Triples Are Great, Change My Mind
In the past little while, we've seen a genuine resurgence of interest in Triple Cranksets. While 1x systems dominate the cycling scene, there's a compelling case for the enduring appeal of triple setups and I thought it would be a good idea to talk triples, compatibility, and installation. Click here to watch the video!
Why Triple Cranksets? Our Triple Cranksets provide unmatched versatility for touring cyclists, offering a wide gear range to conquer diverse terrains.
Weight Advantage Contrary to common belief, our Triple Cranksets hold their own in the weight department, with the overall difference being within grams of a wide-range 1x.
Gear Range and Practicality Triple systems excel in providing a lower gear for steep inclines and offer a more seamless cadence adjustment with smaller cog gaps.
Simplicity and Effectiveness While 1x systems boast simplicity, the emphasis on constant shifting may be overstated. Many riders find themselves primarily using the middle ring, operating as a 1x system with added flexibility to adapt to different terrain.
N+1 nerd here, from the Colorado front range. Only a couple triples left in our stable—both much beloved when the going gets STEEP. For the bored among you, that’s one lovely old Ti road tourer with indexed mid-school Ultegra triple (and a beautiful VO setback seatpost & Grand Cru brakes) and one overbuilt steel S&S coupled 26” tourer with a mixed vintage, friction shifted mtb triple for when I’ve made the very stupidest of route choices. That tiny bail-out chainring is better than a broom wagon or a long walk of shame through a mountain goat habitat. ¡Viva! Velo-Orange!
I get it: front shifting can be a pain. Why shift twice when you can throw a huge cassette on the back and just shift once? But with a triple crank, you get something not often talked about: chainline. A triple lets you keep the chain straight in the large cog/small chainring, straight in the middle cog/middle chainring, and straight in the small cog/large chainring. By contrast, on a recent 1×11 city bike I serviced, the chainline was so bad in the large cogs that the bike wasn’t shifting to them. The cassette and single chainring were badly misaligned out of the factory. Noisy due to chain rub, flexy, and just less fun to right. And way more metal in the cassette, so heavy. Sure, I’d ride a 1×11 if I were buying a bike today, but my 3×9 with Campagnolo Ergopower beats the heck out of the 2×9 Cues stuff on the market today.
I can’t change your mind, not would I want to, but I would like to change Shimano’s. Also, I keep seeing these great neo-retro builds using older Shimano/Suntour long-cage derailleurs… where the heck are you finding those babies? Here in the UK they’re very rare and wildly expensive. Great job too on the blog and videos. I’ll be watching. Cheers! – cm
Triple cranksets are simply not needed for riding in flatland territory but then for riding on serious hills and/or mountainous territory especially when carrying a heavy load triple cranksets are the best.
8-speed chain is about the most durable and reliable of chains and can work with 6/7/8/9-speed gear trains including their chainrings, sprockets, and F&R derailleurs but be prepared to possibly need to use non-index (friction) shifting. To note, 7/8-speed gearing can work very well and last longest.
On a 27inch / 700c rear wheel a 48/36/26T (standard) or 46/34/24T (touring) triple chainset paired with a 12/34T 8-speed cassette can produce a range of gearing about as wide and having a better selection of ratios available than a modern 1×12T or 1×13T gear train can produce and this gearing combination on 26inch wheels drops the gearing down even lower, to push the limits of what a touring / commuter bike can do. No need to take my word for it; https://www.sheldonbrown.com/gear-calc.html To note, Sheldon Brown developed an intelligent gain ratio gearing formula although measurement by gear inches was/is traditional but his gearing calculator offers both of them.
Tread: I like it narrow as possible. Also, triples were a lazy way not to optimize chainrings and cassettes to the individual, change my mind. Most doubles are wildly over geared for their user. I’ve got a 46/30 on my road bike: big ring for anything but hills and headwinds; small ring for those.
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