Bought a second hand gravelbike, its amazing but the gear rations are insane. 50T front chainring which I can spin out even at 60km downhill. I live in a very hilly area, so currently have to get off and walk with any incline above 8%, which is most of them. Seen a real mixture of advice from 38-42 teeth.
Also if I replace the chainring, should I go ahead and replace casstete and chain at the same time? Many thanks!
by james1234456384729
4 Comments
Technically no, if you go small enough you need to change the chain.
Might help if we know what size the largest and smallest cogs are on the rear cassette.
It all depends on your fitness. By the looks of it the largest cog on the cassette is 42T, so I’d first change the chainring for something like 36T from Alugear or Garbaruk and see where that gets you. Changing cassette would be much more expensive.
You will also need to shorten the chain.
I live in the Finger Lakes region of New York State, where steep and challenging gravel climbs abound. I have a SRAM AXS Transmission mullet setup with a 12-speed 10-52 cassette and a 42t chainring. It’s a perfect match for my type of riding. I spin out at 33 mph, but that’s about when gravity typically takes over, and the gearing on the low end is sublime.