Cruiser Gearing
#1
Banned.
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Cruiser Gearing
My Fito Madena came with a 44t chainring in the front matched with a Shimano 7 speed freewheel, 14 to 28t. After riding it a bit, I swapped out that way-too-big chainring with a Lucky 7 36t. This combo works way better for me, and I am able to use way more of the gears while maintaining much more consistent cadence and higher speeds. I would love to hear what others are using. Eventually I am planning to ditch the heavy one piece crank and install a lighter 3 piece alloy crank.
#3
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I see nothing wrong with lowering the gearing on any bike .
I’ve swapped out chainrings , freewheels, and cassettes on several bike to lower the gearing .
On one of my Electra Cruiser 1’s I swapped out the rear cog for a 23 tooth . I spin out around 11mph , but climb hills without standing up .
IMO , Cruiser Bikes should be just that , an easy peddling cruising bike .
I love making Multi speed cruisers Out of mountain bikes because of the lower gearing .
I’ve swapped out chainrings , freewheels, and cassettes on several bike to lower the gearing .
On one of my Electra Cruiser 1’s I swapped out the rear cog for a 23 tooth . I spin out around 11mph , but climb hills without standing up .
IMO , Cruiser Bikes should be just that , an easy peddling cruising bike .
I love making Multi speed cruisers Out of mountain bikes because of the lower gearing .
#4
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My 21st century Schwinn Jaguar cruiser (wife's Jaguar, too) both came with a 46T chainring and a Shimano 7 speed rear with 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26.
My wife and youngest daughter actually cruise on the bike, usually in 3rd gear. Which is 46/21 or 56.8 gear inches with the 26 x 2.125 tires.
I rode my Jaguar for quick exercise, not cruising, with 5th gear my usual choice. Which is 46/17 or 70.2 gear inches with the same tires. Typical exercise speeds in that gear would be 15 to 16 mph according to the local street side radar speed signs.
That gear range works good around here because we have no hills, just wind.
My wife and youngest daughter actually cruise on the bike, usually in 3rd gear. Which is 46/21 or 56.8 gear inches with the 26 x 2.125 tires.
I rode my Jaguar for quick exercise, not cruising, with 5th gear my usual choice. Which is 46/17 or 70.2 gear inches with the same tires. Typical exercise speeds in that gear would be 15 to 16 mph according to the local street side radar speed signs.
That gear range works good around here because we have no hills, just wind.
#5
Banned.
Thread Starter
My 21st century Schwinn Jaguar cruiser (wife's Jaguar, too) both came with a 46T chainring and a Shimano 7 speed rear with 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26.
My wife and youngest daughter actually cruise on the bike, usually in 3rd gear. Which is 46/21 or 56.8 gear inches with the 26 x 2.125 tires.
I rode my Jaguar for quick exercise, not cruising, with 5th gear my usual choice. Which is 46/17 or 70.2 gear inches with the same tires. Typical exercise speeds in that gear would be 15 to 16 mph according to the local street side radar speed signs.
That gear range works good around here because we have no hills, just wind.
My wife and youngest daughter actually cruise on the bike, usually in 3rd gear. Which is 46/21 or 56.8 gear inches with the 26 x 2.125 tires.
I rode my Jaguar for quick exercise, not cruising, with 5th gear my usual choice. Which is 46/17 or 70.2 gear inches with the same tires. Typical exercise speeds in that gear would be 15 to 16 mph according to the local street side radar speed signs.
That gear range works good around here because we have no hills, just wind.
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#6
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A while back on my Nirve 7 speed cruiser, redid the drivetrain for more usable gearing, as there quite some moderate to steep hills where I ride.
First to go was the mega range freewheel, the 1st to 2nd shift is quite a large gap. Went to 13-34 rear cassette and rims from an older MTB.
Up front did the one piece crankset conversion to a 34 tooth sprocket. Much better for climbing hills.
First to go was the mega range freewheel, the 1st to 2nd shift is quite a large gap. Went to 13-34 rear cassette and rims from an older MTB.
Up front did the one piece crankset conversion to a 34 tooth sprocket. Much better for climbing hills.
Last edited by ed h; 06-19-20 at 10:16 AM. Reason: added image
#7
Senior Member
I like the simplicity of most of these bikes. I ride a Specialized Roll Sport with 21 gears and, with no hills in my area, end up only using 3-4 of them. The bike is over-equipped for my purposes.
