vane171

I've looked at some threads related to gear calculations, looked at some external sites with calculators, but I don't find my gear options there and also it looks like not what I am after.

I ride a bike for many years and the top gear for hills on that bike is 40/23 which I find rather difficult going on bigger or longer hills.

Now I got this bike with the lowest gear on it 39/25 and I am wondering how much of a difference it will make. I can't ride the new bike in my usual ride area yet since I have to take it with me to Europe after this crazy virus dies down.

Just using common sense, one tooth on the front I take it makes little difference, probably negligible, compared to one on the sprocket. Probably can look at it as just two cogs extra sprocket on this new bike.

I looked around and found the same brand name and make crankset but with triple rings 52/39/30 (to replace my current 53/39) and assuming it will work on this new bike (most I worry about chain slack on 30T which might prove too much for the RD I have), I wonder if that won't be too easy gear now. I mean if that is too easy for a road bike. I don't talk about huge hills, no Alps or Pyrenees LOL, only shorter ones 10/12% or longer at maybe 5% on which I sometimes end up walking the bike, especially when I don't want to get too sweaty. At six decades of life behind me, I don't see much point staying in the saddle with 40/23 gear.

That old bike actually has one more sprocket 26T but can't shift to it because then the RD is hitting wheel spokes. I replaced most of its parts in 1990s and put on it the best what I had around, including that 8spd sprocket. The frame was built I think for 6spd or so in 1970s, had to push the rear stays apart quite a bit to mount the wheel with it.

If that new tripple crankset wouldn't work on the new bike (either not enough space for the third ring next to the frame or more likely that chain slack - with Ultegra RD-6600), I believe I should be able to mount it on that old bike. Without that option, I might not have risked buying that triple crank on blind.