Time to ask again how many gears does a bike really need
12-19-17, 02:28 PM
#101
Expired Member
Yep, though MAMIL may not be the best term as Ryda is apparently well beyond middle aged and seems to make a point of not wearing Lycra. I think Stickys for his several repeating threads is a great idea.
12-19-17, 07:06 PM
#102
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Since the 80s the number of gears on the rear cluster has gone up from the long time 5 to 12. With a triple in the front that gives the rider 36 gears. Do we really need that many?
In my case with the mountain bike, and touring bike I no longer have, and the bent and trike I now have with mountain bike gearing, it does afford one way to shift. The bent bike is a 9 speed in the rear. The way I use it is as a 3 range. Granny is for riding up steep hills. Then center ring is for most riding. The big ring is for down hills and with the wind. I simply then shift across the rear cluster as needed.
But back to the question------------how many gears do bikes really need, and will they go above 12 in the rear.
In my case with the mountain bike, and touring bike I no longer have, and the bent and trike I now have with mountain bike gearing, it does afford one way to shift. The bent bike is a 9 speed in the rear. The way I use it is as a 3 range. Granny is for riding up steep hills. Then center ring is for most riding. The big ring is for down hills and with the wind. I simply then shift across the rear cluster as needed.
But back to the question------------how many gears do bikes really need, and will they go above 12 in the rear.
One tooth jumps through the 19 cog (I tried a 14-23 straight block, didn't notice the 22 cog between the 21 and 23, and didn't care about the 20 between the 19 and 21).
10% jumps beyond that to a gear low enough to maintain a sustainable cadence and power output leaving enough left for the riding which follows. This varies a lot. At 205 pounds with middle age spread I need a final cog 50% bigger than at my optimum 136-137 pound riding weight or small ring with a third fewer teeth. You need a gear 50% lower when facing 12% grades not 6% grades. Staying fresh for the peaks that follow on a 200 mile ride might suggest a 25% lower gear which is the difference between threshold and an all-day pace. Being in shape allows a third bigger low gear than sad shape.
Obviously, specifics vary radically depending on rings, terrain, rider weight, ride length, etc.
A fit racer on flat ground might want no more than 52-42x13-14-15-16-17-18 6 cogs. A heavy randonneur insisting on a 1X setup for mountainous rides might benefit from a 40x10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-21-23-26-29-32-35-38-42-46-50-54 21 cog setup.
12-20-17, 12:02 AM
#105
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No gear larger than 52x13 because we're not Eddy Merckx and that was enough for him to dominate the classics.
One tooth jumps through the 19 cog (I tried a 14-23 straight block, didn't notice the 22 cog between the 21 and 23, and didn't care about the 20 between the 19 and 21).
10% jumps beyond that to a gear low enough to maintain a sustainable cadence and power output leaving enough left for the riding which follows. This varies a lot. At 205 pounds with middle age spread I need a final cog 50% bigger than at my optimum 136-137 pound riding weight or small ring with a third fewer teeth. You need a gear 50% lower when facing 12% grades not 6% grades. Staying fresh for the peaks that follow on a 200 mile ride might suggest a 25% lower gear which is the difference between threshold and an all-day pace. Being in shape allows a third bigger low gear than sad shape.
Obviously, specifics vary radically depending on rings, terrain, rider weight, ride length, etc.
A fit racer on flat ground might want no more than 52-42x13-14-15-16-17-18 6 cogs. A heavy randonneur insisting on a 1X setup for mountainous rides might benefit from a 40x10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-21-23-26-29-32-35-38-42-46-50-54 21 cog setup.
One tooth jumps through the 19 cog (I tried a 14-23 straight block, didn't notice the 22 cog between the 21 and 23, and didn't care about the 20 between the 19 and 21).
10% jumps beyond that to a gear low enough to maintain a sustainable cadence and power output leaving enough left for the riding which follows. This varies a lot. At 205 pounds with middle age spread I need a final cog 50% bigger than at my optimum 136-137 pound riding weight or small ring with a third fewer teeth. You need a gear 50% lower when facing 12% grades not 6% grades. Staying fresh for the peaks that follow on a 200 mile ride might suggest a 25% lower gear which is the difference between threshold and an all-day pace. Being in shape allows a third bigger low gear than sad shape.
Obviously, specifics vary radically depending on rings, terrain, rider weight, ride length, etc.
A fit racer on flat ground might want no more than 52-42x13-14-15-16-17-18 6 cogs. A heavy randonneur insisting on a 1X setup for mountainous rides might benefit from a 40x10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-21-23-26-29-32-35-38-42-46-50-54 21 cog setup.
12-20-17, 10:54 AM
#107
Senior Member
I run a single 53t up front with an 11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-12 (you know, for climbs).
12-20-17, 12:30 PM
#108
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Do more gears help
Or maybe I don't
Need as many as I
Think?
For what it's worth, I think
Everybody is entitled to their opinion.
Eventually, I think individual preference will
Determine the answer.
That being said, this will always generate
Heated debate,
Especially during the slow winter months.
To be honest, posts like these are
Rarely a good faith attempt to divine legitimate
Opinions. Most
Likely, they represent the
Lackluster attempt of some bored MAMIL to create some entertainment.
Sad, really.
Or maybe I don't
Need as many as I
Think?
For what it's worth, I think
Everybody is entitled to their opinion.
Eventually, I think individual preference will
Determine the answer.
That being said, this will always generate
Heated debate,
Especially during the slow winter months.
To be honest, posts like these are
Rarely a good faith attempt to divine legitimate
Opinions. Most
Likely, they represent the
Lackluster attempt of some bored MAMIL to create some entertainment.
