Gears, cranksets, and mountains....help!

[Amatron]

Hello! I am currently training for a cross-country bike trip and having never biked through mountains, am concerned about my bike having a double crankset rather than a triple. I'm worried that I'll hurt my knees biking at gears which may not be ideal. I've heard many times that switching from a double to a triple is one of the most difficult and expensive repairs to do on a bike, so that doesn't seem like a viable option. I'm wondering if anyone has thoughts on biking through mountains with a double crankset and any advice on saving knees from too much strain?

[Starfish]

Maybe you could tell us a bit more about yourself? What kind of cycling history do you have? How many years, what type of riding, etc. Also, what kind of history do you have with your knees in cycling, other sports, etc?

[alpinerabbit]

More a remodel than a repair, the cheaper ticket is the compact double which will get you up anything if you have the right cassette.

[SadieKate]

Why is a compact necessarily cheaper? A lot of shifters are triple compatible. She may have to swap out the BB as well as the front der, just like she would for a triple.

What gearing does your tour company/leader/guide/whatever recommend for the chosen route? The various routes can have different amounts and types of climbing? Are you carrying your own gear? The more gear you have on the bike, the lower the gears you'll want.

[KnottedYet]

Depending on the type of crank and such you have, you might be able to just toss a third chainring on your existing spider.

My new road bike came with a double, but the spider had bolt spots for a third ring. $19 for a nice Salsa granny, a few minutes of my LBS's time (they didn't charge for that) and now I have a triple.

The front der didn't shift sweetly with the third ring, so the guys traded a longer cage for it. Again, no charge, but I gave them some beer... :D

[madscot13]

after looking at rebuiling my bike, it looks that it would be the most expensive thing. Its the price of the crankset, maybe the bottom bracket, and the shifters. most STIs can only do double or triple. so if you want Ultegra it will be more than 500. BUt I think sometimes you can find just the right or the left shifter.

[SadieKate]

As far as I know only upper level Shimano (Ultegra and Dura-Ace) are double or triple specific. Up through Shimano 105, the shifters are compatible with either. All Campy shifters are compatible with either. It depends on what Amatron has on her bike already and the age of the components. Even BB and front ders can need to be changed if she just changes her chain rings. The curves need to match.

Yes, freqently single shifters can be purchased.

Of course, there is always the possibility that she does have a triple crank without the inner ring mounted. You do see that. You also see doubles run with only one chain ring (I've done that). A mfg could have left off a chain ring and sold it as a double, or a previous owner could have removed it. A few cranks just happen to have bolt holes in the right spots; those are uncommon but not unknown.

[mariposa]

More important than the equipment issue is the question of how you are currently training. Do you have access to some good hills right now?

Long hills/big climbing days can strain your knees, your lower back and your hamstrings. I think the best way to prevent that is to build up to it in your training. Practice hills!

Personally I live in a very hilly location and I have a compact double on my bike. I have some great lower gears, not quiiiiiiite as low as a triple, but I don't like the awkward way triples shift, anyway.

[bike4ever]

A lower priced alternative is to replace the rear derailleur with a mountain derailleur. This would allow you to put a nice mountain cassette on your bike - something like an 11-32. You would probably also need a new chain. If you keep the parts you remove, then you can switch it back out once you return from the trip. This will probably be cheaper than a compact crankset/bb/possible front derailleur.

[Triskeliongirl]

I concur with bike4ever. In fact, I recommend an 11-34. That will get you up most anything, and you can still easily interchange it with a tighter cassette for flat land stuff later.

[OakLeaf]

What's your budget? I'll be the contrarian here... ;)

A mountain cassette and derailleur is obviously the cheapest way to go, but you lose so many of the in-between gears that you're almost always pedaling at a cadence that isn't ideal for you. My legs aren't strong enough for a corncob any more (and honestly, I only ever put one on my race wheel, not the ones I used for training), but I definitely miss even one tooth in between cogs.

As for interchanging cassettes on the road, I don't know about that - maybe on a long unsupported tour you might want to carry a spare cassette and a chain whip anyway, but readjusting the derailleur is a pain, especially without a workstand.

[Starfish]

A mountain cassette and derailleur is obviously the cheapest way to go, but you lose so many of the in-between gears that you're almost always pedaling at a cadence that isn't ideal for you.

Well, I put an 11-32 on last year, and while I did notice some of the in-between gears disappear, I feel I have plenty of cadence choices. The resulting low gears really, really helped me do the climbing training I needed to climb 10,000 feet in one day for my event.

If I was riding across the country and doing serious mountain climbing, 4K, 5K, 6K feet for one pass, let alone a full day of climbing or multple passes, I would want those granny gears. That is where I am in my fitness and weight for all day climbing.

That is why I think it is so important to know the OP's background of training, fitness, strength, etc.