Gears

[Klaus]

Can anyone suggest a suitable reference guide on bicycle gears?
How they work and best settings for typical rides?

On my bike (26" wheels 20" frame) I am currently keeping a standard gear setting as recommended by the previous owner:
Left Handlebar Gear Setting: 2 (pedal cogs)
Right Handlebar Gear Setting: 3 (rear wheel cogs)
Feels fine for the moment - but then so far I have only been up and down my street to gain confidence. I am looking at normal rides including gentle hills up and down. Excuse the terminology.....

Any source/hints appreciated.

 

[Theseus]

Sheldon Brown usually has all the answers ...

Read a few of these to get you started:

http://sheldonbrown.com/beginners/index.html

 

[tyred]

Sheldon wrote some excellent articles on setting up gears, etc but I think the best piece he ever wrote is his piece on gear theory and you can't find it form the menu (at least I can't). Have a read of this - http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gear-theory.html

 

[MajorMantra]

How they work and best settings for typical rides?

The best settings vary with terrain and how you feel. Moving up and down the cassette (rear cogs) and chainrings (front cogs) should become natural after you've ridden a bit.

Pushing too hard? Switch to a lower (easier) gear.

Spinning too fast? Switch to a higher (harder) gear.

You want to avoid the extreme gear combinations (big ring/big cog and small ring/small cog) but otherwise that's all there is to it really.

Matthew

 

[Debian]

The best settings vary with terrain and how you feel. Moving up and down the cassette (rear cogs) and chainrings (front cogs) should become natural after you've ridden a bit.

Pushing too hard? Switch to a lower (easier) gear.

Spinning too fast? Switch to a higher (harder) gear.

You want to avoid the extreme gear combinations (big ring/big cog and small ring/small cog) but otherwise that's all there is to it really.

Matthew

+1

It's however you feel comfortable, there's no set rule. There are days when, for some inexplicable reason I have to do the same hill in completely different gears.

As you change gear you will automatically find a point where the balance between how fast you're spinning and how hard your legs are pushing feels comfortable and that's the correct gear to be in.

 

[jimboalee]

There are none.

Gearing knowledge is held within the brains of a select few bicycle professionals, builders and designers.


The only 'guides' out there are ones that tell you 'what you've got', not 'what you need'.

'What you need' is dependent on the abilities of the individual and his bike; and would come to a long volume to explain it all.


There are 'folklore' methods which were formulated by old and wise professional cyclists , but these need 'faith and trust'.


I must add here, Sheldon kept some info close to his chest. It never went to print.
His article mentioned earlier gives clues, but Sheldon was careful not to give out enough information for anyone to work out their gearing.

 

[Klaus]

Thanks for your comments. Like most of you said, if you are happy with the settings you use then no problem ....

What actually prompted me to ask in the first place was an observation I made this morning whilst driving to work. A woman cyclist was passing me on the cycle lane leading up to traffic lights. She was going at snails pace but pedalling at a furious pace. Perhaps her gears were stuck or it's a way of exercising .... who knows.

 

[bottombracket]

They reckon that most experienced cyclists pedal at around 90 pedal revs per min - that can look like a furious pace to a new cyclist.
It does take a bit of practice.
If you can push a high (stiff) gear at those revs, you'll fly along.
Lance Armstrong pedals about 100rpm, if my memory serves me right.

I lead group rides ('Rural Rides' - co-ordinated by Notts County Council) and most new cyclists seem to tend to pedal very slowly (60 RPM?). If I try that, my legs will be very sore the following day!

 

[Tigerbiten]

As I'm getting, I'm finding I'm spinning the pedals faster to go the same speed.
This means I less effort per pedal rev but I make more revs per min.
This puts a lot less stain on my knees.
Also because I'm not straining against the pedals, I can spin them for longer.

What you need to learn is the best speed for you to spin the pedals at which will keep a nice light-ish resistance on them.
Too fast/light and you'll get tired without getting any where.
To slow/heavy is easier at the start but puts to much strain on the joints/muscules.
Then use the gears on hills to keep this feel.

Thats the art of rideing long distances at speed.

Luck ..........

 

[jimboalee]

They reckon that most experienced cyclists pedal at around 90 pedal revs per min - that can look like a furious pace to a new cyclist.
It does take a bit of practice.
If you can push a high (stiff) gear at those revs, you'll fly along.
Lance Armstrong pedals about 100rpm, if my memory serves me right.

I lead group rides ('Rural Rides' - co-ordinated by Notts County Council) and most new cyclists seem to tend to pedal very slowly (60 RPM?). If I try that, my legs will be very sore the following day!

Most experienced cyclists KNOW what type of muscle they have.

I'm mostly FAST TWITCH, and if I pedalled at 90 rpm all day, I'd not only be totally knackered, I also have a red-raw arse.

I'm in the mid sixties.

 

[jimboalee]

Really experienced cyclists try to turn the pedals as few times as possible.

This means getting on the wheel of another cyclist and upping the gear, getting behind a group of cyclist and dropping it onto highest gear or holding on to another cyclist.

They might roll along in a very high gear standing up to pedal for two or three seconds every 100 yds or so.

 

[jimboalee]

They reckon that most experienced cyclists pedal at around 90 pedal revs per min - that can look like a furious pace to a new cyclist.
It does take a bit of practice.
If you can push a high (stiff) gear at those revs, you'll fly along.
Lance Armstrong pedals about 100rpm, if my memory serves me right.

I lead group rides ('Rural Rides' - co-ordinated by Notts County Council) and most new cyclists seem to tend to pedal very slowly (60 RPM?). If I try that, my legs will be very sore the following day!

It takes hours for a newbie to get their legs used to 90 rpm.

It takes months for a newbie to build muscle to produce torque.

Why is 'spinning' so popular?

 

[jimboalee]

They reckon that most experienced cyclists pedal at around 90 pedal revs per min - that can look like a furious pace to a new cyclist.
It does take a bit of practice.
If you can push a high (stiff) gear at those revs, you'll fly along.
Lance Armstrong pedals about 100rpm, if my memory serves me right.

I lead group rides ('Rural Rides' - co-ordinated by Notts County Council) and most new cyclists seem to tend to pedal very slowly (60 RPM?). If I try that, my legs will be very sore the following day!

The soreness is a sign of Hypertrophy. It is your friend. Hypertrophy makes you stronger.

Shy away from getting soreness and you will never get stronger.

 

[raindog]

The soreness is a sign of Hypertrophy. It is your friend. Hypertrophy makes you stronger.

Shy away from getting soreness and you will never get stronger.

Or in other words No Gain Without Pain

 

[Arch]

The soreness is a sign of Hypertrophy. It is your friend. Hypertrophy makes you stronger.

Shy away from getting soreness and you will never get stronger.

Not everyone wants to get stronger. Some of us just want to get from A to B, faster than walking, in relative comfort.

Getting stronger will come anyway, there's no need to go and make yourself hurt.

Klaus - find the rate of pedal spinning (it's called cadence) that feels comfortable for you. Then use your gears to try and maintain it as near as possible. So, higher downhill, and lower uphill. That's all there is to it.

Unless you're somewhere very hilly, you'll probably find you only need to use the sprockets (the gears at the wheel end) - I use 3 or 4 gears on a regular basis. I save the chainrings (the ones at the pedal end) for the more hilly bits.