Caymandiver1

recently bought an older Quintana Roo road/tri bike. even though I ride almost every day I still have a long way to go in understanding the in's and out's on this bike.
couple of questions about gearing. the area I am riding has some substantial hills and I want to ride NW Arkansas that has some real hills so I am contemplating making the following changes and would like your input

switching from a 39/53 crankset to a 34/50 compact crankset pros/cons?

current cassette is a 11/23 thinking about a 11/30 or 11/27 which one would be best pros/cons?

BTW this is a 9 speed

Thanks

10 Wheels

12/32 on the cassette

Looigi

There are three things to consider with any gearing setup, the lowest available gear, the highest available gear and gaps between adjacent gears. You select among the options to arrive at the best comprise for the ride based on the course and rider. For the lowest gear, select one that allows reasonable cadence up any longer pitches. It's usually OK if you have to slow cadence and push hard for a minute or so up the steepest pitches on a given course. The high gear is similar that you want to be able to maintain a useful cadence on long high-speed runs. It's OK if you spin out on descents that don't last long anyway, where maintaining a good aero tuck will be faster than trying to pedal, or the recovery afforded by not pedaling with force will net a better average speed.

The reason you don't want to have a huge total gearing range is that it starts to open up gaps between adjacent gears. These become problematic on longer constant stretches where you find adjacent gears are either to high or to low for what would be optimum for you on that stretch.

StanSeven

That's a bike for tris. The present gearing sounds about right if you are using it for that purpose. If you plan on using it for just road riding, it's not ideal. You might want to sell it snd get a straight road bike.

interungulate

I agree with 10 Wheels, 12/32 on the cassette. I'm running 11/32, but that's 11-speed. The extra climbing gears (versus a stock 11/28 or 12/28) are much more useful than lower gears with slightly smaller gaps. YMMV, though.

Homebrew01

You may need a longer cage rear derailleur, to handle the longer chain.

Caymandiver1

Thanks that is a future option but right now I'm trying to make do with what I have. not optimal but till I learn more about what I want and need I hesitate to spend more money. I got a really good deal on this bike and so far I really like it being the best bike I've ever had. I just want to make a few inexpensive tweaks and gearing seems to be one of them.

I'm thinking 11/27 I still need some gears going down the easy side am I going to miss the other 3 teeth of a 30? I'm not dismissing any advice just trying to work my way through this. Seeing how relatively inexpensive cassettes are I may buy more than one and try different gearing

fietsbob

Pros race with 11-27 53-39, climb the Alps and The Pyrenees Mountains.

maybe you need to get the body into power shape ?

I'm more a Tourist with a Road Bike.. its got a triple crank , I neither run or swim much.

Id buy a different chain to stay with each cassette , since they will wear into each other
and replacing just the cassette can cause chain's skipping .
quick links and the Park pliers for the purpose.. make it easy to open ..

Caymandiver1

as mentioned in the first post that's what it is all about and at 54 yo I don't think I'm going to make the pros anytime soon and in the meantime I need to climb some hills.

Caymandiver1

sorry I neglected to say that earlier that was another thread. But yes I need to get in better shape that is why I'm riding

StanSeven

That's a good choice then to start with. A 30 likely will require another chain so if you are working with a budget, you might want to try the less expensive options first.

Also unless you go with a compact crank, why the 11? That's for a crazy fast speed with standard crank rings. Most people rarely spin out a 12.

Caymandiver1

Sorry if I didn't say but I am installing a compact crank next week

JmanEspresso

On the easy stages they run those gears, yes. They need to fly down roads at 60kph, so 53-11 is needed.

But when they're hitting the big climbs, PLENTY of riders in the peloton will switch to compact crank, and depending on the stage, even throw on 11-30 or 11-32. Some of the super steep spring classic climbs, the ridiculously steep climbs on the Giro, and even the big boys they climb in France, all will have riders putting on the easier gearing.

The best climbers you watch on TV, the likes of Froome, Contador, Quintana, et al, climb like monsters. They spin the pedals at 90, even sometimes OVER 100 rpm. High cadence is what gets you up the climbs efficiently.

Im not saying that one shouldnt try and always get in better shape, but suggesting that based purely on the fact that they're wanting easier gears than a standard so called "pro" setup, is just ridiculous.