#8
Senior Member
The stock approx 41 - 82 gear inch (GI) range your bike came with does seem optimistic for a cruiser style bike. While I seldom use under 41 GI's on my Giant Sedona comfort bike becaues it's mostly flat here, It's good to have some down to the 33 GI's you get now for fighting brisk winds and climbing challenging hills.
My bike came with a 28/38/48T crankset and the Mega range freewheel ed h tossed, and understandably so. It's OK on my bike thanks to its 3 chainrings. But with only one chainring, Not vary practical. In fact that is one reason I didn't buy Giant's Cypress instead. I do like the simplicity of a single chainring, And the stock 42T unit on the Cypress with the mega range freewheel would give me 33 GI's too, But the next step up is 47 GI. WAY too much of a gap.
A 14 - 28 freewheel and a 38T chainring might have worked well for most of my rides giving me a 10 kph @ 60 rpm - 27 kph @ 80 rpm range.
My bike came with a 28/38/48T crankset and the Mega range freewheel ed h tossed, and understandably so. It's OK on my bike thanks to its 3 chainrings. But with only one chainring, Not vary practical. In fact that is one reason I didn't buy Giant's Cypress instead. I do like the simplicity of a single chainring, And the stock 42T unit on the Cypress with the mega range freewheel would give me 33 GI's too, But the next step up is 47 GI. WAY too much of a gap.
A 14 - 28 freewheel and a 38T chainring might have worked well for most of my rides giving me a 10 kph @ 60 rpm - 27 kph @ 80 rpm range.
Last edited by xroadcharlie; 06-19-20 at 03:51 PM.
#9
Senior Member
True, we are all different and so are our riding situations. If I ever move to a place that has hills, I would probably appreciate having all those gears.
#10
Bicyclerider4life
My "main ride" these days is a Miami Sun (traditional) trike with the optional 7 speed (14 to 28 tooth) derailleur and rear disk brake.
It came with a 36 tooth chainring.
Because I usually have a "somewhat" heavy load (no, not me) and pull a garden/nursery cart with it, I changed out the 36 tooth chainring for a 28 tooth.
I want ro put on a 14-32 or 14-36 in back.
I'm hauling stuff; not racing. My racing days ended roughly 40 years before I was born.
On some of the hills with 250 pounds in the basket, and 1200 pounds in the lawn/garden cart (I wasn't even overloaded; my garden/nursey cart has a 1400 pound capacity) a 1:1 "granny" gear isn't low enough.
It came with a 36 tooth chainring.
Because I usually have a "somewhat" heavy load (no, not me) and pull a garden/nursery cart with it, I changed out the 36 tooth chainring for a 28 tooth.
I want ro put on a 14-32 or 14-36 in back.
I'm hauling stuff; not racing. My racing days ended roughly 40 years before I was born.
On some of the hills with 250 pounds in the basket, and 1200 pounds in the lawn/garden cart (I wasn't even overloaded; my garden/nursey cart has a 1400 pound capacity) a 1:1 "granny" gear isn't low enough.
Last edited by bicyclridr4life; 08-03-20 at 11:41 PM.
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#12
Banned
2 speed kick back coaster hubs are great on cruisers 1st gets you started, up to 2nd, your cruising speed...
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#13
Junior Member
I have a single speed cruiser and I’m thinking my next one will be a 3 speed. Don’t really need more than that.
#14
Rhapsodic Laviathan
My Fito Madena came with a 44t chainring in the front matched with a Shimano 7 speed freewheel, 14 to 28t. After riding it a bit, I swapped out that way-too-big chainring with a Lucky 7 36t. This combo works way better for me, and I am able to use way more of the gears while maintaining much more consistent cadence and higher speeds. I would love to hear what others are using. Eventually I am planning to ditch the heavy one piece crank and install a lighter 3 piece alloy crank.
#15
Senior Member
3 properly spaced gears, perhaps the two I used plus a lower gear for challenging hills would be a huge improvement over a fixed gear without the complexity of derailleurs.
I had a 3 speed "Mustang" style bike when I was a kid. Loved that bike. Used 2nd much of the time, 1st for accelerating and climbing, 3rd with a tailwind.
Last edited by xroadcharlie; 08-17-20 at 08:39 AM.