D'oh. Yeah I meant 16t.

I ran into this same problem, but my solution involved keeping the 11 tooth and cutting the big ring size. I have always found the 34 tooth ring to be annoying unless paired with an 11-23 or similar small cassette. I switched to a 36/46 with an 1190 11-26. You can see that with the 46T, I can shift out of the small ring at about 14mph and still have a favorable chain line with the 46x21. Then the 46x11 can take me all the way to the mid 30s. I only need to use the small ring for the steeper hills.

I might even go smaller up front for solo rides. I like the 11 in the back. It's cheap to replace.

I run a 50/34 @11/28 for all my riding flat's and climbing this in on a 10 speed works for me just fine.

Centuries and 20% grades and fast descents I've hit 52.7 mph on a compact spinning that's about max for me.

I'll be doing plenty of regular road type riding with a lot of flats with 700x25mm tires. I will also be doing some 7 day light touring or so from Sacramento to San Diego with a couple of panniers in the back and moving up to 32mm tires. That's the main reason for the 11-32. I just bought a 5800 group set. The reason I decided on 5800 versus 6800 is because I'm not racing. So no TDF racing for me yet...but don't count me out I might start getting serious about my training. If I had to describe my strength and style as a rider, I would probably be a mixture of a Contador/Merckx hybrid in my mind...just not as fast, strong, or talented...so more like average joe with a TDF mindset...maybe even some what of a Fred?

Seriously mostly flat here around Sacramento. I'm a average rider not new to cycling, but never raced or plan on racing. I haven't been cycling much for the past year or so, and just got a bike again. Since...I will be doing some touring...but that's every once in a while, I figured just go with an 11-32 just in case...so if I ever need the big pie in the back, it's there. At the same time I do like efficiency so I probably would like tight spacing. I'll see how I like the 11-32 I guess once I install the group on my bike.

It's important to note I already went with the mid cage RD for the 5800 group which is supposedly optimized for the 11-32 cassette. How bad would the shifting be if I went with a 12-25 using the mid cage RD? Supposedly the mid cage is specifically for the 11-32 option...and is not optimized for anything else. One reason Why I'm kind of forced to go with an 11-32 as well.

I doubt you would notice any difference in derailleurs when using a smaller cassette(once the b-screw is adjusted).

High gear options these days are way higher than all but serious pros need. Pros are riding 53/11 at 30+ mph, so unless you spend time riding at 25+ mph you shouldn';t need anything as high as 50/11.

Also consider that before Eddy Merckx the pros were riding high gears of 50/13. It was Eddy that popularized the 53t and 12t sprockets are a comparatively recent innovation.

I would have agreed with you, five years ago... then I lived in Chicago for a few years. Riding in the right type of wind, those gaps become more noticeable in my experience.

Well, you know what they say about stuff we read online... LOL
It's not that simple, and it depends on use. No double with a tight cassette will ever give the same range as a triple. With a wide cassette, it can, but that is still dependent on crank/chain-ring selection. A 50-34 compact double doesn't replace a triple for tourists, but a 46-30 (or lower) might. I prefer having a triple on my rando bike, because the alternative isn't a double-crank, the alternative is having multiple cassettes and cranks and swapping them out every time I ride in a different geographic region. Let's make an opposite argument and say, a triple replaces the need to swap out gears for different conditions... a double doesn't replace that. But I'm an exception, I ride all over the country and my optimal gearing varies a lot depending on where I am.

I'm not a machine, I definitely don't need a 52 or 53t big ring, even riding down hills where I'm usually grabbing the brakes rather than trying to break a speed record (there are stop signs at the bottom of a lot of those hills). I'm not even sure I need a 50t in many conditions, although it's a nice compromise (and it is necessary for a fast paced club ride... if you ride with a fast paced club). On the low end, a 34t chainring is a great option for climbing in W.PA. I would never use it at all on flats. For me, riding around in Illinois, a 46t or 48t big ring would have been ideal... hell, I could have gone to a single ring up front and been happy most of the time. In those conditions, I would hate a 50-34 because it would be both too high and low for my personal sweet spot on flat ground. In PA 50-34 is a great option on the hills and the minimal flat ground available. As I already said, I love my triple because it gives me a 52 and 30 to play with in PA while I predominantly stay in the 42t when I visit Illinois.

Dave Moulton's Blog - Dave Moulton's Bike Blog - How a Single Ride Changed the Face of British Time*Trialing
Anquetil rode a 53 before Eddy ever threw a leg over a bike.

I'd never heard of a 50 before compacts became popular. 52-42 was always a standard chainset, and single chainrings were virtually always in the 40s.

50/34 and 11-32 in 11 speed. Even worse, but it does have a really low gear. So why is there an 11 cog with this? A rider that needs a 32 won't need the 11.
This set has decent coverage in the 15-20 mph range on both chainrings, good for many casual riders. But the 20-25 mph range has gigantic jumps.


Thanks for the graph. With this graph I can see why I like the compact with the 11-32. On most of my rides I'm in the small ring using gears 11 thru 14. I can increase my cadence to get 25 mph out of the 34-11. Any faster than that I move to the big ring primarily using gears 13 and 14. On a typical ride I probably only use the big ring 2 or 3 times. This doesn't leave any real gaps for me while having the option for some pretty steep climbs.

Now I do cross chain a lot, but with the Force 22 I don't notice or hear any rubbing while using the 34-11.

No way I'm almost never at 25mph unless I got a decent tail wind. I could probably hold 25mph for a very short period I'd imagine...but couldn't see myself even doing five miles at that speed...nut unless it was a perfect road, perfect weather, no wind, etc. Of course I'm usually solo riding so no drafting and line formations, etc. I'll be around 16-18 for the most part I would say and 14-15 with the delta breeze and headwind that I always run into up here.

