Thanks for the responses.

My reasoning is that I rarely get onto the 52. But I spin out of the 39 too easily. When I do go to the 52, the double shift to a larger rear cog is pretty large.

Truth be told, I would rather go to a compact, but that requires all sorts of changes and expense. The idea of switching to a 42 middle ring is interesting. I would then need to go to my small ring more on the hills and wouldn't that also increase the cross-chaining?

My rides are hilly, but not mountainous. So, the choice is, would I rather spend more time in my middle ring, with slightly more time on the small ring or more time on the big ring and almost no time on the smallest ring?

What do you guys think?