{"id":5005,"date":"2022-06-13T13:59:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-13T17:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brooklynfixedgear.com\/?p=5005"},"modified":"2024-02-05T22:36:33","modified_gmt":"2024-02-06T03:36:33","slug":"what-is-gear-ratio-on-a-fixie-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brooklynfixedgear.com\/bikes-and-parts\/what-is-gear-ratio-on-a-fixie-bike\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Gear Ratio and Gear Inches on A Fixie? (Explained)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You already know your fixed-gear<\/a> bike has only one gear. But do you know what gear ratio your bike is set to? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, you will learn what a gear ratio is, what gear inches are, and how to calculate the perfect gearing for you and your bike. But before we dive too deep into bicycle terminology and its specifics, we need to understand what a gear ratio is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A bike’s gear ratio is the number of teeth on the front sprocket relative to the back sprocket.<\/strong> The number of teeth on the front and rear sprockets together determines the bike’s gear ratio, which affects how hard or easy it is to pedal and its top speed. Most fixed-gear bikes come standard with a chainring and sprocket of 46 teeth and 16 teeth<\/strong>, respectively, providing a gear ratio of 46:16.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is gear ratio on a bicycle?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A bike’s gear ratio is the number of teeth on the front sprocket relative to the back sprocket.<\/strong> It also indicates how ‘easy’ or ‘hard’ its gearing configuration is. High gear ratios require more pedal power. Conversely, lower ratios are easier to ride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To calculate the gear ratio, you don’t need to calculate the gear’s circumference or anything like that. Just look at the sprockets. The gear ratio<\/a> is calculated by dividing the number of teeth on the chainring (the big cog) divided by the number of teeth on the sprocket (the rear cog).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gear ratio of a bike with a 46-tooth chainring and a 16-tooth sprocket is commonly denoted with a colon; 46:16.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gear ratio in decimal form<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The gear ratio of\u00a046:16, for example, may also be represented as 2.875<\/strong>\u00a0when expressed as a decimal. (You’ll get 2.875 if you divide 46 by 16 on your calculator). This implies that, with this 46:16 gear ratio, the rear wheel does almost three (2.875) complete spins with each revolution or rotation of the cranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\u00a0top numbers indicate how many teeth the chain ring has, while the bottom numbers in the leftmost column indicate how many teeth the sprocket has<\/strong>. Dividing the former by the latter gets you the decimal value in the table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now we’re going deep into the weeds of gear ratios. Fortunately, the chart below makes it straightforward. This way, you don’t even need to make any calculations. (Note: that we round up the numbers, so you may see a slightly different number on your calculator<\/strong>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teeth<\/strong><\/td>40<\/strong><\/td>42<\/strong><\/td>44<\/strong><\/td>46<\/strong><\/td>48<\/strong><\/td>50<\/strong><\/td>52<\/strong><\/td>54<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
11<\/strong><\/td>3.6<\/td>3.8<\/td>4.0<\/td>4.2<\/td>4.4<\/td>4.5<\/td>4.7<\/td>4.9<\/td><\/tr>
12<\/strong><\/td>3.3<\/td>3.5<\/td>3.7<\/td>3.8<\/td>4.0<\/td>4.2<\/td>4.3<\/td>4.5<\/td><\/tr>
13<\/strong><\/td>3.1<\/td>3.2<\/td>3.4<\/td>3.5<\/td>3.7<\/td>3.8<\/td>4.0<\/td>4.2<\/td><\/tr>
14<\/strong><\/td>2.9<\/td>3.0<\/td>3.1<\/td>3.3<\/td>3.4<\/td>3.6<\/td>3.7<\/td>3.9<\/td><\/tr>
16<\/strong><\/td>2.5<\/td>2.6<\/td>2.8<\/td>2.9<\/td>3.0<\/td>3.1<\/td>3.3<\/td>3.4<\/td><\/tr>
18<\/strong><\/td>2.2<\/td>2.3<\/td>2.4<\/td>2.6<\/td>2.7<\/td>2.8<\/td>2.9<\/td>3.0<\/td><\/tr>
21<\/strong><\/td>1.9<\/td>2.0<\/td>2.1<\/td>2.2<\/td>2.3<\/td>2.4<\/td>2.5<\/td>2.6<\/td><\/tr>
25<\/strong><\/td>1.6<\/td>1.7<\/td>1.8<\/td>1.8<\/td>1.9<\/td>2.0<\/td>2.1<\/td>2.2<\/td><\/tr>
28<\/strong><\/td>1.4<\/td>1.5<\/td>1.6<\/td>1.6<\/td>1.7<\/td>1.8<\/td>1.9<\/td>1.9<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
Gear ratio as decimals.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What are gear inches?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Using gear inches is another way to gauge a bicycle’s mechanical advantage<\/strong>. This measurement takes the diameter of the rear wheel (as well as the width of the tire) into consideration.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, gear inches can be common and useful in certain cycling communities like touring or off-road biking, not so much fixed gear cycling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, since the 700c rim<\/a> diameter is common on almost all adult bicycles, and tire width is such a small difference in this context, we may disregard this element and discuss gear ratios exclusively. Besides, “gear inches” is just another way of expressing the gear ratio that takes into account the size of the bike’s wheels. It doesn’t necessarily provide more or less accuracy in terms of understanding the bike’s mechanical advantage, it just provides more context for comparing gear ratios between bikes with different wheel sizes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you looking for more advice? Take a look at this video called “What Is The Best Fixed Gear Ratio?”<\/em>\u00a0from the Dave Noakes YouTube Channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n