I got beat by a kid, half my age, on a really trick fixie, at last night's TT. I sorta' feel ashamed, though, I shouldn't. It is what it is.
anyone here riding with a compact double front, like a 50-34T ? how is it shifting? seems like a big jump to me, but I haven't got the parts in to build it yet, so what do I know?
My Tricross has a 48/34 on it and shifts just fine. For the tri bike, my SRAM Apex group is in at the LBS. I got the 50/34 crank, but, the cassette I want isn't, yet, available. I'm going to run it with my current 12/27 on the road. I wanted to go with compact gearing, as I'm going to do the 3 State-3 Mountain Challenge, next spring. It'll make the bike more versatile and I can't push a 53-12 combo, anyway. You can read more about the Apex groupset here. Just put "Apex" in the search engine and several articles will come up.
How old are you? Once you get older, you'll get used to kids beating you and finally you'll only mention it when you beat or keep up with them.
I converted my triple to a compact double a few years back. It shifts fine, but I have to trim it when I get to the extreme ends of the rear block.
well, I'm using cheap Shimano and stuff :) front is a Tiagra double, rear is a Acera long arm (might switch to an alivio I have on another bike because it looks nicer). wheel currently has a sunrace or joytech or something 13-28, but I have a IRD 13-32 on order (both 7-speeds, threaded freewheels which rather limit my choices) but now I'm thinking duh, 34-28 is plenty low, hah!. I seriously doubt I'll be able to spin a 50-13 on anything other than a downhill.
I'm using friction shifters, so trim is S.O.P. think I'll be able to use the whole 7-speed in either ring? that would be a huge bonus. I've always adhered to the 'don't cross it up' school of gearing, but this bike has a reasonably generous 45mm chainstay and I know new chains are much more flexible than older ones. My Acera/Alivio rear's both have the new style big shift wheels, and long arms so shouldn't have any trouble with chain slack.
42 versus 22. That fixie was really cool. Definitely not the typical kid's bike. It had carbon 5-spoke aerowheels and bar. All black; just stupidly clean looking. I'll take my camera, next week. Same with my Tricross. The complete Apex groupset is less than $800. Road levers: $344 Crank and BB: $143 Calipers: $70 Chain: $37 Cassette: $83 FD: $45 RD: $72 They offer some crazy cassettes; all the way to 11/36.
my complete bike will cost maybe $200 and thats cuz I bought some new stuff when i shoulda scrounged more used frame+wheels+stem: $45 long seat post $25 (new) straight bar: $5 rear derailleur: $0 (had it) front derailleur: $10 for a used Tiagra brakes: $0 (had the shimano v-brakes and tekro levers already) shifters: $10 for a pair of 80s vintage Suntour friction thumb shifters seat: $0 (had it) tires: $60 (new, michelin city 700x40) crankset: $60 (new from ebay, FSA Vero Compact, shoulda gone used) BB: $25 (new shimano sealed, from LBS) can of red rattle paint: Priceless!
Shifts just fine - but I hate the ratio - I always feel like I'm in between the big and little rings!
yeah, i was wondering about that. for me, on a semi-fattire bike like I'm building, I'm betting a 44 or 46 front will be about the max I'd want to pedal with a 13 rear... so, worse case, I get new chain ring and have a 46-34 front with either a 13-28 or 13-32 rear.
I think the most important thing for newer riders is to try a different cadences to find the one that works for them. You need a special computer to give you an accurate count. If you don't have the cadence counter, just consciously spin at different rates. My best rides end up with a cadence count in the mid 80's.
if you're low tech, use a wristwatch or something with a second hand, and count both leg strokes for 1 full minute, and divide by two. or just count one leg and use that as-is.
+1 I went from a triple to a standard double, which I knew would be too much for me, to a compact. I actually prefer the triple. Now that I'm in to the middle of riding season, I could probably get away with putting the standard double back on, but that last hill coming up to the house is pure hell on me.
I've got one of those. 300' climb in .7 miles, blind turns with zero shoulder and car-n-trucks going 50 in a 35 zone. eeeek. I've been driving down the hill and riding from there.
I made the change when I was kinda in shape and my front derailleur was misbehaving so I never used the granny gear anyway. I had a warranty issue on my front cranks and had the bike shop make the switch instead of putting on another triple. Now I'm in worse shape and the triple would be nice.
do you know if they had to change the bottom bracket to maintain chainline, or do all the different crankset types center on the same chainline when put on the same BB axle?
I think they had to replace the BB too. I had to pay for some of this change, but since it was warranty work, most of it was paid for by Trek.
It's been a great week to go riding. But I've gotten malaised. I know it'll feel good to get out and do it, but I keep putting it off. Maybe tonight, I like night riding.
I started road riding about 4 years ago and bought a computer with a cadence sensor. Back then I was comfortable spinning at about 80-82rpm. About a year later, my cadence pickup fell off and I didn't replace it for about 2 years. Finally put it back on about a month ago and was shocked to see that my typical cadence is now right at 90rpm. I guess my legs knew what they were doing all on their own.
