Don't Laugh.......I have a triple

[Deleted member 35268]

I've run all sorts of rear cassettes with my triple on my Defy

 

[Sharky]

Triples just aren’t fashionable. But who gives a monkeys?

All my bikes have triples. An old knee injury and the local lumps dictate this is best for me and I couldn’t care what the trendies think. They are the same trendies I leave on the steepest of hills gasping for breath, cramping and complaining their knees are sore.

I want to cycle into my twilight years, so triple it is.

So when are the twilight years? I've recently thrown off my double and replaced with single - when do I need to start saving some of my pension to buy a triple?
I did have a triple for a while, about 10 years ago and I did appreciate the gearing on some of the Kentish hills around here, but switched to a 1x10 set for it's simplicity.

 

[Bazzer]

I don't understand the comment about wimping out by using the inner ring. Both my hybrid and road bikes have triples.
Even if the inner ring is rarely used, it is good to know it is there if needed.
If other people have a problem with you riding a triple, IMHO, it is their problem not yours.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

So when are the twilight years? I've recently thrown off my double and replaced with single - when do I need to start saving some of my pension to buy a triple?
I did have a triple for a while, about 10 years ago and I did appreciate the gearing on some of the Kentish hills around here, but switched to a 1x10 set for it's simplicity.

I don’t know when my time is up. I guess what I mean is that I am managing an injury through prevention rather than waiting till I smash myself up and have to take up golf instead. Who would want that? (Again!) I would love the simplicity of a 1x setup but needs must I’m afraid. I like the clean look of 1Xs btw.

I don't understand the comment about wimping out by using the inner ring. Both my hybrid and road bikes have triples.
Even if the inner ring is rarely used, it is good to know it is there if needed.
If other people have a problem with you riding a triple, IMHO, it is their problem not yours.

I will easily get around a 100km route on the two larger rings. 200+ I need to pace myself by spinning lightly and relying on my cardio vascular engine rather than my uneconomical legs muscles. I spin about in the 90+ RPM region.

 

[Sharky]

Wouldn't advise golf. A pal I play table tennis with has done his back several times, getting in and out of his buggy with that bag of sticks they have to carry.

 

[Grant Fondo]

42/32/22 front
11-32 10 sp back

Go LOW or go home

 

[matiz]

I'm just wondering if fellow cyclists have been stopping@Andy808 and counting the teeth on his small ring and maybe giving him a complex.

 

[si_c]

@Andy808 The only advantage of moving to a double chainset at the front is a weight saving of about 150g. The advantage of a triple chainset is, increased gear range, and smaller steps between the gears, meaning you can select a gear that suits your legs with greater ease. You won't go up hills any faster, and in fact if it's steep enough you may end up going slower or walking as having a double makes it harder to select a good gear. It's absolutely not wimping out to use the inner ring, as the trend towards wider range cassettes and subcompact gearing indicates.

In terms of answering your main questions, you could replace the triple crankset with a double crankset easily enough, but it's not going to be cheap. I'm assuming that you currently have 9 speed gearing - although if you have 8 or 10 speed you just need to look for parts that match - if you let us know we can guide you. You will at minimum need a new crankset ~ £70 + new BB ~ £20, and a new Front Shifter - of course if you like them looking the same then you will need a new shifter on both sides ~£120+, and depending the shifters, you may need to replace the front and rear mechs, as Shimano do change how much cable is needed to move the rear derailleurs - and they need to match - this could add another ~£50 or so.

At this point, you may as well just replace the entire groupset - you can get a full Shimano Tiagra 10speed groupset with 50/34 and 11-32 for about £290 from Merlin Cycles - this would at least make everything on your bike nice and pretty, give you the internally routed cables that look nice too. Factor in some bartape too for that totally fresh looking bike.

Edit: If you're interested in comparing the gear ratios, I've done a quick comparison here which you can click on to see the difference. You'll notice that moving to a double and an 11-32 cassette gives you no advantage.

 

[Jody]

No need to be worried about riding a triple. My knees wish my road bike had triple with some of the hills in the peak district.

 

[DCBassman]

On the Scott, I'm aiming to change the Ritchey 52-42-30 for a 48-38-28, and the Norco hybrid, which is heavier, will have even lower rings. The Scott has an Alivio long cage mech and is fitted with an 11-34t 8-speed cassette. The hybrid will have the same.
Low gears are where it's at for me. Too old for big gears!

 

[Andy808]

I'm just wondering if fellow cyclists have been stopping@Andy808 and counting the teeth on his small ring and maybe giving him a complex.

Hi Matiz, no no-one is stopping me and taking the piddle. I just feel that since I've been putting some miles in on the bike I've got fitter, got a little faster, shed some timber and now the 30 is getting redundant in all but the most extreme hills, which on a good day I can plod up on the 42 albeit bit of struggle, so maybe changing the 30 for a 34 would be offer bit more of a challenge than the 30 but wouldn't bust my balls whe I try to use the 42. I'm not one to be put off by other cyclists, I easily keep up with the majority of others on their fancy £5k Carbon jobbies, it more of a personal challenge.

 

[mustang1]

I used to have a triple ring road bike. Wish I still had it. Someone commented about it being a triple but he didn't ride as much as I did.

I dont think you should care if you have a single/double/triple.

