Gears for Touring

[DeepBurn]

There is a A LOT if information and websites out there with information about touring (including this forum) which for a newbie like myself is brilliant.....but also a little overwhelming!!

Ultimately, I know that, once I purchase my bike & kit and get out on the road I'll probably educate myself more than I ever could reading stuff online.

However I'm curious to know about gears.

I've read on a couple of websites that you really need 27 gears for touring for when climbing hills with a fully loaded bike under you.

What are people's thought on this? Is it essential to have such a range of gears or are there people out there who have done thousands of miles with a lower range?

 

[mcshroom]

It's not the number of gears, but rather the range that you need. My bike has 24 gears, but in it's current configuration (42-32-22 front and 11-32 rear) it has a very low first gear (around 19 gear inches). That may be a bit extreme as I fitted that setup to go touring in the Cairngorms with a full set of camping luggage and I'm not the best of climbers to start with. For reference my touring bike came with a 28t inner ring and a 32t rear sprocket.

You can tour singlespeed if you want, and people do. Also you can tour with significanlty less luggage (Willem will no doubt be along in a minute to tell us that you only need one pannier of ultralight gear), but low gearing is IMHO useful as I prefer to spin up hills at low speeds than walk up them.

 

[DeepBurn]

Gear ratios really isn't something I understand a lot to be honest - i did read a lengthy article about them though on cycletourer and they do mention having 27 gears but only 15 of which are really usable.

I'd sooner slowly cycle a hill than get off and push too - which is why I think getting the correct gear/gear ratio setup is a key factor for me (I'm also not the worlds greatest climber!!!)

 

[numbnuts]

I use 22 36 48 front and 11-34 rear and I'm old and decrepit but can get up most hills

 

[rollinstok]

Basically, the smaller the cog available at the front ( pedal end ) combined with the larger cog available at the back will give you the lowest gear
mcshroom's gear ratio's are pretty ideal for touring and are most commonly found on mountain bikes, some hybrids and some touring bikes
The numbers mcshroom gives relate to the amount of teeth that are on the cogs, so his lowest gear is 22 teeth at the front and 32 teeth at the back, his highest gear is 42 teeth at the front and 11 at the back
11-32 at the back provides a good range ( it is possible to go one step lower by looking for a 11-34 cassette )
at the front it is better to have a triple chainring ( 3 cogs ) than a double ( 2 cogs ) as it will provide lower gears for touring
You will probably find that there are favourite gears that suit your ability and style of riding ( I have gone a whole day using just 2 or 3 gears ), so as you have already read, although there may be 27 gears many will not be used. It is not advisable for instance to use a small gear at the front ( say 22 ) with a high gear at the back ( say 11 ) as this will cause the chain to run at an angle which will cause wear and tear a lot sooner.. the same applies to a high gear at the front and low gear at the back.

 

[DeepBurn]

Basically, the smaller the cog available at the front ( pedal end ) combined with the larger cog available at the back will give you the lowest gear
mcshroom's gear ratio's are pretty ideal for touring and are most commonly found on mountain bikes, some hybrids and some touring bikes
The numbers mcshroom gives relate to the amount of teeth that are on the cogs, so his lowest gear is 22 teeth at the front and 32 teeth at the back, his highest gear is 42 teeth at the front and 11 at the back
11-32 at the back provides a good range ( it is possible to go one step lower by looking for a 11-34 cassette )
at the front it is better to have a triple chainring ( 3 cogs ) than a double ( 2 cogs ) as it will provide lower gears for touring
You will probably find that there are favourite gears that suit your ability and style of riding ( I have gone a whole day using just 2 or 3 gears ), so as you have already read, although there may be 27 gears many will not be used. It is not advisable for instance to use a small gear at the front ( say 22 ) with a high gear at the back ( say 11 ) as this will cause the chain to run at an angle which will cause wear and tear a lot sooner.. the same applies to a high gear at the front and low gear at the back.

Thanks for this - it's nicely put so I understand things a bit better.

Basically make sure I have 3 cogs at the front, an 11- 32 cassette at the back & don't use the chain diagonally and it should be decent enough for touring!

 

[mcshroom]

That would be a decent start, but it does depend on what bike you want to tour on. Have you already got a bike in mind, and if so, what is it?

