Road bikes

[AndrewSchofield]

As some of you will probably already know, I do a bit of cycling. I took it up about 18months ago (after not having had a bike for well over a decade) and i've currently got a mountain bike which is perfect for what I use my bike for the majority of the time. I am however, now thinking about buying a road bike, but i've never owned one or ridden one before and don't know where to start.

Been and had a look at some over the weekend and found two very similar bikes by the same manufacturer at the same price. The biggest difference to my uneducated eye is that one has 16 gears, the other 24. On a road bike, is it really important to have that many gears, or will 16 be plenty anyway and I shouldn't put too much 'weight' on that when making my decision on which to go for? Or as they're the same price, should I definitely go for as many gears as possible? I not that a lot of the bikes I looked at only had 14gears, so even if I buy the one with 16, i'm getting two more than most other models seem to have - which is one reason I wonder if 24gears might be 'overkill' on a road bike (my MTB has 27 gears)

Help!! Don't know what to do....

 

[JohnD]

It hasn't really got 24 gears. Some of them will be duplicates, and unless you have a rubber chain, it will not be able to engage the right-hand side at the wheel and the left hand-side at the ring at the same time.

 

[AndrewSchofield]

Hi John,

Yeah, I understand that, but the 24 gear bike will still have more than the 16 gear bike. As I say, my MTB 'has' 27 gears and I probably only use about 15(ish) different combinations when I'm cycling.

The 24 gear bike has a higher 'top' gear and lower 'bottom' gear so, theoretically at least, it'll be a bit quicker on the flat/downhill and a bit easier on the hills??

 

[ericmark]

I find for normal riding once the gears drop down to lowest unless one is pedalling like something silly you can't balance without moving the handle bars and if you move handle bars your in danger of being hit by other road users so unless used for competition the extra low ones are not used safety means you get off and walk anyway.

I did find the faster top gears made a difference with tandem you solo I wanted a rest going down hill again for competition yes but general riding not that important.

When I was trying to modify my wife's bike from three speed to derailer only 6 speed I found there were specials with a scroll to help changing with a really low first gear there were also specials with really high top gear although at that time there was no indexing so today may be different. I worked it out with 18 speed only two extra ratios either side of standard 6 so really 10 speed not 18. Some were only one either side so 8 speed and although I can see point in extra low and high for racing I can't see point for leisure riding.

It is of course a personal thing I am told with a mountain bike you should have a suspension lock for road use but with roads around where I live sorry I want bumps taken out for road use. Yes you lose energy at start off but I want hard tyres and low rolling resistance but with no suspension need softer tyres to take out bumps.

It really is a personal thing and I am sure other will not agree.

 

[lymmranger]

Hmmmmm.........

OK in my late teens I was a committed amateur cyclist.......

this was in the late 70`s to nearly 80`s

I was an area time trial champion twice (at time trialling)

at the time I rode the best equipment available (it was 531 tubing)

I even was one of the first in the area to ride radial spoke 24 wheels

I also "ditched" a double ring for a single (to save weight) also used a cassette but only fitted 4 cogs also to save weight)

my times were not that much slower than today???????????

so what has REALLY changed?????????????