Originally Posted by
Strawbunyan
I ended up with a 1x9 that is 34t X 11-42 as someone who doesnt know any better, it seems to get the job done. The 34x42 has a lot of spin to it and i actually dont seem to need it much for my particular commute. The one place i really really do need it is my last hill on the way home, it is very steep but at my current skill level i cant keep my legs spinning at that pace for that long and have to walk some of it still. Ill check out that calculator and do some research. My current drivetrain is some off brand "sram compatible" thing so I plan on changing it out eventually. Hopefully by then I will have a good idea of what i need.
Yeah, 20 gear inches might get you up that hill. On the other hand, there's nothing wrong with walking a bike up, particularly because it uses other muscles, just like cross-training. If you get a calf cramp, the best thing to do is get off and walk a while, it does more to stretch out your calves.
I just ran gear calc with those numbers and assuming 26" x 2.125" tires, don't know what you're running, and got a range from 21-80 gear inches. If that applies, that's great, you've threaded the needle well! I have 21-85 with my 2X setup, 85 is just enough to pedal down mild grades but otherwise coast, 21 is good for most steeper uphills, but even so, I sometimes get off and walk, just for the reasons above. I never miss having any higher gear. I NEED the low of 21. But if hill is not too long, I've learned to stand and climb better, with legs straight, you are not stressing your knees like if you were pushing hard seated, and it's great for your abdominal muscles. When climbing, not too fast, tiring, not too slow, having to pull too hard on the handlebars, but just between that where you are using mostly just your weight on the pedals, cadence (crank RPM) of perhaps about 50. Very efficient climbing that way.