Whats your chainring size/s ?

[derrick]

52-42 front 11-27 rear., Get's me where ever i need to go, struggle a little on the really big climbs, but every where else i fly, I was running 11-25 a while back but put the 27 on when we done them Yorkshire Dales

 

[ufkacbln]

Largest is the custom 85 on the Hurricane (42 gears) and the lowest is 34 on the Schlumpf / Rohloff Gekko

 

[ChrisEyles]

52/42 up front and 14-28 five speed at the back... the only improvement I could wish for would be an extra 32t sprocket at the rear for the really steep hills, but otherwise it's perfect for me, and at least it provides a good workout!

 

[400bhp]

52/42 up front and 14-28 five speed at the back... the only improvement I could wish for would be an extra 32t sprocket at the rear for the really steep hills, but otherwise it's perfect for me, and at least it provides a good workout!

In what way is the workout different than a compact?

 

[ChrisEyles]

You could get the same gear ratios either way, and of course a modern cassette would give you narrower spacing. The biggest difference from a compact is that my old 1960s front derailleur won't work with a compact! Not sure my legs could tell the difference though...