Compact Cranks
02-27-11 | 05:47 PM
#27
Allez means go.
Joined: Jul 2008
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From: Two Rivers, WI
02-27-11 | 07:07 PM
#28
Senior Member
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For the weight weenie, compacts are lighter. I switched to a compact on my new bike and never looked back...because I'm so slow everybody was in front of me, but that had nothing to do with the crank selection. I was even slower with those heavy full sized rings.
Check out this cool gearing calculator...
https://www.gear-calculator.com/#
Check out this cool gearing calculator...
https://www.gear-calculator.com/#
02-27-11 | 08:08 PM
#29
Super Moderator
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From: Ffld Cnty Connecticut
Bikes: Old Steelies I made, Old Cannondales
Gotta say I appreciate this thread! Currently running 50/34 and 11/21 (10s), but am getting killed on the hills, however I do hit the 11 on occasion in some areas and never the 34. I'm thinking of going to a 23 on the back to stay off the 34, but don't have the knowledge or experience to know better either way, but from what I'm reading that seems to be the way to go.
Just how bad is it to be totally topped out, meaning 54/23? Is it a wear issue or potential mechanical failure? I'm pretty strong legged and haven't snapped anything, yet!
Glad I found you all!!
Just how bad is it to be totally topped out, meaning 54/23? Is it a wear issue or potential mechanical failure? I'm pretty strong legged and haven't snapped anything, yet!
Glad I found you all!!
That's like having a stick shift car and avoiding 1st and 2nd gear.
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02-27-11 | 09:42 PM
#31
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From: Driftless
Bikes: Caad8, Mukluk 3, Trek Superfly, Gary Fisher Irwin.
also your gear ratios are closer with a 50 which is more efficient but can also make you weak. Riding in the 52/53 all the time will make you tough or kill your knees. years ago I used to ride 52 before I got a front derailuer. so I was riding up chilikoot in 52-26 on platform pedals. probably survived because i rode minimally.
02-27-11 | 11:17 PM
#32
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Personal preference I'd say. Living in the Rocky Mountains there are times I wish I had a compact. However, I'd be lost without my 53x11, particularly in races. Hammering down a mountain with a 53x12 you spin out against guys with a 53x11. I just use an 11x26 cassette to have the extra low gear.
02-28-11 | 01:36 AM
#33
Recusant Iconoclast
Joined: Jan 2011
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From: Tsawwassen, BC
Bikes: Look 695, Wilier Izoard
+1. I live in a largely geriatric community with mamils so my LBS kits out most of their bikes with compacts.
02-28-11 | 06:34 AM
#34
OMC
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From: South Louisiana
Bikes: Specialized Allez Sprint, Look 585, Specialized Crux E5 Sport, Trek Domane SL6
02-28-11 | 12:28 PM
#35
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What's wrong with that? One of the benifits for me of a compact is that on flatish ground I don't have to use the small ring, period. Short rolling hills the lowest gear I need is a 50/25, where with a standard crank I would be down in the 39 ring. Less front shifting is a good thing for alot of people.
Last edited by clink83; 02-28-11 at 12:32 PM.
02-28-11 | 12:31 PM
#36
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Personal preference I'd say. Living in the Rocky Mountains there are times I wish I had a compact. However, I'd be lost without my 53x11, particularly in races. Hammering down a mountain with a 53x12 you spin out against guys with a 53x11. I just use an 11x26 cassette to have the extra low gear.
02-28-11 | 12:56 PM
#37
pan y agua
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 31,810
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From: Jacksonville
Bikes: Willier Zero 7; Merlin Extralight; Calfee Dragonfly tandem, Calfee Adventure tandem; Cervelo P2; Motebecane Ti Fly 29er; Motebecanne Phantom Cross; Schwinn Paramount Track bike
Compacts give you a wider range than a normal double, so they are good in hilly areas. .... maybe you'd like it ?
