What is the advantage of a “compact crankset” vs changing a chainring?

Asked by: Amber Bivins

Compact cranks have a smaller BCD of 110mm, which allows for smaller chainrings. Compacts have a 50/34 gearing, losing three teeth on the big ring and five teeth on the little ring compared to a standard. Compact cranksets are preferred for climbing races or for people who like to ride fast but not a race.

What is the advantage of a compact crankset?

Compact chainsets have become massively popular because they allow you to keep moving up steep hills, albeit sometimes quite slowly, and many people prefer to turn smaller gears at a higher cadence (the number of pedal revolutions per minute) because it puts less stress on the knees.

What is the difference between a compact crankset and standard?

A compact crank refers to a road bike crankset with relatively smaller chainrings that can make pedaling easier. While ‘standard’ cranks come with a 53-tooth large chainring and a 39-tooth small ring, compact cranks usually feature 50- and 34-tooth rings.

Does a smaller chainring make it easier to pedal?

If you need easier gearing, just swap to a smaller chainring. This is good for riders who struggle with climbing, regularly ride steep terrain, or carry extra weight with bike bags. On a mountain bike, the small change of swapping from a 32t to a 30t chainring gives you gearing that is 6.7% easier.

Is more teeth on a crankset better?

The number of teeth on your chainring(s) is a deciding factor in your bike’s gear ratio, with a greater number of teeth meaning a higher (harder to push) gear, and fewer teeth meaning a lower (easier to push) gear.

Does a bigger chainring make you faster?

Bigger chainrings and cassette cogs run more efficiently than smaller ones but extreme cross-chaining can cancel out those efficiency gains.

What crankset do pros use?

Pros often use a 55×11-tooth high gear for time trials. On flat or rolling stages they might have 53/39T chainrings with an 11-21T cassette. In moderate mountains they switch to a large cog of 23T or 25T. These days, they’ve joined the big-gear revolution like many recreational riders.

When should I replace chainrings?

“Rough/noisy running is the best way to tell if a chainring needs replacing,” says Chris Mckenney of SRAM. “Unless a chainring is well beyond its service life it is very difficult to see this visually; chainring teeth slowly take on the shape of a shark’s fin in use.

How long should chainrings last?

In theory, a clean chainring/chain/cassette that sees no road grit and is lubricated constantly should last virtually indefinitely (for most intents and purposes). Also, changing your chain on time will save you many cassettes as well as chainrings. Just keep an eye on the chain’s wear and replace it when needed.

How does chainring size affect speed?

The smaller the chainring, the easier the lowest gear for climbing; the bigger the chainring, the faster you can go in the highest gear. You can calculate the gearing ratio by dividing the teeth of the chainring with the teeth of the cog on the cassette.

Is it harder to pedal with bigger chainring?

When the larger radius section of the chainring engages, pedaling becomes harder. For example, an oval chainring with 32 teeth effectively changes between a 30 tooth and 34 tooth chainring as you pedal.

How much difference does 2 teeth on chainring make?

In this size range two teeth in the front is about the same as one tooth in the back. It’s a very small change but sometimes it’s just that small difference that tips the scale in your favour.

Should I go to a bigger chainring?

You will be better off with a smaller chainring. But if you are road cycling and riding in mostly flat areas with short and steep climbs, it is recommend that a larger chainring is best.

Which gear is fastest on a bike?

High Gear = Hard = Good for Descending: The “highest” gear on your bike is the largest chain ring in the front and the smallest cog on your cassette (rear gears). In this position, the pedaling will be the hardest and you’ll be able to accelerate while traveling downhill.

Do I need to change chain if I change chainring?

Quote from video: Now what you're looking out for is when the teeth of the ring. Start to become hooked. Like little shark's teeth. And that is a surefire sign that you need to replace the chain rings.

How do I know what size chainring to get?

Compact Vs. Standard Cranksets: Which is really best?

What is a compact gear set?

A compact chainset offers a middle ground between the more race-oriented standard road double and semi-compact chainsets with two larger chainrings (typically with 53/39 or 52/36 tooth chainrings) and heavier road triple chainsets with three chainrings that offer a wider range of gears (typically 50/39/30 teeth).

What is the difference between 11 28 and 11 30 cassette?

The difference is pretty easy to quantify mathematically. Going from a 28 to a 30T sprocket gives a 2/28th reduction in gearing – so about 7%. What that means is that if you’re going up a hill on your current 28T spinning at 100RPM, you’d need to pedal at 107RPM for the same speed.

What is the smallest chainring for 110 BCD?

33 tooth chainring

What is the smallest chainring you can put on 110 BCD crankset? The smallest chainring you can use or are going to find is a 33 tooth chainring.

How do I choose chainring size?

Figuring what type of trails you plan to ride for MTB and gravel bikes is important. Same goes if you are riding up long climbs. You will be better off with a smaller chainring. But if you are road cycling and riding in mostly flat areas with short and steep climbs, it is recommend that a larger chainring is best.

Do I need to change chain when changing chainring size?

No. Reducing the chainring size by two teeth means the chain needs to be one tooth shorter, so half a full link. You can only shorten a chain by a whole link, which is two teeth’s worth of chain, so if the chain was optimal before you could make it too short.

Will any chainring fit any crank?

You can replace the chainrings on your crankset, but not all chainrings will fit all cranks. First, different cranksets may have a different number of arms or direct-mount interfaces (connecting the cranks to the chainrings), and they may be positioned differently.