Are Oval Chainrings Beneficial? Pros and Cons - Hardtail Party
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- čas přidán 20. 04. 2020
- This episode was a request form my patrons. What is an oval chaingring? Why do they exist? What are the pros and cons? Today we take a deep dive into oval chainrings. Did you learn something valuable? If so, show your appreciation and support this channel by becoming a patron today: / hardtailparty
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Finally someone explain ovals perfectly. Thank you!
Agreed, this is very well explained
Right?
Articles and videos on the Internet regarding oval chainrings
are a dime a dozen, yet somehow nobody has ever explained the biomechanics of how it works like you. Thank you.
Absolute black have extensive tested oval rings and have material on their web site.
That was the simplest, most straight forward way I have heard oval chain rings explained. I always thought they were a bit of a gimmick but the mechanics actually make sense now.
Thanks. Easy explanations are the hardest type to make.
My oval chain ring helps me a lot for technical climbing, because it smooths out the power and prevents the tire from loosening traction.
You are killing it with these in depth details about Geo and components like this 👍🏼 super helpful cus I'm looking at getting a new bike in the future.
This is a bit of a repetition from the other comments, but, seriously, this made so much sense. Might get one of my own soon! Thanks!
Im running a 32 tooth on my Commencal...Just tried it out and its pretty cool from what i observed. This is the best explanation i've seen though............ appreciate it!!!
Midwest MTB is your round chain ring a 30t ?
Another great vid! I just switched to oval on my hardtail and full-sup and I notice a difference for sure. Keep up the good work.
Thank you, just the kind of demonstration i was looking for.
great vid! you covered every question I had on the oval ring..your basic approach and demonstration really covered it completely.
Best video I’ve seen on this topic. Thanks!
Got an oval a couple weeks ago. I really enjoy the feeling. Your analogies of how it feels were spot on.
I must say, that was an excellent oval chain ring tutorial ! Great job, definitely informative
Thanks for the video, after watching plenty of videos this is the one that sold me on the Oval chainring.
This is the best most concise explanation out of any website I've read or video I've watched
Best explained workings of oval I have found! Nice job! I use one and really like how on tech climbs I get endless traction from being able to spin smoothly.
Started using oval back in 2010, never looked back.
Really good explanation. Great video, keep up the good work.
Really good explication dude, greetings from Chile!
Dave - Good concise explanation of how an oval chainring works. About 5 years ago I went from a 2x10 setup to a 1x10 setup with a 30t Absolute Black oval chainring . Noticeable improvement on climbs as the oval chainring applies the torque more evenly to the rear end it improved traction on loose rocky climbs & made long grinds up easier for me too. That same oval chainring is on it's third hardtail now (with 11 speed cassette) while riding 3 - 4 times a week year round in all climates. The Absolute Black oval chainring is a quality must have product for me.
Been running an AB oval for 3 years now. It's traveled from bike to bike with me. I can tell the difference and I think I'll always use one now. It makes a great pair with my Catalyst Pedals.
Yep. I had an absolute black oval on a ghetto 1x10 I used to own. I found it made enough of a difference that I felt good about the upgrade. When I bought my new bike I waited until I wore out the round Eagle ring and ordered the Absolute Oval. It's worth the difference in cost and I agree that you should wait and wear out your round ring first.
Running a 34 oval on my hard tail. Probably one of the best upgrades I’ve done other than Rev Grips. With my 11-36 cassette I get around the hills of SoCal just fine.
MrJamesLuz love my revgrips!
Just got a 15$ oval chainring 34 tooth from JG bike on amazon this week only been riding a few days, love it so far. Put it on my 26er lol its now a 1x8 with a 9speed chain.
Same here,been using in my old school freeride bike to go everywhere😁
Got one on my and my gf's MTBs. Mindblowing stuff! ❤️
Excellent Oval description and review Steve, you took the bike nerd out of it and got down to the practical application! (i have run ovals on all my bikes now for two yrs and i just like that 30-34 ratio on climbing, not sure i notice much diff anywhere else)
Great explanation! I really appreciate you sharing your expertise. I've run a Wolf Tooth oval on my bikes and really like it.