 

[Andy808]

@Andy808 The only advantage of moving to a double chainset at the front is a weight saving of about 150g. The advantage of a triple chainset is, increased gear range, and smaller steps between the gears, meaning you can select a gear that suits your legs with greater ease. You won't go up hills any faster, and in fact if it's steep enough you may end up going slower or walking as having a double makes it harder to select a good gear. It's absolutely not wimping out to use the inner ring, as the trend towards wider range cassettes and subcompact gearing indicates.

In terms of answering your main questions, you could replace the triple crankset with a double crankset easily enough, but it's not going to be cheap. I'm assuming that you currently have 9 speed gearing - although if you have 8 or 10 speed you just need to look for parts that match - if you let us know we can guide you. You will at minimum need a new crankset ~ £70 + new BB ~ £20, and a new Front Shifter - of course if you like them looking the same then you will need a new shifter on both sides ~£120+, and depending the shifters, you may need to replace the front and rear mechs, as Shimano do change how much cable is needed to move the rear derailleurs - and they need to match - this could add another ~£50 or so.

At this point, you may as well just replace the entire groupset - you can get a full Shimano Tiagra 10speed groupset with 50/34 and 11-32 for about £290 from Merlin Cycles - this would at least make everything on your bike nice and pretty, give you the internally routed cables that look nice too. Factor in some bartape too for that totally fresh looking bike.

Edit: If you're interested in comparing the gear ratios, I've done a quick comparison here which you can click on to see the difference. You'll notice that moving to a double and an 11-32 cassette gives you no advantage.

@Andy808 The only advantage of moving to a double chainset at the front is a weight saving of about 150g. The advantage of a triple chainset is, increased gear range, and smaller steps between the gears, meaning you can select a gear that suits your legs with greater ease. You won't go up hills any faster, and in fact if it's steep enough you may end up going slower or walking as having a double makes it harder to select a good gear. It's absolutely not wimping out to use the inner ring, as the trend towards wider range cassettes and subcompact gearing indicates.

In terms of answering your main questions, you could replace the triple crankset with a double crankset easily enough, but it's not going to be cheap. I'm assuming that you currently have 9 speed gearing - although if you have 8 or 10 speed you just need to look for parts that match - if you let us know we can guide you. You will at minimum need a new crankset ~ £70 + new BB ~ £20, and a new Front Shifter - of course if you like them looking the same then you will need a new shifter on both sides ~£120+, and depending the shifters, you may need to replace the front and rear mechs, as Shimano do change how much cable is needed to move the rear derailleurs - and they need to match - this could add another ~£50 or so.

At this point, you may as well just replace the entire groupset - you can get a full Shimano Tiagra 10speed groupset with 50/34 and 11-32 for about £290 from Merlin Cycles - this would at least make everything on your bike nice and pretty, give you the internally routed cables that look nice too. Factor in some bartape too for that totally fresh looking bike.

Edit: If you're interested in comparing the gear ratios, I've done a quick comparison here which you can click on to see the difference. You'll notice that moving to a double and an 11-32 cassette gives you no advantage.

Hi si_c, thanks for the comparison chart, I really like how that shows up the two set-ups and I don't see myself going to a double, I merely wanted from a personal challenge to see if changing the 30 to 34 would be worth it. As I've got a fitter, shed some weight and hence got faster the 30 is all but redundant except on a few steep bits which I canstruggle up in the 42 or do fairly comfortably in the 30, so I really wanted to see if changing to a 34 would still enable me to get up some the steeper hills but with just bit more of a challenge. It's purely from a personal point of view rather than bike snobbery or mockery, I think people misunderstood my "wimping out" comment, it's my personally feeling rather than people taking the pee. I will say one thing though as a result of this thread is that there are a lot of people using triples which I wouldn't have thought. Cheers

 

[si_c]

Hi si_c, thanks for the comparison chart, I really like how that shows up the two set-ups and I don't see myself going to a double, I merely wanted from a personal challenge to see if changing the 30 to 34 would be worth it. As I've got a fitter, shed some weight and hence got faster the 30 is all but redundant except on a few steep bits which I canstruggle up in the 42 or do fairly comfortably in the 30, so I really wanted to see if changing to a 34 would still enable me to get up some the steeper hills but with just bit more of a challenge. It's purely from a personal point of view rather than bike snobbery or mockery, I think people misunderstood my "wimping out" comment, it's my personally feeling rather than people taking the pee. I will say one thing though as a result of this thread is that there are a lot of people using triples which I wouldn't have thought. Cheers

Fair enough, I don't think there is anything wrong with a triple, indeed I think most riders would probably benefit once the roads get steeper, using a double seems to be fashionable because it's more "Pro".

As for swapping your inner ring out to a larger one, it's actually quite easy to do, you'll need a crank extractor probably for your chainset (not expensive) and a set of allen keys (also not expensive if you don't already have them). As long as you match the BCD and number of holes on the one you order you should be good to go.

The alternative of course is to just ride one click in.

 

[boydj]

Fitting a 34 to replace the 30 would just give you more duplication in the gears that you have - and that's if you could get a 34 ring with the right bcd. I look on the 30 on my triple as an extra set of gears for use in an emergency (which seems to happen every time I hit one particular hill).