjenks

Newby here. Recently bought a second hand Dahon Archer (basically a Speed P8). Looking to change the chainring for a smaller one. New to cycling and not the strongest, therefore looking at having smaller gearing,I also live in a hilly area. I believe that the current chainring has a 53t (Prowheel), I think it's a 130 BCD, (5 bolt crank, with the nearest bolts measuring 76mm between approx). Looking at getting 46t or 48t, not to bothered at pushing a big gear at the moment, any suggestions about what to buy? Prefer just to buy the chainring itself as it's more economical or would I be better off buying the whole chainset (no idea what to buy here as I'm not sure what kind of BB I have or will need). Any help much appreciated

ThorUSA

your model is not sold in the US hence I am not absolutely sure
does your chainring has 5 bolts to hold it to the spider / arms of your crank ?
( not any screws which hold a chainring protector ....)
If yes than any 130 chainring will fit ....
if not than you need a new crank, preferably with the 5 bolts in it so you could change later on.


watch out that you do NOT buy a BMX or some fixie cranks as they have 1/2 inch chains and not 3/32 widdh like all derailleur chains .... You might need a to buy a crankset without any rings and get the fitting ring seperatedly


You will need to shorten the chain as well... no big deal


Thor

rjenks

Thanks for that, it does have allen/hex bolts, on the arm, now need an odd chainring nut wrench to take it off, or take it down the LBS

bargainguy

In a pinch before I owned a chainring tool, I used a wide flat blade screwdriver to hold the back while I unscrewed the hex bolt from the front. Warning - be careful when doing this, because if your flat blade screwdriver has sharp edges and you slip, you could gouge your hand.

rjenks

Any suggestions of good quality, yet budget chainring replacement?

rhenning

Your last statement is a contradiction of terms. If you want to save money go to a bike coop or bike store that sells used parts or clearance items. The biggest one would be E-Bay. You will get hundreds if not thousands of hits there. Me I would look in my basement first. Roger

Abu Mahendra

LitePro

rhenning

Lite pro is nice stuff but it is not cheap. From memory it would probably cost about $50+ to go that route. Roger

BruceMetras

I like Vuelta Flat Chainrings.. Nice quality, low price .. Flat rings are good for single chainring applications as they are not ramped or pinned, so the chain tends to stay put ..

Abu Mahendra

Dealer markup and transportation costs. Here in SEAsia, a Litepro chainring goes for no more than $35.

jur

I got some off AliExpress at about that, postage included.

rjenks

Thanks for all the info, decided on a Stronglight 130 BCD Dural 48T

tudorowen1

48 tooth will not lower your gears significantly..with a 52 teeth and an 11 to 32 rear cassette gear range will be..32.5 inches to 94.5..with a 48 tooth..30 inches to 87..Try a 42 tooth..26 inches to 76..You should still be able to manage 15 to 17 mph comfortably and get up a lot steeper hills..

fietsbob

I like the stainless steel Chainrings Surly Offers, for their long wear life.. in 130bcd, they offer 38t to 50t.

& they're really flat ... without a counter sunk hole edge, common in Al alloy chainrings, ,( so the bolt/nuts are flush)

so you can flip them over for another go..






....

L Arnold

If you are going to the trouble of changing the chainring, consider changing the crank and bottom bracket at the same time. In my experience, some of the bikes really benefit from BB upgrades (especially the d7 level but some others as well).

The smallest chain-ring you can get for a 130bcd crank is a 46 tooth chainwheel (chainring). Since you don't have a front derailleur try to get a chainwheel cover as well. That will both protect you from the chain a little bit, but ore importantly, it will protect the chainwheel from damage.

Abu Mahendra

This is often true. Those stock cranksets and BBs are real heavy. Again, LitePro sells complete hollowtech cranksets with BB and integrated chainguard for about $80 (YPMV). Rings range from 45T to 58T.

tudorowen1

The smallest chainring you can get for a 130bcd is 38 teeth not 46!

fietsbob

but with little wheels that (38) may not be high enough .

rjenks

Now considering 44T Brompton chainring as it has a guard as well, should fit as it's 130BCD

L Arnold

Noted. I will look for a source. I have been working on Gates systems and 4i6 s their smallest (not a direct comparison but generally close)

38 is a practical size. Standard count for Vitesse I7 so a nice upgrade path also.

You could also go with a Patterson Drive which is 28 tooth with a second gear set (internal) in the front, that brings an effective 46. You can also use a 130 Adapter on it to bump the 28 up (then multiply x 1.6 for the second effective gear set).

I really like the Patterson.