Newbie to road bikes, would there be a reason why a bike was built with 5 speed as opposed to 10? I ask because the frame only has fittings for a rear mech only, and I do not know any better as to if I should keep to 5 or make it 10 by using one of those guides at the bottom of the frame rail to direct the cable to the front mech.
10 speed v 5 speed
- Thread starter bhill22
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10 gears will make your cycling easier than sticking with 5. Your body operates at a certain rpm, or cadence, ideally 60-70 rpm. Unlike a car engine which can vary from 1000 to 8000 rpm, you cannot pedal 8 times as fast as your basic rate, so the more gears you have the easier it is for you to maintain a steady cadence and be efficient and comfortable.
Reasons why? Five speed is cheaper to make than 10, cheaper to sell more units. Technology evolves, I think the current highest number of gears on a cassette is 9, so that gives 27 gears with a triple chainring.
Reasons why? Five speed is cheaper to make than 10, cheaper to sell more units. Technology evolves, I think the current highest number of gears on a cassette is 9, so that gives 27 gears with a triple chainring.
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Supratada":1g5auypb said:
A 5 speed could have been either a cheapy or a specific time trial or similar
and cassettes are up to 11spd these days.
Thx for replies, so tell me more about
specific time trial or similar
please, as its a hand built frame so it must have been done for a reason rather than mass produced.
also i see a lot of refrenece made to tight geometry in this case the rear tyre is very close to the seat tube, and if possible for a front mech to be fitted will be very tight!
specific time trial or similar
please, as its a hand built frame so it must have been done for a reason rather than mass produced.
also i see a lot of refrenece made to tight geometry in this case the rear tyre is very close to the seat tube, and if possible for a front mech to be fitted will be very tight!
Old Ned
Old School Grand Master
legrandefromage":26kgs05c said:
But that doesn't necessarily mean you'd get 33 useable gears. It does mean you'd get 11 sprockets with a minimal difference between for smoother changes but not all of them efficiently useable on a triple in the extreme positions (ie big sprocket on big chainring and small sprocket on small chainring. They'd probably go in but mechanically not good!)
'5 Speed' in the good old days was generally on a base model bike (before that it was 4 and before that 3) and a double chainset was an upgrade. Unless of course you were a time triallist and used 5 very close high gears - which is a different matter altogether.
EDIT - just seen your next post. It sounds like a time trial bike built for short distance events on flat courses where a wide choice of gears is unnecessary. 13 to 17 or 14 to 18 were common. In fact, very frequently only the top 2 or 3 were used. Alf Engers only had 3 sprockets fitted - and he generally used the smallest most of the time!
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I found a decent frame down the tip kitted out with a rear shifter and 5 speeds (all Campagnolo Nuovo too!)
set up for time trials - after learning from people who actually know (Ned!)
set up for time trials - after learning from people who actually know (Ned!)
