gowfermike

While touring in Maine last summer I found my 2008 Trek 520 to have too high a granny gear. I want to switch from the Tiagra to the Deore LX to get the hill gears and a little better performance over all. At 57 I'm not looking for great speed. Has anyone used this option? The XT is a little too pricey at the current time.

jbpence

works great. go LOW (like 22-34) and you can cover any steepness even with a 70 pound load. I went 44-36-22 on the front, 11-34 on the rear. I went with XT on my last 520, but had a buddy who had LX on his.

gowfermike

I went to my LBS in Geneva NY and and dropped the bike off. My Dr. wants me to ditch the drop style handlebars too due to a sciatic problem. I'm changing the crank to the LX and MTB handlebars with XTR shifters. I'll add barends for different hand positions. He's putting a new $40 Deore 11-34 cassette on the back. I can upgrade for $110 if I like it to XT the next time I replace the chain. I am getting the 44-36-22 set up. With all the additions on loosely it resembles a Koga Miyata wannabe (:-). I'm more upright which the Dr. wants. The fit feels comfortable on the trainer. $600 later it will be tuned and ready Saturday for commuiting 24 miles a day round trip to work and 3 to 6 day mini trips this summer. The shop took 2 hours to get the bike set up and fitted the way I need it for my 5'7" frame. The fitting was expensive but worth it. Thanks for information on the crank...