Bike group sets advice? Is more gears better?

[HobbesOnTour]

For what it's worth this is the best advice in my book

The best advice is sort out existing bike, work out what teeth it has and see if you need anything lower than you already have when you can actually use the granny (small) chain ring.

A lighter bike will be easier up hills.

So would one where you can use the full gear range!

By the by if your current MTB has MTB tyres simply changing the tyres for more road friendly smoother ones could have a big impact.

m,y wife is buying me a new bike

I know it's very, very unsexy but a bike maintenance course would be a good alternative. You're new to cycling and a whole world of opportunity is opening up. A basic understanding of the principals of how bikes work would be invaluable and save money in the long term. You could build the perfect bike for you!

Basically I just want a new bike

should I look for in the smallest/lowest gear cog, to facilitate easier hill climbs?

Simply, the lowest number of teeth on the front and the highest on the back is the easiest to climb on.
You can count them on your bike now to give an indication of what might be useful on the new one - but only an indication - wheel size, crank length and even tyres can have an impact.
For more info read here:
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/gear-calc.html

 

[vickster]

There'll be more choice new and used for £800 if looking at a rigid fork flatbar (versus drop bars where the bikes cost more).
Certainly don't discount SRAM for flat bar shifting, there's really no difference there in operation (unlike the minor difference for drop bar STIs).

Spend the next month going around local bike shops to see what might be available in your budget and size (availability is better than a year ago but not back to pre-pandemic levels for some brands at least). If there's something that really grabs you but is over budget, then used might be an option there (but likely an older model and different spec, if buying used, you may need to budget for anew chain and cassette as a minimum, around £50 at least for 10/11 speed, more for the big 1x cassettes)

 

[MichaelW2]

Gears have a range, the difference between highest and lowest. That range will start with a lowest ( easiest) gear which may be higher or lower than on other bikes. Then there is the number of useful steps between low and high. The highest gear is of little practical use unless you race. Sometimes I spin out and cant go faster, so I dont.

For hill climbing the most important factor is your lowest gear. You can measure this as a tooth count ( 39/28) or in "gear inches" which is easier to use for comparison.

I dont put much stock in high cog counts. Anything of 8 or more is good. The chains and sprockets get thinner and rear mech adjustment gets more critical.
I find that most midrange Shimano works fine. Tiagra has served me well. 105 may be best cost/performance.

Find out what lowest gear you want.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Thanks for ll the advice guys, I appreciate it.
For clarity I should have mentioned that I do want something lighter and quicker, although I am not interested in going particuarly fast TBH, just steady and to have options up hills. A lighter bike will be easier up hills.
I may keep the CB MTB for spare/winter, or I may sell it, not sure yet and it depends on what I'd get for it.
But my 60th birthday is approaching and m,y wife is buying me a new bike (or new to me anyway) and I'd like to try something that isn't a MTB. Possibly a hybrid/gravel or even a flat bar road bike.
I have not ridden a drop bar bike but my gut tells me that for what I want to do a flat bar would be better and is what I'm used to.
I don't want an aggressive riding position that limits my view of the lovely countryside I'm riding through!
No club, no races, no pressure other than to get fit and enjoy doing it.
Basically I just want a new bike, it's nice top have a nice new toy to enjoy so why not take the opportunity to get something lighter, sexier and smoother.

So if the number of gears is not as important as the ratio of the low/lowest gear/s then what size or number of teeth should I look for in the smallest/lowest gear cog, to facilitate easier hill climbs?
Maths is not my thing so please try to keep it simple!
Thanks

From your first post, you know how it works. Just go ahead and get what you think you can afford. The idea is to enjoy your ride with best possible combination of components that you can afford. I still have bikes with Sora, Tiagra and even a Claris(new to replace an old one), but the 105 is ahead. Don't worry about the maths or the need to forge a gear in your fireplace to save cost. Some of us dinosaurs can't seem to get out of our rut so the all the ideas. If you buy a new bike with a 105 or Tiagra, it will come with 32 or you can ask higher. No longer 28. Enjoy the ride and the hills.