52 to 34 Chainring ?

[HLaB]

Hi I've got a 52/36 chain set and given a previous 52/38 chainset I had with the same 11-28 cassette which coped with Flanders, hills in Scotland and Wynatts I think the 52/36 will be perfect for round here in the flatlands. (I still have the 52/38 on my commuter and it copes fine with the worst round here has to offer). I'm thinking though about a trip to real mountains if I'm lucky enough, however. A 34t is relatively cheap for that rare occasion but would a 52t to a 34t drop be too big for the derailleur to cope with and I'd need a dearer 50t too ?

TIA

 

[S-Express]

The max difference is usually 16 teeth, so 34 -> 52 might be asking too much.

 

[TheDoctor]

I'd expect a front mech to cope with a 52-34 if it'll do 52-36.
To be honest, though, it'll drop your lowest gear from 33.9" to 32", which barely seems worth the bother.
If you climbed Winnats Pass with the 36T inner ring you should be able to do, well, pretty much anything.
I barely made it up Winnats Pass last time I tried, and that was in a Fiat Uno!

 

[Racing roadkill]

Your mech will have a set of stats for the maximum number of teeth you can use with it, and diameter of sprockets it can take.

So with a 52-34 chainset, and 11-28 cassette, you would need a medium cage if you're running a Shimano mech, as a minimum. Also make sure the chain is long enough to cope.

 

[classic33]

The max difference is usually 16 teeth, so 34 -> 52 might be asking too much.

42-52-62 on the chainrings, never had a problem

 

[S-Express]

42-52-62 on the chainrings, never had a problem

That's great, but we're talking doubles, not triples.

 

[Jackmaster]

Didn't even know 62t chainrings were made!! Superman size lol! Thought TT were typically 54/ 55t?

 

[classic33]

Didn't even know 62t chainrings were made!! Superman size lol! Thought TT were typically 54/ 55t?

 

[Racing roadkill]