Originally Posted by
fwh32720
I just started commuting with a mountain bike with slicks, and have been spinning through gears. LBS said I can increase chain ring from 42 to 44 teeth. Would this be worth the expense for the performance?
I'd be tempted to go even higher. If it has a Shimano front derailer and he said that because it is rated for 44, it can actually handle at least two teeth more. You'd feel more of a difference going up to a 46 than you would just going up two to 44, which I suspect you'd hardly notice. It's quite likely you could move up to a 48 without changing front derailers too.
Of course, the other thing you can do is change the rear cassette. If it isn't an 11- something, you can get more high speed cruising by moving to a cassette with an 11 tooth cog as its smallest.