Sad, really.
12-20-17, 04:44 PM
#109
Cycleway town
It completely depends what you use your bike for. You fit whatever gears you need. It's not so much the number of gears, but the range, and the most usable way of having your most common range.
I've always found a triple on the front to be a clumsy lot, thankfully these days with a broader set on the rear and better designed front pick-up, it's possible to have the same range with fewer gears - most importantly, only two rings on the front.
My latest build is a 20-speed, 1st is 39/36 and 20th is 56/11 front/rear respectively. It's power assisted but i'm going the same route on my manual bike, only with the front two both a little smaller.
I've always found a triple on the front to be a clumsy lot, thankfully these days with a broader set on the rear and better designed front pick-up, it's possible to have the same range with fewer gears - most importantly, only two rings on the front.
My latest build is a 20-speed, 1st is 39/36 and 20th is 56/11 front/rear respectively. It's power assisted but i'm going the same route on my manual bike, only with the front two both a little smaller.
12-20-17, 08:56 PM
#111
Clark W. Griswold
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The number of gears a bike needs is the number of gears you are interested in putting on for your usage. If you want to go with a 1x5 go for it 3x11 fine by me 2x9 sure, Pinion drive and a Rohloff together sure, single speed, why not?
I have a 3x9 1x9 two singlespeed/fixed gears a 2x11 and a 2x6 and will soon have another 1x11 if fortunes favor me.
I have a 3x9 1x9 two singlespeed/fixed gears a 2x11 and a 2x6 and will soon have another 1x11 if fortunes favor me.
12-21-17, 12:29 PM
#112
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Well, I once had a bike set up with a 3x3x7, for 63 gears. Yes there were a lot of duplicates, but it was impractical to use them that way anyway. More importantly, it had 9 ranges, of which 3 or 4 were useful, and a total range of 17-145 inches. I found that the 71T (equivalent) range was good for flatlands, while the 56T (equivalent) was good for windy days and <8% hills. Only rarely did I need the low range at all, and the lowest gear was tricky to ride because I had a tendency to push too hard and flip the bike. Eventually I converted it to a 3x9 which has plenty of gears, even for a recumbent.
12-21-17, 01:31 PM
#114
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12-21-17, 01:41 PM
#116
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Yep. What is the 'gear ratio' of a Big Wheel? To get that ratio, what exactly are you dividing by what? 
12-21-17, 01:43 PM
#117
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12-21-17, 01:48 PM
#118
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Manchester two-speed hub, 1894:
the hub two speed 1894.JPG
SRAM two-speed hub, 2017:
sram two speed hub 2017.jpg
the hub two speed 1894.JPG
SRAM two-speed hub, 2017:
sram two speed hub 2017.jpg
Last edited by tcs; 12-21-17 at 02:09 PM.
12-21-17, 02:09 PM
#119
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12-21-17, 03:27 PM
#120
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My personal feeling is that as long as the title of the thread is clear and not misleading, anybody who doesn't like it can simply skip over it. What's wrong with that?
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My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
My greatest fear is all of my kids standing around my coffin and talking about "how sensible" dad was.
12-21-17, 03:39 PM
#121
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12-21-17, 04:14 PM
#122
Senior Member
I was obv. being a smarta$$ but I've never heard of the Capreo until now -- fascinating. Fairly cheap on Ebay, too. Now I'm trying to figure out how I could custom modify one so I could have a 13-speed 9-40 cassette with a 40t chainring. SRAM eagle eat your heart out!
12-21-17, 11:33 PM
#123
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Question really should be how many bikes are enough. I'm in my fifties so doubt I would ever ride a fixie unless someone gave me one. But to each his own and lot's of fixies look way way cool. But I love my 20" bmx single gear you stand up and accelerate quickly can hop curbs with ease fits into the trunk of a cab, smaller footprint in busy skytrain (subway like transit train),2000 Diamond Back looks different gets lots of compliments. Old school 10 speed just plain fun.
27 speed hardtail excellent for hill climbing. Each bike has its merits and faults and everybody has different priorities. In the 70's my friend had a Banana seat high handlebar 2 speed coaster brake bike you kick pedals backward to change gears every time you brake it change gears but such a cool bike never seen one since. Would love to have one of those.
How many gears enough? Depends on what your doing. My son races competitive bmx. No racing bmx bike has gears. They are a hindrance to winning the race. How many gears is enough? I don't know. How many bikes are enough?
27 speed hardtail excellent for hill climbing. Each bike has its merits and faults and everybody has different priorities. In the 70's my friend had a Banana seat high handlebar 2 speed coaster brake bike you kick pedals backward to change gears every time you brake it change gears but such a cool bike never seen one since. Would love to have one of those.
How many gears enough? Depends on what your doing. My son races competitive bmx. No racing bmx bike has gears. They are a hindrance to winning the race. How many gears is enough? I don't know. How many bikes are enough?
Last edited by Mark Mandolin; 12-22-17 at 11:42 AM.
12-25-17, 12:09 PM
#124
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I have intentionally ignored this troll-spawned thread sinse its ill-intentioned creation.
But Bike Forums decided to email me about it anyway, as a “trending” thread.
WTF, BF?!? Don’t reward the trolls!
But Bike Forums decided to email me about it anyway, as a “trending” thread.
WTF, BF?!? Don’t reward the trolls!
12-25-17, 01:56 PM
#125
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Same here. I figured by this point the various "contributors" would all have killed themselves off ... I guess what happened is they starved, because they kept throwing all their troll-food at each other. Then they pleaded to the management for fresh meat, and thus ... the newsletter.