From the master, Sheldon Brown https://www.sheldonbrown.com/gain.html
Gear Inches
The simplest system in common use is the "gear inch" system. This dates back to before the invention of the chain-drive bicycle. It originally was the diameter of the drive wheel of a high-wheel bicycle. When chain-drive "safety" bikes came in, the same system was used, multiplying the drive wheel diameter by the sprocket ratio. It is very easy to calculate: the diameter of the drive wheel, times the size of the front sprocket divided by the size of the rear sprocket. This gives a convenient two- or three-digit number. The examples listed above are all around 74-75 inches. The lowest gear on most mountain bikes is around 22-26 inches. The highest gear on road racing bikes is usually around 108-110 inches. Unfortunately, the handwriting is on the wall for all inch-based measurement systems.
From the master, Sheldon Brown https://www.sheldonbrown.com/gain.html
Gear Inches
The simplest system in common use is the "gear inch" system. This dates back to before the invention of the chain-drive bicycle. It originally was the diameter of the drive wheel of a high-wheel bicycle. When chain-drive "safety" bikes came in, the same system was used, multiplying the drive wheel diameter by the sprocket ratio. It is very easy to calculate: the diameter of the drive wheel, times the size of the front sprocket divided by the size of the rear sprocket. This gives a convenient two- or three-digit number. The examples listed above are all around 74-75 inches. The lowest gear on most mountain bikes is around 22-26 inches. The highest gear on road racing bikes is usually around 108-110 inches. Unfortunately, the handwriting is on the wall for all inch-based measurement systems.
Otherwise, it's a totally antiquated way of looking at things, and it's make more sense to think of gain ratios, or better yet mph at a given cadence.
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You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
02-28-11 | 01:17 PM
#38
pan y agua
Joined: Aug 2005
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From: Jacksonville
Bikes: Willier Zero 7; Merlin Extralight; Calfee Dragonfly tandem, Calfee Adventure tandem; Cervelo P2; Motebecane Ti Fly 29er; Motebecanne Phantom Cross; Schwinn Paramount Track bike
Personal preference I'd say. Living in the Rocky Mountains there are times I wish I had a compact. However, I'd be lost without my 53x11, particularly in races. Hammering down a mountain with a 53x12 you spin out against guys with a 53x11. I just use an 11x26 cassette to have the extra low gear.
Better approach often is to push hard at the top to accelerate quickly, and by the point you're geting into the high 40's tuck in, and recover.
__________________
You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
02-28-11 | 03:19 PM
#39
Fat but Fit!
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 174
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From: Iowa
Bikes: Lynskey R340, Lynskey R230, Fisher Zebrano
I made the switch (on Ultegra 9) with some anxiety about 3-4 years ago and was glad of it. I was tickled a few years later to see compacts become standard - even on higher end bikes. I now have a 50/34 and 11/25, and since I don't like cross chaining at all (I leave two cogs unused on each end), having an 11 on the back allows me to go to 34-13 and maintain 20-21 comfortably. The only time I ever see the 50 is with a BIG tailwind or long downhill - strict recreational guy here.
02-28-11 | 03:29 PM
#40
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I'm really not sure that's true if you have a good spin. 53x12 at 140 rpm is 50mph. At that speed you're getting to the point where you have to put out an awful lot of watts for a very marginal increase in speed.
Better approach often is to push hard at the top to accelerate quickly, and by the point you're geting into the high 40's tuck in, and recover.
Better approach often is to push hard at the top to accelerate quickly, and by the point you're geting into the high 40's tuck in, and recover.
02-28-11 | 03:30 PM
#41
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Joined: May 2010
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From: Madison, WI
What's wrong with that? One of the benifits for me of a compact is that on flatish ground I don't have to use the small ring, period. Short rolling hills the lowest gear I need is a 50/25, where with a standard crank I would be down in the 39 ring. Less front shifting is a good thing for alot of people.
