rbent Forum - Small Ring Gear

jayg

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Small Ring Gear
Oct 1^st, 2009, 6:12pm

Last Saturday I had to walk my Carbent up part of the steepest Leonard hill on the "Autumn in Bonham" ride (Oh, the shame Smiley

). The small chain ring has 30 teeth and the biggest gear on the rear cluster has 28 teeth. The middle ring has 39 teeth and the large ring 52 teeth. The front derailleur is a Shimano FD-6603 rated for a maximum tooth difference of 22T between the small and large rings. John S. (No, not that John S.; the other one) was kind enough to give me a spare 26-tooth ring gear he had. I would like to use it to replace the 30T ring, so I can improve the bike's steep hill climbing ability. Has anyone with a similar setup installed a 26T small ring and not experienced the chain falling on the bottom bracket housing or other shifting problems?

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FlyingLaZBoy

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Re: Small Ring Gear
Reply #1 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 7:15pm

Quote from jayg on Oct 1^st, 2009, 6:12pm:

Last Saturday I had to walk my Carbent up part of the steepest Leonard hill on the "Autumn in Bonham" ride (Oh, the shame Smiley

)....... Has anyone with a similar setup installed a 26T small ring and not experienced the chain falling on the bottom bracket housing or other shifting problems?

That's OK, Jay -- even Pedalin' Peggy had to walk it last year on OK is OK!!

(Yes, I'm EVIL... Smiley

but I'm teasing, she dropped her chain in a mis-shift!!!) Cheesy

(and here I go, taking pictures with one hand while climbing it!!! Smiley

)

You may or may not have to replace your front DR -- I found out last weekend while climbing County Line Hill that Bud had put a 26T on the Xstream proto, and while it rubs on the bottom of the DR cage, it still works... and it's a long shift back up to the 39T, but it worked, too...

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« Last Edit: Oct 1^st, 2009, 7:16pm by FlyingLaZBoy »

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aikigreg

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Re: Small Ring Gear
Reply #2 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 7:26pm

Jay, I have a carbent, of course, and for RAO I changed my 30t to a 26t with no problems at all. With the 53t q-ring it can be finicky, but so long as I am awake and shift appropriately it's not an issue. So you should have no problem on your Carbent.

You coming to the rbent picnic this Sunday? It'd be pretty sweet to have two carbents running together.

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I'm in it to Schwinn it.

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Bud_Bent Moderator Posts: 3311	Re: Small Ring Gear Reply #3 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 8:30pm All of my bikes have 26T granny gears now, except for my Stratus XP, which has a 24T. All of them work great and none rub like the one on Rose's Xstream. It's just the angle from idler to crank on that prototype bike.
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jayg

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Posts: 4192

Re: Small Ring Gear
Reply #4 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 9:52pm

[quote author=FlyingLaZBoy link=1254438773/0#1 date=1254442524 u may or may not have to replace your front DR -- I found out last weekend while climbing County Line Hill that Bud had put a 26T on the Xstream proto, and while it rubs on the bottom of the DR cage, it still works... and it's a long shift back up to the 39T, but it worked, too...
[/quote]

Thanks for your response, Paul. I'll go ahead and install the ring.

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jayg

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Re: Small Ring Gear
Reply #5 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 10:02pm

Quote from Bud_Bent on Oct 1^st, 2009, 8:30pm:

All of my bikes have 26T granny gears now, except for my Stratus XP, which has a 24T. All of them work great and none rub like the one on Rose's Xstream. It's just the angle from idler to crank on that prototype bike.

Thanks for your response. Do you know if your derailleurs are designed for a 22-tooth difference between the big and small rings?

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Hurricane Dan Boom chika wow wow... Posts: 296	Re: Small Ring Gear Reply #6 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 10:32pm Hmmm.... so the next time I can't make a hill, I should just kick the chain off. That's a great idea!!! "Naw, I was going just fine 'til this dern chain come off. Aw, I'll just fix 'er at the top."
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jayg

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Posts: 4192

Re: Small Ring Gear
Reply #7 - Oct 1^st, 2009, 10:48pm

Quote from aikigreg on Oct 1^st, 2009, 7:26pm:

Jay, I have a carbent, of course, and for RAO I changed my 30t to a 26t with no problems at all. With the 53t q-ring it can be finicky, but so long as I am awake and shift appropriately it's not an issue. So you should have no problem on your Carbent.

You coming to the rbent picnic this Sunday? It'd be pretty sweet to have two carbents running together.

Thanks, good to know I won't have a problem.

Your posts on this Forum, BROL, etc. played a big part in my decision to step up to a Carbent. The Bacchetta Corsa I own is a real good bike, but the Carbent is a great bike.

I won't be able to make the picnic, but if I could, the only way we would be running together is if you were pedalling with one leg and had a dragging brake. Smiley

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