Thank u for the greatest yet simplest definition of an oval chain ring!.
Amazing explanation and examples! Great thanx!
Well done sir! Thanks for this vid! Super helpful.
The finest elucidation on the signed I've come across to date.
Excellent explanation
Dang, that might be the best explanation of Oval chain rings I have ever seen. There are fancier videos on CZcams that try to tackle this topic, but this guy nailed it with simplicity.
Information > fancy looking videos.
Installed a 30T Absolute Black oval chainring on my Roscoe8. The next day we did a heap of steep climbs. What a difference! Been riding around with it for a few weeks now. Really happy with this upgrade. Cheers!
Glad it made a difference!
Great video Steve 🤟. I'm so used to running AB ovals that when I get on a bike with a round ring, it feels weird and I feel the "push, push" stroke instead of the smoother more consistent oval stroke. Definitely notice the difference. 34t oval on the Enduro bike and 30t oval on the fatty, both with 12-speed, 50t cassettes
I'm a spinner, and I was weirded out for one ride by my oval chain ring. Five minutes into my second ride, I had stopped noticing any inconsistencies in the pedal stroke. I do love it in the tech. It took me a while to get used to it and trust it, but I'm much less likely to stall-out on a steep, sharp climb at the weak point of the pedal stroke, and that's always appreciated when you are 5.9 feet up a 6-foot rock slab.
great explanation !!
Great explanation
Thats a very very clear explanation. 👍
I rode with an oval a couple of years back and i did notice a difference tho i wasn't as educated then (as i am now) to have kept riding with one. Should've followed my instincts instead of bad advice coz i helped reduce my knee pain a whole lot. Great job 🍻 💯🔥
I felt the difference the moment I started pedaling with an oval. When I got a new bike I immediately ordered an oval for it.
Good explanation i am a big heavy guy that likes to push hevier gears and i found that oval chainring really helpful with maintaining traction on climes. It is like a variable transmission where in my power stroke increases resistance and i dont spin out and then it makes it easier to spin through the flat part of the stroke.
I would definitely recommend giving it a try. They are pricey but you can ask to borrow one from a friend or see if your local bike shop would have a sample to try out before committing.
I put an oval Rotor ring on my single speed hardtail back in 2015 and haven’t gone back to a round chainring since then. Felt a little weird first half hour into my ride, but, soon forgot about it. Helps when climbing for sure.
Very well explained thank you.
I have been using an oval chainring for a year now, I find it much easier to pedal compared to round ones...I can feel the big difference between them. I highly recommend oval than round.
Great explanation, thank you.
Awesome Video
this is just perfect!
Informative, thank you! I just saw the Ad on Facebook so I had to check it out. I will give it a miss for now. :)
I run an oval chain ring and I feel a significant difference. I don't have any knee pain anymore which I had with the normal round chainring. I believe that is because I can fulfill a smoother pedal stroke and cadence with the oval ring. I mostly notice it on steep climbs. There I can put the power down more constantly which results in more traction because of the more constant torque my wheel puts to the ground. My recommendation is to try one if you can because I think it's one of the upgrades that can better your riding experience and also your riding performance.
Best argument for the oval chainrings I've encountered on youtube. I've switched, on my hardtail Scott Scale, from a 32 SRAM GX to a 34 Garbaruk. Completely different bike... a better one. Uphil it's a bit smoother and I don't feel like my ratios have decreased (although, arithmetically they did). While for nice flats, I can have better speed!
Great explaination of the benefits.of oval. Like when spun chainring showing variation in tooth size and power bands. Nice work. Never used oval, but might now.
I went down 2 teeth and oval! Loving it - now using the full range of the block and have a super easy gear for the steep ups
This is my biggest issue l am having. On our hardest climbs I pretty much now only go down to 1st gear (1by12 (30,10/50) for the worst part of the hardest climb. I want to try and run the shifter in say 4th,5th,6th rather than 1st,2nd,3rd so was going to go to 28t oval. Most saying say same or go bigger (32t). What advice would the majority give? Si.
excellent lesson Steve, after the pandemic is over I have a lot of parties in the mountains to attend, lol
very good explanation bro
I have bikes with and without oval chainrings and while I agree they aren't 'necessary', I have found that it definitely makes my pedal stroke feel smoother. I prefer ovals because they feel better to me. Great video!
