52/36 crank & 12/28 cassette or 50/34 & 11/32 for climbing and general riding. Rider is 1.65mtr on 52cm small

[Brendon On Dad Brown]

Hi all. What would be better 

[dasilvarsa]

36 minutes ago, Brendon On Dad Brown said:

Hi all. What would be better 

50/34 & 11/32 for Climbing and Top End

[Brendon On Dad Brown]

2 minutes ago, dasilvarsa said:

50/34 & 11/32 for Climbing and Top End

Thank you. Guess I need to change my setup then

[Baron]

https://sheldonbrown.com/gear-calc.html

[NC_lurker]

It's not really such a straightforward question. Where do you stay/ride? How much do you weigh, how strong are you on the hills?

Way back in time we used to ride 52/42 with a 11-23 cassette. Later changed to a 53/39 with a 11-25, definitely made climbs like Franschhoek pass easier. However nowadays I'm riding a 50/34 with a 11-30...I'm 20+ yrs older, almost 10kg heavier & lazy!

Install a gear calculator app, play around with the gearing and you'll see prospective speed at certain cadence. It should assist making an informed decision.

[Maniax]

12 hours ago, NC_lurker said:

It's not really such a straightforward question. Where do you stay/ride? How much do you weigh, how strong are you on the hills?

Way back in time we used to ride 52/42 with a 11-23 cassette. Later changed to a 53/39 with a 11-25, definitely made climbs like Franschhoek pass easier. However nowadays I'm riding a 50/34 with a 11-30...I'm 20+ yrs older, almost 10kg heavier & lazy!

Install a gear calculator app, play around with the gearing and you'll see prospective speed at certain cadence. It should assist making an informed decision.

exactly.  I rode 53/39 with 11/28 in Cape Town no problem.

But if you are in the lowveld Id go with a compact.

My gravelbike runs 50/34 with a 11/40 cassette.

what works best for you where you live and what type of hills/climbs you ride, weight and fitness will determine what you need.

[splat]

16 hours ago, Brendon On Dad Brown said:

Hi all. What would be better 

52/36 and 11/30 cassette (if your rear mech can handle that)
That is what most (Shimano) bikes are coming out with these days.
Sram has different ideas on chainrings and cassette ratios.

But, like it says higher up, what sort of riding are you doing?
Massive alpine days probably require 50/34 chainrings with a big cassette.

Are you running 165mm crank arms ?

[Brendon On Dad Brown]

Hi. Cranks are 175 so looking to change that as well. 

[Brendon On Dad Brown]

I climb fairly easily but there are some steeper climbs that I know will bring on the pain train in heavy incrimants if I don't have the correct setup

[Dude Crush]

At 1.65m on a 52, I'd start with changing cranks. 175mm is waaaay to big. I'd consider 170 or 165 if u can find those. 

If you're reasonably fit, 50/34 and 11-30 is an awesome setup. You'll seldom need to pedal more than 60-70kph so 52 big ring is not necessary and probably only useful for those strong enough to race.

11-34 cassette also not a bad option. If u frequently climb long and steep passes, that's quite helpful. But you should mostly be ok with a 34-30 combo on the road.

[The Ouzo]

The last 2-3 years has seen me at the fittest I've ever been, riding more km than I ever have and doing times in races I thought would be impossible for me.

Why am I telling you this ? Well I used to ride the big gears, started riding with massive chainrings, small ring was 40 something tooth, biggest cog on the rear was 26 tooth. Because I was young and had strong legs from water skiing I was able to power up the climbs in the the cape. But currently I'm running 50-34 and 11-32 and its working great for me. Occasionally I want more topend, but it doesnt happen to often.

Although lately I've been monitoring which gears I use more often and I'm starting to gravitate to the smaller cogs on the rear.

My opinion is that for us normal mortals a compact 50-34 & 11-32 is perfect.

[Edereese]

I think the first question you need to ask, do you enjoy grinding or spinning. I'm 1.68 on a 52cm with 170mm crank, 53/39 and 11/28. I am a low cadence rider though. 39 and 28 will get me up most hills in Cape town. If you prefer high cadence, then the 50 - 32 will be a good option. Have you considered 52/36 and 11/32? 

 

[DieselnDust]

This is all quite subjective without knowing the OPs most recent Argust cycle Tour time….