Explain gear ratio's

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Shooter999

Active Member
Hi everyone

My current bike has a 50/34 on the front and a 12/30 on the back. I'm thinking of changing my bike to a bike which will have a 52/36 on the front and a 11/32 on the back?

Can someone explain if the new bike will be easier / harder to ride when going up hills in the 36/32 compared to the 34/30?

Thanks for all replies.
 

Sharky

Guru
Location
Kent
identical, both 29.7 inches
Use one of the gear calculators to convert to inches then you can compare
http://www.bikecalc.com/gear_inches
 
Chainring/sprockets, the bigger that number is the bigger the gear is and the harder it is to push it up hill.
36/32 = 1.25, 34/30 = 1.133.
The second one has the lower gear.
Most gears around the bottom end on a standard block have around 20% jump, so it's around half a gear.
So the difference is so small you won't really notice it.
 
Anglo Saxons use Gear Inches, whereas continental types use Gear Developement as an absolute measure of gear size for comparison.
The late Sheldon Brown created an online resource defining these and every other cycling term, which you should consult.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
Looks like it's just down to a rounding error though (Sheldon plumps for 29.6 & 29.8 assuming a 622 x 23 tyre). So small, as @Tigerbiten says, that you won't notice it.
I looked at Tigerbiten's post and thought there is a significant difference between 1.25 and 1.133 but i have since noticed that he has missed a digit off the first figure - it should be 1.125!
 
Last edited:

Sharky

Guru
Location
Kent
I looked at Tigerbiten's post and thought there is a significant difference between 1.25 and 1.133 but i have since noticed that he has missed a digit off the first figure - it should be 1.125!
I just checked as well. Just a rounding difference. If both calculated to 2 DP's, would be 1.13 * wheel diameter.(I think)
But hardly any difference that would be noticed.
 

bikeman66

Senior Member
Location
Isle of Wight
Hi everyone

My current bike has a 50/34 on the front and a 12/30 on the back. I'm thinking of changing my bike to a bike which will have a 52/36 on the front and a 11/32 on the back?

Can someone explain if the new bike will be easier / harder to ride when going up hills in the 36/32 compared to the 34/30?

Thanks for all replies.
Please forgive my ignorance.......but if you do not know what difference this change will make.......why are you doing it at all??
 
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