Originally Posted by
BengeBoy
No, they're about the same. Try using Sheldon Brown's gear calculator and see for yourself.
The whole appeal of the SRAM Apex is that you can combine a big cassette in the rear with a "normal" 50 x 34 compact crank and get about the same low gear as a common "road" triple (which you have) with a 30 tooth inner chain ring.
It seems you already have a road triple, and want to go lower.
There are several ways you can get lower gears w/out changing out the brifters (which gets expen$ive).
1. See if you can put a 26T or 28T inner chainring on your triple.
2. I think you might also be able to put on a larger cassette in rear with your current RD; if not I *think* you can use a SRAM Apex RD with a 30T or 32T rear cassette and keep your current brifters.
If you do both 1 and 2 you'll have very low gearing.
Thanks for this... I did begin have a little doubt there.
On my old Lemond -9 speed- I had a 30T in the back (Thanks Harris Cyclery). Set up with a stock 105 RD.
I worked great. I haven't found a 10-speed 30T. Maybe I should look again.
Brifters are not cheap, no. I learned that when I bought the 6700s to replace my dead 6600s.
I can definitely feel the dfifierence between the Ultegra brifters/FD on the Giant vs the 105 on the Jamis.
I'm not adverse to buying new brifters.