Riding a Compact Crank and a wide cassette, 12-30, 11-30/32, or even wider, is not weak, wrong, or noob. IF thats the gears that gets you up the climbs most efficiently, than thats what one needs. Setting up your bike in some convulted way based on what "the pros do", when thats not optimal for your needs, is not how you "look pro". You "look pro", by setting up your bike in such a way that allows you to tackle whatever type of terrain you come across, efficiently.

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OP, my suggestion would be, depending on the gradient and length, a Compact Crank for sure, and then a cassette to match. 11-28 is pretty solid for a lot of people, but, 11-32 can be done on most of the groups available. I believe its only DuraAce that doesnt officially support anything bigger than 28, and Ive not seen Campagnolo offer anything wider either. But, Sram has their WiFli derailuers to run bigger than 11-28, and Shimano offers the medium cage RD all the way up to Ultegra.

I live in an area that is dominated by hills and climbs galore. Literally any route I would want to take from my house, to anywhere, would include at least two, possibly many more, steep roads. For this simple fact, my bike is equipped with a compact crank, and being Im rocking 10speed at the moment, Ive got a 12-30 cassette. Truth be told, 99% of the climbs I encounter, I am confident in taking on as long as Im still feeling fresh enough. Long as my legs are still rocking, Ill hit the climb. As far as the wider spacing this cassette has, as opposed to like, something super tight like a 13-23, yes, there is difference in cadence and effort required at certain gear changes, but, two things. 1), its not a major difference, and Ive yet to run into a situation cruising along where I dont have the "right" gear for what I want to do. 2)the slight compromise made in that regard, so that I can have a gear which will get me up the climbs I want to climb... its not even a tradeoff IMO. Like I said, IMO of course, the right way to setup your bike, is based purely on the terrain your encountering and what you can do physically. Everything else is just nonsense.

Willbird

Also if you do any active recovery (easy days) factor that into your gearing choices too, you need even lower gears to go up a hill and keep your HR in zone 1 or two. Wind might come into the equation too.

Old School

JmanExpresso nailed it. The only thing I would add is that going bigger than 28t in the rear may necessitate a change to a longer cage RD.

Alias530

Pros usually have about DOUBLE the watts per kilogram of the average Joe Cyclist so saying that "pros can climb with XYZ so you should too" is absurd.

Xherion

Yeah, it's pretty silly to make the comparison. At extended 10+% grades, your average Joe cyclist will be going in the red pretty quickly even on a 34x28.

richietables 

Not sure if this was mentioned already, but my older QR has 650 wheels. That would change thoughts of gearing.

TrojanHorse

Have you mentioned your weight yet? If you're over 200# and you know the grades will be > 10% then go straight to the 12-32 cassette with your compact crank.

I can tackle most of the hills near me with a compact and 12-28 cassette and I like that combo for normal riding, but there are a few roads near me that make me want to barf even with a 32 tooth cog in the back, basically anything at 15% or above for a mile or more.

Just because you have a 32 tooth cog in the back doesn't mean you have to use it but it might be the difference between riding up a hill and cross training. Note that going from a standard crank and a 23 tooth cog to a compact with 26+ in the back is going to feel like an enormous difference.

Caymandiver1

right now I'm at 215 hoping for 190-95 by end of year. After today's ride I believe better technique along with better fitness will have a major impact when climbing hills. The compact crank and new cassette should be the icing on the cake.

Thanks to everyone for taking time to reply to this thread and help me sort this out

Caymandiver1

Ended up with the compact crank 50/34 and a 11/28 cassette. Due to the rain the last couple of days today was the first chance I've had to ride since making the switch. All I can say is WOW what an improvement can't wait till I can take it 40-50 miles this weekend.

Jseis 

I agree. I run a 50/39 with 11-28 cassette. My short arm derailleur barely handles the 28 and a 34 would be superior on climbs but then.... long arm D. At 60 years old and knee conscious, I like a 85+ rpm cadence thus low gearing is efficient gearing...not "bailout gearing". My MTB with slicks will out climb my road bike because gearing. Which is why I'll likely & eventually convert my road to a triple. That and dropping another 14 pounds.