looking to upgrade...

BTW, if all you want is your gear range, you don't actually have to count the teeth on each and every sprocket in the rear cassette, just the smallest and the largest. Then pick anything from the dropdown on the calculator that matches the big and little sprockets on your bike, and plug in your chain rings. Or just fill out the first two spaces in the custom cassette with the smallest and biggest sprocket.

Ignore everything in between the biggest and smallest number this spits out.

You only need to know every single sprocket if you want to use the shift pattern table this generates.

Thanks for all your advice:D

The bike I'm looking at is a '08 Trek Madone 5.1 WSD.
Crank: Shimano Ultegra 50/34 or 52/39/30
Cassette: Shimano 105 11-25 or 12-27 (triple), 10 speed

My current bike is a '07 Fuji Professional 2.0.
Crank: FSA Gossamer Mega Exo, 30/39/53 teeth
Cassette: 10-speed, 12 - 25 teeth

I was happy with my Fuji until I got up off the seat the other day as I was going up a steep hill and almost lost it. I was in low gear and the crank just gave up. My husband fixed it and has ordered me a new crank set because the one I have is marginal.

I think staying with a triple is probably a good idea!

I have two bikes - one with a triple and one with a compact double. If I had to do it over again, the Surly with the compact double would have a triple. I'm getting used to the gearing, and I don't really mind riding the hills with the compact double, but it's more the spread between gears. With a triple I can always find that perfect gear, with my double, I end up shifting more often trying to get it just right - and sometimes I just can't. Weight is not a concern to me (well, at least weight on the bike :rolleyes:).

One thing I do love about the double, though, is the larger gearing. I can get going much faster on the flats because of the larger gearing and I enjoy that. :D But, I live in California and flat is not what I usually ride.

No weight to lose here, in decent shape, but I don't plan to ever buy a road bike without a triple crank unless I move to, say, Florida (which is unlikely as I like the mountains). I have a 52X11 which allows me to stay on a 50 km/h paceline on the flats if needed, and a 30X25 to go up a 20 km-long, 7% hill on the same day.

I also do not think triples should be "outgrown." I don't know how many times I have passed people on hills (men especially) who went on to say things like: "You could pass me because you have a triple!"

My father-in-law - an avid cyclist - could never get used to a triple. It does imply some different constraints with regards to shifting. But if you're accustomed to it already, embrace it!

Really, if there are substantial hills anywhere near you, do not feel like you have to change to a double. Unless you can climb any of those hills comfortably and enjoyably in your triple's middle chainring and NEVER use the 30-teether.

I wouldn't give up my triple for anything. I tried a compact double, but found I was gearing out on my top gears. I don't use my granny gear much, but I am really thankful it is there when I need it. DH has a triple too and is a heck of a climber. He can spin an incredible cadence and rarely gets passed even on the steepest hills. My knees just can't take mashing especially on a hilly century ride. The only thing I would suggest if you do go with a triple is to make sure it is higher end. Lower end triples won't shift as nice. I have Ultegra and it shifts beautifully.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ttaylor508

The only thing I would suggest if you do go with a triple is to make sure it is higher end. Lower end triples won't shift as nice. I have Ultegra and it shifts beautifully.

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Agreed. My bike came with a Tiagra derailleur on the front, and I had shifting problems that needed regular adjustments. It broke last year (while the LBS mechanic was adjusting it yet again) and he replaced it with an Ultegra, which is working much better.

The bike I'm looking at is high end... an '08 Trek Madone 5.1 WSD. It has an Ultegra. The crank on my Fuji Professional 2.0 is not so good.

From what I'm hearing, it sounds like a triple would be a good choice. Has anyone tried the 5.1 Madone WSD? How did you like it?

I love the advice from a woman's perspective. Keep it coming:D
Thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ttaylor508

The only thing I would suggest if you do go with a triple is to make sure it is higher end. Lower end triples won't shift as nice. I have Ultegra and it shifts beautifully.

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I agree also! I had a triple with Tiagra and experienced ghost shifting from the middle to small front sprocket. :mad: I vowed to go with better components next time.

Funny thing....my riding partner has a triple and she vowed to never give up her triple.

And yes, I am an enabler. ;) But one should *always* have a back up bike. :D

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Originally Posted by sundial

I agree also! I had a triple with Tiagra and experienced ghost shifting from the middle to small front sprocket. :mad: I vowed to go with better components next time.

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Can you elaborate a little bit? I have a Tiagra derailleur on the front also, and I've had trouble adjusting it as well as a strange dropping-the-chain problem.

What's ghost shifting?

I can't remember now, but it will drop the chain when I'm climbing, but I can't remember if it's when I'm shifting UP or when I'm shifting DOWN. I was told by the SAG mechanic that it was the opposite of what he would have expected under the circumstances.

They finally replaced the chain thinking it might be a flaw in the chain somehow, and I've not been healthy enough to ride the bike for distance since. It wasn't dropping while I was commuting back and forth to campus, but that's not exactly a demanding ride with many (or any) hills on the way.

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=27019

Hmm, that doesn't sound like what I've had going on. This only happens when I'm trying to shift the chainring while going uphill, or at least it was by far more likely to happen then. And I can't for the life of me recall if it was going from smaller to larger or larger to smaller sprocket.

It's chain drop, no problems shifting except for this. No gear that's hard to get into, no chatter at odd times, as long as I stay out of the crossover gears I'm good for that.

Like I said, the mechanic said it was the opposite of when he would have expected a chain to drop.

My memory is so bad. I guess I'll find out if I ever get to the place where I can do some real riding again, whether or not the chain replacement fixed it.

If you like a triple and you ride in the hills, why should you get a compact double? because you shave off a few ounces? You can do that by skipping lunch! i mean really. I see no reason why you should give up what works for you!

Another lover of the triple here. I ride an Ultegra 9-speed triple and I LOVE it. I don't have knee problems, I'm quite strong and I LOVE hills and riding in the mountains. My bike came with the triple, but there was never a day where I felt I needed to change it out. There were often months at a time where I didn't use my granny gear at all, but it's there when I need it.

In fact, I remember passing a guy I was riding with on an uphill and he said "hey, no fair, you have a triple!"...I yelled back "sure do, but I'm in the middle ring right now...what gear are you in?" ;) There are plenty of guys (and probably women, too) who think having a triple means that you are less of a rider. And of course, the weight-weenies will tell you that carrying around that extra chain ring when you hardly ever use it is stupid, but it weighs what, a couple of ounces? Whatever.

If you are planning on 6-gap, you'll be very thankful to have those lower gear options, I promise!

(and if, heaven forbid, you ever gain a bunch of weight like I did...you may find that a triple gear gets a bunch more use than it used to! :o )

I've had two comments about my triple recently. Not the encouraging kind. Like I was some kind of loser for having it. I don't care. :)

Karen

Another triple lover here! I can't imagine giving it up. When I ride locally, I use the full range of gears. I love my big power gears for descents and I absolutely rely on my granny gear to get me up the big hills. I also like the flexibility...depending on what I'm training for and how I'm feeling on a particular day, I can power up hills in my middle ring or spin up hills in my granny ring.