Originally Posted by
CoffeedrinkerNC
I'm a new rider, over 50, about 265lbs. I have Trek Verve 2, crank gears are 48/38/28. On the hills I'm running out of power to keep going. I'm wondering if I can get mountain bike crank with 42/34/24 gears to swap out. What all would be i need to get? Will any crank work? I would think I need a new crank and a chain, but what else?
There are literally tons of cranksets out there that you can use. Your Verve likely has a square taper crankset so there’s about 40 years of old cranks you can find. Look on the back of the crank you have and see if there is a number like 170mm or 175mm and get a crank with the same length. The mountain bike “standard” for a long time was a 44/34/22. You should be able to find something on Fleabay. If you have a bike co-op near you, you can likely get one for a song.
Originally Posted by
TheDudeIsHere
If you are a NEW rider, you have plenty of gear. Keep riding, working on developing your cycling abilities. Later you find you have enough gear as your legs get stronger.
When I started, a one mile 5% hill was killer on the same gears. After I got a few miles under my belt, developed my legs a bit, I was riding up much easier in bigger gears.
I see the Verve has an 11/32 in the rear, I believe you have enough gears to climb a wall. I'm guessing it's about developing the legs as most NEW riders will.
Telling someone that they have “enough gears” isn’t a call that you can make about anyone but yourself. There is nothing wrong...nor weak...with having low gears. I’ve been riding bikes for 40 years and everyone has had as low a gear as I can possibly get. I’m not weak, I’m not new, and I’m not ashamed of having low gears. In fact, I’m kind of proud of the gears I have on my current bike. A couple of them had 20/36...yes, that’s 20 teeth...which is lower than Shimano says you can have. And I use them, frequently.