Double or triple?

[Mark trek29er]

Hi guys I am looking at buying a road bike and I am new to cycling having just got a 29er a couple of months ago but I love it.
I now want to add a road bike as I have signed up for sportive a and charity rides I am looking at spending about £500 my friend has a bike shop and is recommending a trek 2015 1.2 for £475.
Do I need a double or triple obviously I have a triple on my 29er but do I need it on a road bike or can I get away with a double?
Any other bike recommendations are gratefully received

 

[vickster]

How hilly is it around you? How fit are you? How light or heavy are you?

50-34 on the front and 11-32 on the back should get you up most inclines if a hilly area

 

[derrick]

If you are fit enough i would go for 50-34 and a 11 -28 on the back, You start going any bigger on the back the jumps between the last 4 gears gets to big.

 

[Mark trek29er]

Hi guys I live near Holmfirth west Yorks I have just managed to get up Holme moss but I was on my last gear near the top! But I am getting fitter and I can now use bigger gears on hills so I am thinking that a double will do with the range you have suggested thanks

 

[oldfatfool]

Why? is the weight or look of a third cog going to cause you hardship? I would suggest not as much as having to grind up that last few meters or WALK, hush my mouth! No one ever hit a hill they haven't climbed before and thanked the gods they hadn't gone for a triple!

Whilst I am not knocking Holme Moss, it is an enjoyable climb that blows away the cobwebs however you will come across much more arduous climbs if you get out and about,

Holme Moss rankings, Difficulty ranking world: 6570

Not to mention tackling Holme Moss after a 5 mile warm up is different to tackling it or its equivalent if it comes towards the end of a 100k sportive.

Ignore the fashionista and get a triple

 

[Racing roadkill]

I have compact and triple set ups, on my road bikes. I like the compact for fast flat routes, I prefer the choices afforded by the triple, on hilly courses.

 

[winjim]

We've got compact cranksets with hundreds and hundreds of sprockets now, meaning there's the luxury of wide ranges with reasonably small jumps between gears, all without the faff of a triple. I think for general sportive type unladen leisure riding, assuming reasonable fitness, a 50-34 / 11-29 or similar should more than suffice.

 

[Trickedem]

, all without the faff of a triple.

I don't understand why anyone would consider a triple being a faff.
It really depends on you. If you like to ride low gears, or you want to carry stuff, then a triple may be just what you need.

 

[winjim]

I don't understand why anyone would consider a triple being a faff.
It really depends on you. If you like to ride low gears, or you want to carry stuff, then a triple may be just what you need.

Faffier to set up and adjust, faffier to shift with, faffier to keep track of what gear you're in.

But I did make the assumption that the OP was reasonably fit, and riding unladen.

 

[BSRU]

I have a triple on my road bikes as it allows me to have a narrower range of gears on the back.

 

[toontra]

Better get used to compacts. Shimano have dropped triples from 105 & Ultegra. SRAM never did them. I'm sad but resigned to losing my 6603 triple setup on my audax bike when the components wear out but that's the sad fact.

 

[Mark trek29er]

Thanks guys I am 89 kg at the mo having come down from 128kg so I still hope to come down a bit more. My fitness improves every week I went out today on the trans pennine trail and managed to keep above the 10mph average speed for the first time off road.I think I will try a double on the road and see if it works for me before I buy.

 

[Racing roadkill]

I don't understand why anyone would consider a triple being a faff.
It really depends on you. If you like to ride low gears, or you want to carry stuff, then a triple may be just what you need.

Exactly. I often carry enough kit to last me a couple of days in a hotel. The triple is excellent because of it's versatility. Lugging 20 (odd) Kg's of kit, in a rucksack, up a 14% climb, can leave you running out of options, with a compact up front.

 

[winjim]

As a bit of a comparison, in 2000, Campagnolo would sell you a 9sp triple groupset with 30-42-52 chainrings and a 13-28 cassette. So that's 27 gears total, 21 useable, with a range of ratios from 1.1 - 4.0.

In 2016, Campagnolo have announced an 11sp double groupset with a compact 34-50 chainset and an 11-32 cassette. So that's 22 gears total, 18 useable, with a range of ratios from 1.1 - 4.5.

 

[John the Monkey]

I don't understand why anyone would consider a triple being a faff.

Depends on the setup, really - I've had no issues with them on my Giant (Hollowtech 2 BB, tiagra throughout). On my Surly Long Haul Trucker (square taper, truvativ chainset, tiagra otherwise) the indexing has always been tricky - I think because of the thinner tubes putting the derailleur further inboard.