The bike I'm planning to mod is the Gravity BaseCamp 29 DLX24 from bikesdirect. It has 29 inch wheels and a 21 inch frame. I've heard conflicting answers from people online about whether a 36 or 44 tooth sprocket (the only options that come with the kit) is gonna be better for my needs. The kit I'm planning on getting is a BT100. Its essentially gonna be purely for fun and fooling around, so I just want to go as fast as I can. I am 6'2 and 185 lbs. Which sprocket should I get if my only goal is fun? Also, what speeds would I be expecting?
@Sidewinder Jerry - hit the nail on the head
You don't want to run smaller than a 36T on a 26" as 1) Due to gear ratio and 2) These engines don't have the torque to pull a 32T or 28T. Using a 32T on 20" is different than 10/32 on a 26"
I understand wanting to go fast, but it isn't what you want to base the build off of. When I first started, I wanted something fast. You only get torque or speed. I would rather have torque than speed because it doesn't matter when it takes awhile to get to that higher speed. I run 10/40 and tried 11/40 which is similar to 10/36 and it was awful. I had no low-end, and couldn't ride at lower speeds. I had to go over 4,500RPMs just to make the ride comfortable.
I'd suggest going with a 40T. 36T isn't great unless you have wide and open roads. I live in a city and 11/40 wasn't sustainable. I sold the 11T front sprocket to a buddy after four miles.
You can't calculate speed correlated to sprocket size. You can only figure out how many RPMs you need to hit a certain speed based on front/rear sprocket and wheel size (not including riders weight and flat ground/up hill. You can expect 6,000-7,000 RPMs out of box. Don't believe the people who swear on a 66cc/69cc they're turning over 10k RPMs.
I would not suggest a 36T. I'd run a 40T if I were you. You don't want to lose your low end. I was a speed demon and realized the value in low end torque especially up hills.