I believe cadence, like a lot of things in cycling, can be improved with the correct training. Spend some time riding a fixed gear bike in rolling terrain can help a rider become more comfortable riding with a higher cadence. I do believe one's maximum cadence potential might be limited by genetics.

And age! I used to spin 20RPM higher in my comfort zone.................... Now, my comfort zone is 70-90 with about 100RPM max before I start bouncing.

I'm the opposite. I used to mash the pedals. This killed me on longer rides, because you can only mash the pedals so many times until your legs are toast. So I spend a few years concentrating on traning for higher cadence, and now 85-100 feels about right.

Bit too mucb overlap for my taste. I prefer to have a nice wide range. Whats the point of two rings when they mostly overlap?

Assuming a cadence of 90 RPM, the 50/11 combination should give you around 32 MPH. That would not be a limitation to most riders.

I have two CS-6600 "Junior" 10 cog cassettes: one is 13-25, the other will be cannibalized w/ a 5700 12-27 to make a 13-27 (w/ as a spare 12-25).

Setting up gearing is simple:

A) Low Range: Install the low/low necessary to climb the stiffest local climb w/o undue stress.

2) High Range: Install the tallest gear you are willing to descend the stiffest local climb in.

iii) Cram as many cogs in between as budget/aesthetics allow for efficiency and proceed.

PS:
If you think that you "need" an 11T top cog and your big ring is >44T you don't know how to pedal efficiently, build a fixed gear road bike to learn how.

-Bandera

An 11-23 is all anyone needs. In Kansas.

Here, I have 3 miles of 8% ascent just to get home. With my 53-39 chain rings, I could probably do that with an 11-23. But I'd be standing on the pedals a good share of the journey. . . . and it wouldn't be fun.

Rather than post blanket statements, it's probably best to understand that each rider's daily ride may be on vastly different terrain than others'. 11-32s don't "suck." They were designed and built for a specific application; that is, the ability to climb long, steep hills with a standard chain ring set. Eh?

I ride a 11-32 with a compact. Lots of mountains here, but I've never felt like I've lost anything on the flats. Very long downhills are fun too!!

well the OP was asking about 50/34 compact cranksets and 11-32 cassettes, when used on the flats, so my answer "An 11-32 cassette sucks(unless you need the big cogs to climb)" was right on point.

I definitely don't need an 11t cog or the 28t + 32t cogs. The 18t cog that comes on the 12-25 and 11-23 cassettes is very useful, and you get single tooth increases all the way up to the 19t cog.

I've only been getting serious about this riding business for a year, and have gotten religion about breaking the mashing habbit and run a 34/46 - 11-32 now. When the time comes, I'll go to a 12-32 for everything but flat rides and then maybe swap to a 12-27. A tighter spacing would be nice for group rides, which I rarely do. I can't see ever going bigger than a 48 on the big ring. I did swap out the 36 for a 34 because of the size of the hills here and for steep gravel grinding.

In an ideal world I'd run a set of wheels with skinny slicks and the 12-27 and a set with 42's and a 13-34.

From what I've seen so far, spinning a proper cadence is like saving for retirement when you are young.

Everyone knows you should do it

Everyone talks about it

Few really learn to do it until it's to late.

Because big chainrings are sexy.

I use an 11-32 on my Gravel/Training wheels and 11-28 on my normal wheels. Lots of climbing here, I have to drive if I want a flat spin. I do use my 11 at times while descending but rarely otherwise (but I do use it). I really liked having the 32 on some of my rides this year, during a particularly hard ride it definitely kept me on the pedals vs. having to stop on two very steep, gravelly ascents, whereas the same ride last year I did have to stop with the 28.

The one thing I will say about the 32, is that I do find myself bailing into it when I shouldn't be. I've forced myself to kick the habit recently though Still I do think it's a nice combination for times when you will be carrying a lot of gear and want to spin along. Might be a bit overkill for your area though.

I already stated the point. It's to minimize those situations where I'm having to switch frequently between front rings. It's effective.

+1. And not everyone is a skinny waif like the TDF riders. There are plenty of big, strong riders out there that can power the big ring and small cogs........on the flats. But when they have to go up, gravity is just too much. I still say a triple with 7 in the back is the perfect combo. No shifting problems and plenty of range. You can swap cassettes to get exactly what you want.

Here is why I ride a triple(52/42/30 or 52/40/30) with 5-7 cogs back on all of my bikes. The freewheels/cassettes mounted are usually 12/13-19/21 for most riding. If it is flat, then I am on the 52 ring and 1 of the 3 small cogs. If it is windy or a little up then I am on the middle ring and the middle 3 or 4 cogs. If it turns upward into climbing, then I am on the small ring and big 3 cogs. I never, ever have to shift a lot in succession. With a compact you have to shift a lot in succession when your terrain changes drastically. Here is your example:

You are on a tough climb grinding it out on one of your lower gears. You crest the hill to speed down the other side. Now you have to go to the other end of your cassette to blast down the other side. With the compact and 10 or 11 in back you go to whacking on the shift levers. And you whack, whack, whack, whack until you get to the 11 or 12t cog. That is a lot of whacking. Now you have reached the bottom and there is another epic climb in front of you. So you whack, whack, whack, whack again until you are back on the big cogs again. Repeat over and over until you are done. That is why I don't ride a compact.

If I know it will be a hard climbing day the freewheel/cassette gets changed to a 13-14/24 or a 12/13/14-28. The riding in ranges stays the same.