It is absolutely ridiculous to struggle your way up hills, overworking your system and destroying your knees, because you have a lower gear and refuse to use it. Shift down when you start climbing, shift back up when you get to the flats/downhill. It's not a difficult concept. Really. I promise.
02-28-11 | 03:39 PM
#42
Recusant Iconoclast
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From: Tsawwassen, BC
Bikes: Look 695, Wilier Izoard
A good thing for a lot of people who have compensation issues.
It is absolutely ridiculous to struggle your way up hills, overworking your system and destroying your knees, because you have a lower gear and refuse to use it. Shift down when you start climbing, shift back up when you get to the flats/downhill. It's not a difficult concept. Really. I promise.
It is absolutely ridiculous to struggle your way up hills, overworking your system and destroying your knees, because you have a lower gear and refuse to use it. Shift down when you start climbing, shift back up when you get to the flats/downhill. It's not a difficult concept. Really. I promise.
02-28-11 | 04:17 PM
#43
pan y agua
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 31,810
Likes: 1,232
From: Jacksonville
Bikes: Willier Zero 7; Merlin Extralight; Calfee Dragonfly tandem, Calfee Adventure tandem; Cervelo P2; Motebecane Ti Fly 29er; Motebecanne Phantom Cross; Schwinn Paramount Track bike
Oh it's totally like Golf. You don't want to let your buddy know that you needed a 5 iron to reach the green he just hit with a 7 iron; just as you don't want to reveal you had to use the little ring to get up that last climb.
__________________
You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
You could fall off a cliff and die.
You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.
02-28-11 | 06:02 PM
#44
Full Member
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 241
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From: Salida, CO
Bikes: Ibis Hakka MX, Ibis Mojo 3
South Central CO, surrounded by Sawatch, Elk and Wet mtns. 15 14ers in this COUNTY alone. Switched to 50/34 a couple years ago to save my knees. A 'short' climb here is 45 minutes. Was riding 12-27, got tired of spinning out on the descents. Put on 11-28 and am looking forward to the training rides this spring. 
03-01-11 | 10:27 AM
#45
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A good thing for a lot of people who have compensation issues.
It is absolutely ridiculous to struggle your way up hills, overworking your system and destroying your knees, because you have a lower gear and refuse to use it. Shift down when you start climbing, shift back up when you get to the flats/downhill. It's not a difficult concept. Really. I promise.
It is absolutely ridiculous to struggle your way up hills, overworking your system and destroying your knees, because you have a lower gear and refuse to use it. Shift down when you start climbing, shift back up when you get to the flats/downhill. It's not a difficult concept. Really. I promise.
Last edited by clink83; 03-01-11 at 10:30 AM.
03-01-11 | 10:29 AM
#46
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When I played golf on my highschool team I could hit a 5 iron as far as most people could hit their driver due to my lankyness, and was more accurate with it than with my driver, so I usually used it off the tee. Is that "compensation" too, or just using the right club for the situation based on my abilities?
03-01-11 | 10:34 AM
#47
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From: Ffld Cnty Connecticut
Bikes: Old Steelies I made, Old Cannondales
You're missing the point. I can spin a 50/25, so I don't have to shift in the front on flat/rolling terrain. When I had a standard crank, I had to shift to the small ring to keep above 80rpms. Eliminating the front shift for short climbs is really, really useful on flat/rolling terrain. It's not about compensation, since I'm not a masher. As soon as I have a real climb, I switch to the 34t and use it for what it's designed for.
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03-01-11 | 10:41 AM
#48
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Cliff notes version : Switching to a compact w/ a cassette that allows you to stay in the big ring instead of shifting to the small ring for short climbs is a good idea, not a bad idea, espcially for a guy like this:
Currently running 50/34 and 11/21 (10s), but am getting killed on the hills, however I do hit the 11 on occasion in some areas and never the 34. I'm thinking of going to a 23 on the back to stay off the 34, but don't have the knowledge or experience to know better either way, but from what I'm reading that seems to be the way to go.
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