Originally Posted by adriano

this seemed on topic enough, but should i just start a new thread?

im brakeless and want to be able to accelerate and skid more quickly and easily, but i dont want to really cut my top speed or spin like a top all day. i ride in urban philadelphia, which is almost all flat and favoring acceleration and deceleration on demand over consistent top speed. when i run, i like the a 1600m pace but not the 800m as i have great endurance over a distance with poorer endurance as the force per stride increases. i think i can handle a higher spin well as long as the gearing doesn't require as much force as it does now. im at 48x16 right now, which is a bit much for me at 145 despite strong legs, if i do say so. the current difficulty in braking and my locale dont let me really use the top end much anyway, but the lower revolutions is nice. ill be maintaining 48t with either my current chainring or a friends so the change will be in the cog.

assuming 170mm crank arms, 44x17 is about 48x18.5. i have 165mm arms, which i think increases the ratio slightly, so your 44x17@170 is about 48x19@165. ive read up and heard a lot of different arguements for 48x17, x18, and x19. 19t too low speed, high spin? 18t still hard to accelerate or skid and poor skid patch count? for me, i think its between 18t and 19t, but thats my guess. should i just man up and wrangle 80+ inches? i could buy slew of cogs and see what works, but thats not financially possible. im trying to make the most educated, and preferably one-time, cog purchase. after fording my verbiage, whats your take and why? personal experience preferred; haters can lick me bollocks, haha.