I personally would like three cogs up front as you have scope for a greater gear range, but if you have a bike with two then it would be expensive to change that and it would make far more sense to work with what you already have. Having a good low gear (small number of teeth at the pedals, large at the back) and not using it is IMHO better than not having it when you do need it whatever the bike set up though.

As you may guess there is no one right way to tour - and it's about the experience more than the bike

 

[DeepBurn]

That would be a decent start, but it does depend on what bike you want to tour on. Have you already got a bike in mind, and if so, what is it?

I personally would like three cogs up front as you have scope for a greater gear range, but if you have a bike with two then it would be expensive to change that and it would make far more sense to work with what you already have. Having a good low gear (small number of teeth at the pedals, large at the back) and not using it is IMHO better than not having it when you do need it whatever the bike set up though.

As you may guess there is no one right way to tour - and it's about the experience more than the bike

I've actually just posted a thread in the beginners section about potential bikes and asking whether a hybrid can be a sensible starting bike for touring as we're on a budget and need to buy 2 bikes.

Been looking at the 2nd hand bikes on ebay that match my size usuing sizing guides and most of the ones that are within price are hybrids. So still researching and getting info at the moment.

Hopefully will be buying a bike in the next month or so so I can get out at weekends and starting seeing what works best for me.

 

[mcshroom]

Ah I'd just found that one, I've left a reply.

With hybrids you would be unlikely to find one with a double up front, probably three cogs and they are usually 48-38-28 teeth, so pretty decent range for touring.

I did Hadrian's cycleway on a hybrid- same model as this one

The only change I made was to fit bar ends

 

[Bodhbh]

I use 22 36 48 front and 11-34 rear and I'm old and decrepit but can get up most hills

Just thinking of sticking a 22 on the front of my hybrid for emergencies to match your 22 36 48 setup. But it's a quite a range, the front mech can still change thru it all okay?

 

[numbnuts]

I

Just thinking of sticking a 22 on the front of my hybrid for emergencies to match your 22 36 48 setup. But it's a quite a range, the front mech can still change thru it all okay?

I was a bit worried at first, but it works OK, but I found that the chain would fall off even after adjust it so I bought one of these Dog Fangs it stops the chan from coming off just buy one for the size of your down tube
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Deda-Dog-...sure_cycling_bikeparts_SR&hash=item2561c56a7f

 

[chrtho]

I use 22 36 48 front and 11-34 rear

Do you find you use the 48 much ? I have 22/32/44 and when touring with full camping gear, the big ring never gets used at all.

 

[vernon]

Do you find you use the 48 much ? I have 22/32/44 and when touring with full camping gear, the big ring never gets used at all.

Yes but there will be occasions when you will ride the bike without the camping gear when It's nice to get a good turn of speed now and then.

I have toured with a 21 speed Dawes Galaxy, a 24 speed Dawes Galaxy and a 24 speed Decathlon hybrid/tourer. The all had one thing in common a small chain ring of 22 or 24 teeth at the front and a 34 tooth largest sprocket at the rear,

My touring this year will be done with a 14 speed hub geared bike which has the same extremes of gearing as a derailleur equipped bike but with no duplication of gear ratios.

 

[chrtho]

I have toured with a 21 speed Dawes Galaxy, a 24 speed Dawes Galaxy and a 24 speed Decathlon hybrid/tourer. The all had one thing in common a small chain ring of 22 or 24 teeth at the front and a 34 tooth largest sprocket at the rear,

That's the key to correct gear setup - get the bottom gear low enough and don't worry too much about the top gear.

 

[vernon]

That's the key to correct gear setup - get the bottom gear low enough and don't worry too much about the top gear.

No one ever complains about the bottom gear being too low.....

When I had my hub geared bike built by Woodrups, the spec that took top spot was the gear ratio of bottom gear to match or better a 22 tooth granny ring and 34 tooth rear sprocket. The downside is that the top speed achievable without spinning out is considerably lower than my derailleur geared bikes but it was a price that I was prepared to pay.

Lots of fun can be had with gear calculators and I aim to have a bottom gear of 17" on touring bikes though I am happy to have higher bottom gears on my auax and road bikes.