Originally Posted by
aggiegrads
I have little use for the 48t ring in the winter. I have a hilly route, and if I am spinning out on the middle ring, I'm content to let her roll and coast. Would replacing the outer ring with a solid bash guard negate the need for a pant leg strap? I use rain pants year round and have always used a strap around the pant leg, but the strap also limits airflow and makes it hard to cool off.
You do not need to replace the 48T. You can just mount a chainguard ring on top of the 3rd ring for good. The rule of thumb is to go with 4T more, so it should be 52T. You can get such a ring on Ebay for under $30, in my memory, with mounting hardware included. The spacers provided with the ring may be too narrow though to clear FD, so you may end up investing additionally in extra narrow spacers and bolt spacers may work as well.