What´s the difference or what does it mean when people talk about 11-34 cog, or all the other possible combinations? What the difference between them and which one is better for climbs, which for flat terrain, etc?
I want to be able to understand when people talk about this topic and be aware of what they’re saying
Thanks!
Take a look at this article. Lots of good information on the whole website.
http://sheldonbrown.com/gears.html
Dawn
It’s all about gear ratios. The number refers to the number of teeth. A designation like 11/34 would refer to the smallest and largest gears in a cassette.
You have to consider the rear cassette as well as the two chain rings on the front. A “typical” gear selection sold at the bike store is usually something like a 53/39 in the front and an 11/23 in the rear. For many recreational riders/triathletes this is not optimum, especially if you live in a hilly area.
I ride hills and use what is called a “compact crank” in the front with 50/34 and a 12/25 cassette on the rear.
when someone refers to say an 11-34 cogset (or cassette), just talking about the range of gearing. 11-34 is about as wide a range as you can get, typically you cannot put that on a road bike (unless the road bike is equipped with a triple crankset).
The larger the cog on the back, or the smaller the chainring in front, the less pedal force required to go a given speed. This comes with requiring increased cadence (rpm) for that speed, so a lower gear makes it easier to go up hills.
For flat - rolling terrain, I generally use a 12-23 cassette. This gives closer spacing, so that it is easier to maintain my preferred cadence. For hilly terrain, it is hard to generalise, since it depends on how hilly and how fit you are.