Biggest gear on the flat

[Twilkes]

If we take the 'usually use' part of this seriously, there are some massive big-gear pushers on here. On 27" wheels 50 x 14 would be a gear of 7.68 metres. My ride-all-day on the flat in calm weather would be 5.64 metres (42 x 16) and average around 24 kph.

I read it as the biggest gear you usually use, not the gear that you usually use, i.e. your go-to gear. Probably every ride I would get into 50/14 at some point, it's not the gear I stay in most of the time though.

 

[ChrisEyles]

For a gear that I can actually spin in relative comfort on the flat, I really like the 52/20 gear on my ten speed. The next gear up, 52/17 is a smidge high to spin on the flat unless it's still / there's a tail wind, so I tend to swap between the 17t & 20t sprocket.

Most of my riding I seem to be grinding away up a hill in 42/28, or freewheeling down the other side - it's hilly round these parts!

Some of the gears quoted above don't sound like "spin in relative comfort on the flat" gears to me!

 

[Chris S]

One of our bikes is a tandem. I have just changed the gearing to 42t chainwheel, 11-34 freewheel. It has 20” wheels. Our test ride on Saturday suggests we will do 16-17mph on smooth flat road at our normal cadence. Fast enough for us But, our "normal" (ie mots frequent use) gear on the flat, on the Tandem is 42/13, which gives us about 12-13mph at our normal cadence.

In that case we would both have a cadence of around 60-62 rpm. I'm not pedalling unusually slow then.

 

[ChrisEyles]

Very true! I was thinking more along the lines of what SS gear I could put up with rather than the highest I might occasionally use on the flat.

In that case it's 52/17 for me. But closely followed by a downshift to 52/20

 

[byegad]

52/13 most of the time. Recumbents with 406 rear wheels run what seems like huge gears!

 

[rogerzilla]

53 x 17 if there's an absolutely monster tailwind. Normally I'd be in 39 x 16.

 

[rogerzilla]

52/13 most of the time. Recumbents with 406 rear wheels run what seems like huge gears!

My fixie Moulton TSR (same wheel size) s on 56 x 15, which sounds headbanging but is only like 46 x 18 on a 700c bike.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Geared bike this year, either 50 x 17 or 50 x 19 for 19- 22 mph on the flat, depending on weather conditions. On the fixed last winter 48 x 19 for around 19-20 mph, dependent on weather.

 

[Reynard]

I'm the one cyclist that everyone overtakes.

Unless I'm heading downhill or have a really stiff tailwind to aid my cause, I'll usually be bimbling along on a 46 x 17 on a 26 inch or 650c wheeled bike.

That's about 10 mph, there or thereabouts, but then I'm a spinner rather than a grinder.

 

[fatjel]

I live in wales

 

[Ian H]

I'm comfortable pootling along at evens on a 63" fixed.

 

[Paulus]

On a flat road with no head wind, then the normal gear for me is 52/15 or 16. As soon as the road goes up, so do the gears, up to the 19 or 21.

 

[Elybazza61]

52x11 on one, 44x11 on another (1x) and 48 x 11 on the other two.

 

[itboffin]

I live in wales

yeah you win hands down