Stupid Q - Chainset type....

[Ben Jk]

Looking to buy my first road bike and have a stupid newbie question...

Whats the difference between standard, compact and triple???

Edited by Ben Jk on Saturday 27th August 17:14

[andySC]

Standard will have a 53/39 tooth chainrings, compacts are 50/34t & triples are usually 50/39/30t. Compacts seem to be the most popular & fitted with a 11/25t rear cassette will generally give you a large enough spread of gears to tackle anything.

A gear of 34t on the front & a 25t on the rear should get you up just about anything with a "reasonable" level of fitness.

[Ben Jk]

andySC said:

Standard will have a 53/39 tooth chainrings, compacts are 50/34t & triples are usually 50/39/30t. Compacts seem to be the most popular & fitted with a 11/25t rear cassette will generally give you a large enough spread of gears to tackle anything.

A gear of 34t on the front & a 25t on the rear should get you up just about anything with a "reasonable" level of fitness.

So as a newbie to road cycling and "reasonably" fit should I go for a compact?

[anonymous-user]

Ben Jk said:

andySC said:

Standard will have a 53/39 tooth chainrings, compacts are 50/34t & triples are usually 50/39/30t. Compacts seem to be the most popular & fitted with a 11/25t rear cassette will generally give you a large enough spread of gears to tackle anything.

A gear of 34t on the front & a 25t on the rear should get you up just about anything with a "reasonable" level of fitness.

So as a newbie to road cycling and "reasonably" fit should I go for a compact?

no, go for a standard 39/53 and man the **** up! seriously, if you are reasonably fit, 50/34 is useless you are spending all your weekends in the yorkshire dales or the lake district. whilst pretty much all the gear ratios overlap between 50/34 and 53/39 on a standard rear cassette, most people prefer 39t on the front and not 34t for regular riding and will spin out on 50t if really going for it.

[shalmaneser]

pablo said:

no, go for a standard 39/53 and man the **** up! seriously, if you are reasonably fit, 50/34 is useless you are spending all your weekends in the yorkshire dales or the lake district. whilst pretty much all the gear ratios overlap between 50/34 and 53/39 on a standard rear cassette, most people prefer 39t on the front and not 34t for regular riding and will spin out on 50t if really going for it.

Rubbish. Spin to win and all that.

The vast majority of bikers, especially beginners, are better off on a compact. You're spinning out at 45+mph on a compact in top gear, plenty for most people!