scirocco

Compact, but with the 34 replaced by a 36. Only a couple of hills here. Hardly really use the small ring. The 50 gives a really nice spread of usable ratios when you are riding solo and not getting any assistance from drafting in a group.

HarryStoddard

I have a triple but I ride it like a standard double.

knobster

50/36 compact and 12/27 cassette on one bike, 52/39 std and 12/25 cassette on the other. I like both setups, but the compact seems to get more shifting between the rings. No so much on the standard.

Tapeworm21

53/39. Why? Because I own a set of testicles.

Harun

The bike I ride came with a compact, but never really noticed that it was holding me back until I started ride (lots) more. I think when I can spin out a 50X11 and never use the lowest gear when climbing - I need a double. A standard crankset is definitely on my short list for upgrades.

monporn

i never liked the idea compacts because i guess i was too used to the gearing using a 53/42, but one one of my bikes i have a 50/42 with an 11-21 on the sprockets and it feels good now.
on a 53 i would use a 12-23.
TBH where i live it's not that 'hilly' and any climbs are short and sweet, so i prefer using standards with 175 mm crank arms. on the compacts i have 172.5(came with the chainset) and i do not notice a difference, but my cadence is usually slightly higher apparently. i'm new to compacts, but i will still use standards until my legs need something smaller.

brian416

Standard Double and 11-23 for me, I have a 12-27 to put on when I've been to the mountains and haven't had any problems

bbattle

Tapeworm, don't be a troll. Or an ass.

This topic has been beaten to death; 50-34 vs. 53-39 with the same cassette gives up one gear on the top and gains a gear or two on the bottom.

Use whatever matches you and your terrain. So many chainring combinations, so many different cassette configurations; it's possible to get a drivetrain customized for everyone.

umd

+1

DScott

Really?

Whose?




https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=494582

Tapeworm21

Exactly. It has. What more can we say that hasn't already?

I have no excuse on the Hello Kitty bike. It is what it is.

tkehler

I have the same 50-34 compact set up, and I've gone to a 12-27 cassette, too. It's a lot better than climbing hills with the 11-23 I replaced.

martinus

I just replaced, the 13-26 with a 11-21 ... ( yeah, its a 7 spd. : o) ) It was getting a little tooooo "spin-y" above 25 mph.

Eh, we'll see how it works ... with a 53/40.



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umd

You are saying a 53x13 is too "spinny" above 25mph? That's less than 80 rpm...

UGASkiDawg

You don't even need 10% grades to appreciate a 50/34 with a 12-27....just try 5% grades that are 8 or 9 miles long and start at 5-9K feet

rmwun54

53/38 with 11/32 9 speed cassette. Good all around set up for me; hills or flats.

martinus

Um ... yes ? ... & REAL bad at 38. ( down hill ) I gave up, & coasted ...

<-- Former triathlete, speed skater .

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fatallightning

Right now, sadly a triple with a 12-23. I'm usually hanging out in the middle ring, except for those pisser long climbs. Next bike will be a compact with an 11-25 likely. Good amounts of hills and rollers where I ride.

tomatl411

53/39 currently on the Cervelo Team Solist.

My first bike was a specialized allez elite with a 52-42-30 triple--I loved the triple, I live in the Seattle-Tacoma area and the few times I'd have to use the granny on steep climbs aand the many times I used it when I lacked fitness, but had a good-sized climb--made it very worthwile. FD shifting was a bit problematic, seemed to need alot of adjustment. Once my fitness improved, I noticed in group rides I never touched my granny.

My Cervelo came with a 50-34 compact, which I disliked because the high end speed on the 34 and the low end on the 50 seemed to merge just where I did most of my riding from the 15-21 mph range--I just found the cross over range to be too narrow for me. I went with the standard which has a much more usuable range for me (I can get up to 25 MPH on the flat before spinning out in the 39) and combined it with a 12-27. It works for most everything, though I just did Mt. Constitution on Orcas on Sunday and I sure would have like the compact for that, but for everything else its fine.

ImRael

52/42 13-23, 52/42 13-19, 53/39 12-25. Going to replace the 39 with a 40 something.

umd

38 is slightly more than "above 25" so your previous statement is a bit disingenuous. As I said a 53x13 hits 25mph at under 80 rpm so that should not be a problem. However, at 120 rpm it gives you 39mph, so it is understandable that some people may have trouble pushing that if you are not accustomed to "spinning". I'd say you have to get over 120rpm to really say you are "spinning out" a gear, although for me at least 120rpm can be tiring for more than a few minutes. A 53x11 on the other hand is 46.4mph at 120 rpm. Don't get me wrong, I love my 53x11, I love to go fast and I certainly need it to pedal anywhere above 50mph, but "It was getting a little tooooo "spin-y" above 25 mph" is just a ridiculous statement.

martinus

Why is it, " ridiculous" to say : I like to ride below 80 rpm ?

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Johnny Colnago

snotrockets

I used to ride a 39/53 double with a 12-26 cassette, but just replaced it with a 34/50 compact with a 11-25 cassette.

I found I don't climb (much) faster with the compact, but I can spin way faster on the climbs, and have much less lactic acid in the legs after. Since I'm not a sprinter, I find the 50-11 high enough for me. I am thinking about getting an extra 11-21 cassette to get closer gears on the less hilly rides...

umd

For jra, ok. For "spinning out" on a descent, no.

I guess it makes sense because you are/were a tryathlete...