An anonymous poster wrote:
>>
>>>I'm going with Bicycle Outfitters based out of Los Altos, CA. The whole gearing issue is a little
>>>tricky because I really don't want to use a triple drivetrain. With 31 gear-inches in the 34-29
>>>combination I'm guessing I should be okay, especially since I'm going to be training pretty
>>>seriously over the next several months.
I commented:
>>Not many realize that the 110 BCD pattern actually permits chainrings down to 33 teeth. Only TA
>>makes them, however.
>>
>>See:
http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/chainrings.html#110
>>
>>I too rather like wide-range doubles. The venerable TA Cyclotouriste crankset is excellent for
>>this. I'm running a 50-28 double on my Hetchins, and like the setup very much. Using Veloce
>>brifters and rear derailer, Shimano 105 front derailer.
>
Russell Seaton wrote:
>
> But Mr. Brown, there is a big, big, big difference in low gears between a wide-range double that
> takes an inner chainring of 26, as your Hetchins does, compared to the normal 110mm bcd double
> which takes a 34 or 33 with the rare $35 TA ring.
My point in that post was that, if he was going to go with a 110 BCD double, he might as well get a
33 instead of the 34.
> You are running a 1:1 gear ratio with your 28x28. 26.5 gear inches. Compared to a 34x29 which
> gives 31 gear inches. Or a 33x29 which gives 30 gear inches. And I'm guessing you did not spend
> anywhere near the $330 for a FSA carbon 110mm bed crank, plus $70?
The TA Cyclotouriste arm set is $199.95, with chainrings and hardware the set comes to about $300,
see:
http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/french-cranks.html#cranks
> for a new bottom bracket,
I used a $20 Shimano UN71 BB on mine.
> plus $35 for a new 33 tooth chainring. Spending about $450 to go from a 39x29 36 gear inch low to
> a 33x29 30 gear inch low probably does not qualify as the most cost effective purchase. $75 per
> gear inch. Sort of like the $1 per gram benchmark.
I never said it was the best way to go, that's what Mr. or Ms. Anonymous was planning to do.
I haven't used anything like a 50/34 (or 50/33) but I imagine it would be used rather differently
from the way I use my 50/28.
I would expect that the 34 would get a fair amount of use, albeit perhaps not as much as a
conventional 39 or 42 does.
With my "alpine" 50/28 setup the idea is that 99% of the time it's on the 50, used with all 9 rear
sprockets. That's part of the reason for the 28 in back, for coping with routine climbs without
needing to shift the front.
The 28 chainring is the "gear of last resort" for when I'm seriously tuckered out, and/or hit an
unusually hard climb.
> Nashbar sells a Veloce triple crankset for $90. A Centaur triple for $110. A 111 or 115mm bottom
> bracket for $23. A Centaur triple front derailleur for $35. A 28 tooth 74mm bcd inner ring for $3.
> For $160 or $180 delivered, you can have a 26 inch low gear. Low enough to climb just about
> anything on an unloaded bike. And you will have the extra $300 in your pocket to buy some of those
> fancy factory built boutique wheels, which will undoubtedly allow you to climb any mountain twice
> as fast and with more style.
Yes, this is a perfectly valid approach. What my setup offers is an unusually simple shift pattern,
with almost all shifting done at the rear.
(It also offers unusually narrow tread, by contemporary standards.)
Sheldon "TA TA" Brown +--------------------------------------------------------------+
| Weed - a plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered. | --R.W. Emerson |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+ Harris Cyclery, West Newton,
Massachusetts Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com Hard-to-find parts
shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com
). I'll be running Campy Chorus 10sp with a 13-29 and I want to use a compact crankset (such as the FSA Carbon Pro Elite Compact) with 50/34. Will this crankset work with a Chorus medium-cage rear derailleur and a Chorus double front derailleur? Thanks for any help you can provide, and if you can recommend a good place to get a deal on the cranks, that would be awesome! 
