Don't Laugh.......I have a triple

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

raleighnut

Legendary Member
Take a wander over to Mow Cop.
Or over the Cat & Fiddle to Derbyshire.
 

Alan O

Über Member
Location
Liverpool
My main ride runs a 48/38/28 triple with a 14-28 six speed freewheel.
After many years (though the years themselves are certainly part of it), I've settled on exactly the same setup on my tourer (which is my main bike). I don't really care if there's some overlap, and I don't do double-shift changes, as I see my setup as three sets of gearing rather than one wider set. I use the middle ring probably 80% of the time, the big ring on longer downhills or if it's flat and I'm feeling fast (which usually means a tailwind), and the little one on steep hills.

Sometimes an even smaller gear might be nice, but as I don't really climb hills much I don't need it often enough to disrupt what otherwise seems just about perfect for me - the 28 front with the bigger four of the 14-28 block is actually pretty nice.

At the top end, 48 to 14 is plenty. I've probably used it less than half a dozen times this year and only ever on long downhills. It's big enough to get me a bit over 30mph, and that's plenty fast enough for me these days - I look back on some of the much faster downhills of my youth and I realize I was lucky to get away with them.

My other road-ish bike is lighter, has skinny wheels, no mudguards or carrying capacity, and I thought I could set it up to be a faster bike now that my tourer takes most of my load. So I tried 52/42 front and 14-24 rear now that it doesn't have to be so versatile.

I quickly found that was way too highly geared for me, and I've reverted to its original 48/36 front. That's still a plenty fast enough setup for me and it's fun - but if I could only choose one it would have to be a bike with a triple.
 

Nigelnightmare

Über Member
I run a 55-42-30 with a 9-32 capreo 9 speed.
When I'm fresh I'm mainly in the 55-42 even on the hills.
At the end of a 40 mile long ride (or the day after) it's more 42-30 on the same hills.
 

crazyjoe101

New Member
Location
London
My tourer/winter bike has a tripple, my bottom gear is 24/42. Good fun riding uphill in the saddle at normal cadence while everyone else is grinding out of their saddles.
 
Location
Essex
42702579544_8e43590937_z.jpg

I'm unashamed to commute on a Colnago Tecnos with a triple* - it's absolutely unstoppable and a massive hoot to ride. Should the lightest thoroughbred frame Colnago ever made be carrying 150g of extra weight? Pfffft - who cares - just ride whatever works and enjoy it. I see plenty of folks with more 'pro' setups walking up hills or bursting their knees.

It's not a granny ring or bail-out gear, it's just another set of ratios to use.

*and some weeds to take care of, now I look at the photo!
 

freiston

Veteran
Location
Coventry
I would never laugh at a triple. If you want to compare sprocket/chainwheel combinations that you have with combinations that you don't have, try www.gear-calculator.com - here's my gearing (on the web page, you can drag the chainwheel and sprockets along the slider to the tooth count of your choice and see the change that it makes - you can also create two set-ups to compare side by side):
43575164112_ab58de3f9d_b.jpg
 
Last edited:
Top Bottom