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Gears Question Road Bike
Are the Shimano 105's any good ?
And what is 53/39 and 14/39 mean. Which is better as I am new to the world of bikes. And one more question, with the road bike having only 9 gears, and the Mountain bike having 27, does the road bike have a granny gear for steep hills like a MTB ? Thankyou for any answers. B...... |
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#2
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Gears Question Road Bike
Road bikes sometimes refer to 8 ,9 or 10 speed but this only refers to the
rear cogs , you also need to take into account the double or triple chainset on the front , so you can have a 16, 18, 20, 24, 27, & 30 speed road bike. Not sure where you got the 14/39 from ,probably a typo. A common road gearing would be 53/39 on the front & 12-23 on the rear, then you can sit down & work out your gear ratios in inches travelled. front chainring x wheelsize /rear cog. For ease we will say 700C wheels are 27" so a 53x12t gear would be 53x27/12=119.25inches. NB that one tooth on the rear is worth more than one on the front. Basically there are three choices of gearing setup on a road bike: Double : For example 53/39 the rear gear can usually handle a range of 11-27t on the rear but the racer prefers a 11-21, 11-23, 12-21, 12-23 etc. The gearing range is usually adequate for the world's flattest continent. Triple : For example 52/42/30 or 53/39/30, 3 chainrings on the front to give a wider range of gears & more importantly lower gears. Very popular with riders who travel to Europe & want to ride some of the Tour climbs in their later stages of life. Extra gears mean more weight & the chainline is not as efficient as a double setup. So you will see this setup on many mid-range road bikes which will be used by weekend warriors. Compact double : 50/36, 48/34 a double setup with smaller front chainrings giving lower gearing without the drawbacks of a triple setup, not usually available on a standard off-the-peg bike though. The only other choice in the gearing is the length of the cranks, when I say choice this will only be a 'choice' on a custom-made bike not an off-the-peg bike . This is stamped at the pedal end or behind the crank. They usually range from 165-180mm. In general terms an off-the-peg road bike will have 170 on size small, 170-172.5 on medium, & 175mm on large & x-large which will suit most people. Steve @ IDEAL "Ben" wrote in message ... Are the Shimano 105's any good ? And what is 53/39 and 14/39 mean. Which is better as I am new to the world of bikes. And one more question, with the road bike having only 9 gears, and the Mountain bike having 27, does the road bike have a granny gear for steep hills like a MTB ? Thankyou for any answers. B...... |
#3
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Gears Question Road Bike
"Ben" wrote in message ...
Are the Shimano 105's any good ? I've never used them so I can't comment on that. Having said that I don't see a problem with Shimano so no worries there. And what is 53/39 and 14/39 mean. 53/39 relates to the front sprockets and 14/39(?) relates to the arse end sprockets. Which is better as I am new to the world of bikes. And one more question, with the road bike having only 9 gears, and the Mountain bike having 27, does the road bike have a granny gear for steep hills like a MTB ? If you were to buy a road bike with 39 at the front and 39(?) at the rear you could climb anything regardless of your fitness level. Is there such a thing as a 39 tooth cog for the back wheel on a road bike? G. |
#4
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Gears Question Road Bike
GDS Is there such a thing as a 39 tooth cog for the back wheel on a road bike? I don't think so. My guess is a typo. Biggest "Mega Range" cog I know of is 34T. hippy -- hippy |
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