Ribble bikes and Gear Ratios - help.

[Paulq]

Hi

I have 2 areas I need some advice with please.

1. Gear Ratios

I am currently looking at buying and speccing one of the Ribble bikes but am confused about the gearing options as I don't understand the numbers associated with them. Basically I want a road bike and know that traditionally these have a much higher gearing than, say, a MTB or hybrid but how do I know what gearing will be the best one?

For example the cassette has the following options:

11-23
12-23
12-25
13-26
13-29

Am I correct in assuming that the 11-23 is a higher ratio (i.e. the larger sprocket will be smaller) than a, say, 13-29 which I assume will be kinder to climbing etc? Or is it the other way around?

Then there's the chainset:

Compact 34/50
or 34/50 (I assume non-compact whatever that means!)
then the same options in 39-53

Then I guess there's the combination of the 2 and which is best? I am new to road cycling from a hybrid where the gears are a bit 'kinder' shall we say so I don't want something that's gonna kill me on hills whilst I do want something with a more speed orientated top end.

Can someone explain this to me in very simple, understandable, English as to what this means in terms of 'easy' or 'hard' gearing.

That I stand a chance of understanding.

2. Ribble Bikes/Quality

Secondly, as I am looking at the Ribble bikes I understand that the frames are designed by Terry Dolan - what's the general opinions of their bikes? They look like a lot of bike for the cash and I am aware that on occasions they don't get glowing reports for Customer Service. If the consensus is that they are worth having a look at over some of the more 'off the shelf' brands then I'll wander up there and take a look at them but would welcome comments as to the quality of their bikes.

In particular I am looking at the 7005 Horizontal Campag 10sp.

Thanks in advance.

 

[delstron]

You have things more-or-less right

The 11-23 rear cassette is a high geared 'racing' item which would be used with the 39-53 chainset to form a racing machine for fit riders to go very quickly on. The 13-29 cassette would lower the gearing, as would the compact chainset 50-34. You could even have both these lower gearing options together if you were in a hilly area or were not a particularly fit rider. This lowered gear combination would limit your top speed slightly in the 13/50 gear but would only be an issue if you were racing.

I suppose you would say the lower gearing is 'easier' and the higher gear 'harder'.

I run a Mercian with compact and the 13-29 as I am in Derbyshire (hilly), do not race and am not in the first flush of youth.

Two colleagues have Ribble bikes and have been pleased with them and have had no issues with customer service although, as you say, others have reported problems.

 

[Paulq]

You have things more-or-less right

The 11-23 rear cassette is a high geared 'racing' item which would be used with the 39-53 chainset to form a racing machine for fit riders to go very quickly on. The 13-29 cassette would lower the gearing, as would the compact chainset 50-34. You could even have both these lower gearing options together if you were in a hilly area or were not a particularly fit rider. This lowered gear combination would limit your top speed slightly in the 13/50 gear but would only be an issue if you were racing.

I suppose you would say the lower gearing is 'easier' and the higher gear 'harder'.

I run a Mercian with compact and the 13-29 as I am in Derbyshire (hilly), do not race and am not in the first flush of youth.

Two colleagues have Ribble bikes and have been pleased with them and have had no issues with customer service although, as you say, others have reported problems.

Thanks for that - good to know my understanding was correct 9ish). I am very tempted to go for a compact with a 12-25 cassette on the bike to be honest - I assume that this would provide me with a reasonable spread of gears to help me with hills whilst retaining enough 'top end' to motor a bit when I get going?

Thanks again.

 

[User269]

Thanks for that - good to know my understanding was correct 9ish). I am very tempted to go for a compact with a 12-25 cassette on the bike to be honest - I assume that this would provide me with a reasonable spread of gears to help me with hills whilst retaining enough 'top end' to motor a bit when I get going?

Thanks again.

You've got the theory right, the difficulty is in finding what's right for you. The more riding experience and fitness you gain, the better idea you'll have. So to a great extent, you just have to take the plunge with a 'conventional' gear set up and see how you get on.
Many people swear by compact chainsets, but I hate them. On my road racing bike I've a triple chainset 30-39-52 with a close ratio 12-23 racing block. This does me fine for hilly Dorset, the Alps, and flat road racing, with a gear range of between 35" and 117".

 

[PpPete]

Thanks for that - good to know my understanding was correct 9ish). I am very tempted to go for a compact with a 12-25 cassette on the bike to be honest - I assume that this would provide me with a reasonable spread of gears to help me with hills whilst retaining enough 'top end' to motor a bit when I get going?

Thanks again.

Go for the 13-29 to start with, until you are sure.
12-25 cassettes are easy to get hold and relatively low cost if you want to change later.

50 x 13 will push you along at fair old lick..... I only ever use that with a slight downhill. or a decent tailwind. You shouldn't "spin out" until close to 30 mph on it.


FWIW.... I run a triple 50-38-26 & 12-30 cassette.

 

[Grasen]

well if you have loads of time on your hands you could work out what the differences are with this .

 

[Ben M]

I would recommend 13-29 and a compact for someone who is new(ish) to riding. This is because it gives a nice big ratio, and the highest gear, as said, in nice and high. I have something similar on my bike, and the speeds at which my legs can't keep up are always on downhill stretches where it's more aero not to pedal anyway

 

[jimboalee]

Two things to consider.



One, what does the bike weigh?



Two, how powerful are you?



In the good ole' days, a 'half decent cyclist' was one who could climb a 10% gradient at 5 mph for most of the afternoon, or 20 mph on the flat for the whole afternoon. Are you at this level?

In today's age of technology, this is a consistent 250 Watts output.



Yes, then it's simple. To climb that 10%, its ( 1 / Weight in lbs ) x 1000 = inches gear.



So a 25lb bike needs a 40" gear for the 10%, a 36" gear for a 12% and a 32" gear for a 14%.



A 20lb bike needs a 50" gear for the 10%, a 46" gear for a 12% and a 42" gear for a 14%.