David- If you like triples, then you probably want a drivetrain with a wide range and some good, low gears.
*Compact Double:* You can get that combination easily with a wide-range rear cassette (for example, 11-34t) and a standard "compact double" crankset (110 bcd, 50/34 rings). The 34:34 is a 1:1 low gear, which is lowest for most non-touring bikes. You can get lower than that with MTB cassettes (for example, 11-40t). But remember that any cassette larger than 28t usually requires an MTB derailleur, and anything larger than 36t usually requires a new (aka ugly) MTB derailleur and/or a Wolftooth Goat/Roadlink adapter. *Subcompact Double:* Or, you can get lower than that with "subcompact" crankset, often using a 110/74 bcd (aka the inner two rings of a triple). Others use a smaller bcd, or a direct-mount (like the White VBC) to fit smaller rings. With a "subcompact" crankset (Sugino 40/26 is popular around here), you can use a smaller cassette (11-26t would still give you a 1:1 low gear) which is lighter and uses standard "road" derailleurs. I owned a Roadeo for a short time, and set it up this way with a VO Cyclotouriste 46/30 crankset and 11-28t cassette (with vintage Sachs/Campagnolo Ergopower drivetrain). My only complaint with the gearing was the jump between 46/30 seemed pretty large, and usually required a rear shift at the same time to find a sensible gear progression. There are options to use a very-wide-range rear cassette and a single front chainring (called "1x" aka "1 by"). But I believe that this gearing is OK off-road but leaves too many gaps in the gearing mostly used on the road. On Thu, Oct 25, 2018 at 11:22 AM David Wadstrup <[email protected]> wrote: > I actually forgot all about Sugino! Thanks for the reminder. I don’t think > I’d use the XD2, but will check out their road cranks later this evening. > > Gearing is something I’m not sure about. I’d love some advice. I have > triples on other bikes and love them, but want a double for sure on the > Roadeo. I won’t race, per se, but wouldn’t mind a racy “training” set up. > I’m in good shape and weigh 165lb. Also something good for serious > climbing. Maybe good racing and good hill climbing ratios are mutually > exclusive? I don’t know enough to say. But if they are, I’d lean more > towards the good hill climber over a real high end sprinter. Does this make > sense? What would you recommend up front? And in back on the cassette for > that matter? > > Thanks! > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
