Of Chain Wheels, Cogsets and Gear Ratios

I had done Peres. But it was more like Peres had done me in. Back at Batu 18, May Senn and Arief inspected my bike and had particularly looked into my gears system. May Senn told me that one of my problem was that my gears were too tough for me. I had a 41 – 52 chain wheel upfront and 22 -12 eight speeds at the rear. And I was able to use at best 41:22. And that would be a ratio of 1.8636 to 1.

What’s that? I had asked for clarification. My gears were suitable for normal rides and were not for hill climbs. Mountain bikes often have the best gear ratios; some even have more than 27 speeds.

May Senn had offered to look into changing my gear systems. She would organize it for me. No I had declined. I will look into it myself, having learnt the skills of problem solving almost throughout my life. So the first thing was to talk about it. The problems and the issues. I was determined that I would need larger gears at the back. The biggest ring measured 5 cm diameter and I will look for a set of rings with 8 cm or larger. May Senn had argued that size does not matter. It was the number of teeth on the ring that matters. It was all about gear ratios. OK I will look into it.

 

There were plenty of information on the websites. In fact anything one wants to know about bicycles and cycling. After having read many hours on the net and following some forums on cycling, I was ready to visit the nearest bicycle shop. Yes the shop had most brands and also any specifications that I wanted. But the catch was always, I will have to change the whole gear system comprising, the chain wheels, shifters, rear cassette, chain, front and rear derailleurs and cranks. Yes It would cost me an arm and a leg. Pun intended.

 

What I had learnt was that if I did not want to spend a bomb to change the whole set of gear system, but only the rear cogset, I would not be guaranteed of a smooth cross over during the gear changes. I remembered May Senn’s agony when checking in her bike for the Ironman Langakawi 2009. Her gears jumped and did not cross smoothly. It took Max and Daniel of Boutique Bike sometime to solve it. Luckily Max had brought along a full set of gears to Langakawi.

 

Persistence pays. If I cannot have the ideal gear system, (read cannot afford) the next best would do. I browsed Google. I browsed eBay. And as luck would have it I chanced upon a Shimano 8 speed cogset 34 -11t. A lucky cross reference to a writer in a cycling forum confirmed that it was a hybrid dual design for mountain and road bikes. This cassette would fit an eight speed system on a road bike without having to change any other parts. Yes I have it. Ten more teeth. I can do 41:34 at Pares. I should be more comfortable with a 1.2058:1 ratio.

 

But before I could make an online purchase, my luck was still riding  with me, I came across a seller in mudah. com, who had upgraded his 8 speed to a 10 speed. He had the Shimano cassette 34-11t for sale. I contacted him, bargained for the price and had him deliver it with Postlaju. Postlaju was really laju this time, my cassette arrived in less than 24 hrs. Thank you Postlaju.

 

I took it immediately to my bike shop. He said no way, this cassette was for mountain bikes, it would not fit. I was confident of what I had read and told him to change the cassette anyway. We will cross the bridges when we come to the rivers.

 

He made the change in less than an hour. Voila, no other parts were needed. The Shimano fitted perfectly, with smooth changes at all speeds. Up and down, the chain ran without a fuss.

 

I was ready for Pares again.