I have a 54/42 on my rig now, but after WF, thinking about going down to a 39. It really doesnt get used in most races I do, but would have helped for WF and a few others in the past.
I cant remember, but in doing my research about chainring size, I read a 54/39 combo either couldnt be done, or was ill-advised for some reason. Is this correct? Thoughts?
You can probably do it, but the shift from small to large is going to be very rough. From the 42 to 56 is hard enough. I would think changing out the rear cassette would be better from a smoothness standpoint.
It’s definitely do-able. And the shifting is not too rough. A friend even has a 55/39 combo on a 650 bike and has ridden it for the past year. Very rarely, the chain may drop, just shift appropriately and pedal till it gets back on a chainring.
If the chain drops, what do you mean by “shift appropriately”?
My chain dropped in a race a few weeks back-hit a pothole, and all of a sudden it was back on…
I have a 55/39 combo on my triathlon bike with 650 wheels and so far it’s worked just fine. I need the small ring for climbing around here. I often use the 39/23.
Just made that change recently, works very well. I sometimes have to slow my cadence down to go up to the big ring, but it’s not a problem. I’ve used this combo with 12-25, 11-23, amd 12-23 blocks in the back and no probelm yet.
Just swap out the rear cassette. I run a 54/42 on the front and depending on the terrain I swap between an 11-21, 12-23, and a 12-25 on the rear. I know the DURA ACE tri ring does not come with a 39.
The tri double doesn’t come in a 54/39 but you can order the parts seperately. I have the 54 DA Dish with a 39 DA small ring.
If your chain drops shift into the big ring and keep pedalling. This will throw the chain onto the small or big ring and you will have only lost a second or two (as opposed to stopping).
When you drop your chain, stay right when trying to fix it 