Thanks for the educational vid. I've got a 34 round and there's a 30 oval in my mail box . Cassette is 11-46 if I would have seen this video before purchasing, I would have gone with a 32. That bike was perfect for Florida trails, but on longer steep climbs in mountainous regions, it needed a smaller front, or a 50 tooth rear
One of the best upgrades I've made going oval, I've been running it for two years now and would not go back to standard!
Great video man! I was really wondering if they would be worth it in the future. If I do get one I will most likely wait until the price goes down for sure.
Oval chain rings are 20-30 dollars more expensive than normal chain rings, price won't go lower than that.
Yup, I tried to run a 32t AB oval on my Trek Fuel (uses 32t round) and it rubbed. Swapped to a 30t oval and it’s still really close but fits. I hope 30t oval isn’t too small. I try it when it stops raining😁
Cool video, always wondered what the buzz on oval rings was about. I’ve never tried one, want to check it out.
Years ago I had a Bridgestone Rb-1 road bike that had oval chain rings . It was a nice used race bike that the lbs in Evanston,Il raced with there team . It was a nice bike that I kept for years . Upgraded the wheels and drivetrain.
This was a great video. I’m in the market to switch to one. I just got a new wheelset including cassette. Going to wait a little while but getting an absolute black 30-32T and sram copper chain to go with it. Switching from 30T round.
superb explanation. thx
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A few more additions to the discussion:
1) most aftermarket oval chainrings won't work with Shimano 12 speed drivetrains, unless you swap the chain. I've heard that running a sram masterlink on a shimano chain will work, but I can't confirm. Absolute black has a separate oval chainring for shimano 12 speed chains. (HG+)
2) Sram derailleurs seem to be fine with the micro movements, but judging from the comments below, be careful with shimano. It seems a few people have toasted their shimano derailleurs from running an oval chainring. Absolute black shares my thoughts that rear suspension does more to the clutch than an oval chainring.
3) At super high cadence (high RPMs), circular rings feel better to me. Sitting and spinning feels smoother on a circular ring. On lower cadence, when you're really working and cranking up a tough section, the oval rings are my preference.
Agree with this. I have an oval ring on my XC bike and I’m more of a ‘grinder’ than a ‘spinner’ so it really works for me.’ Another well done video.
@@boneheadmck Ditto! (and i have one on my trail bike too!)
Defo, slow winches I'm so glad for my snaggletooth.
I never really paid attention to ovals. But with what you are saying, they would match my riding style. I am not a spinner and love to stand and use hipdrive to power up climbs.
does it affect wheelying ability?
I love my Absolute Black oval ring. I honestly feel so much better spinning and climbing now.
I am always looking to improve pedal efficiency . My bike is an extra large frame at 20.5 . I am in between on height between large and extra large on my bike which is a budget hardatil so I feel a bit stretched out riding so I moved my saddle forward on my budget dropper . My pedal efficiency climbing was a noticeable improvement and hard to believe just getting my legs into a better position for pedaling . It also affected the seat angle pushing the nose of the saddle down which is helpful for climbing . Of course that kind of pushes you forward to the bars pedaling on the flats and no affect going downhill because I am out of the saddle . I do like the concept of the oval ring and if I do want to upgrade I want to try out an oval ring and a higher engagement hub . I will stay with flat pedals . Very informative Steve . I think the key is not easier but more efficient for me and what I am looking for . you would think they are one in the same but for me they are different
Dude, great breakdown as to what is actaully happening when you pedal oval chainrings. I had maybe an idea of what was going on. I actually did have what I think shimano called their "Biopace" oval chainring on one of my very first POS mtbs. I can't even remember back that far what they were like hahaha
Excellent! Thx
Nice explication ! Thx bud :)
Currently on 30t round, just got a 32t oval just to try.
Got it for just $3 because of discounts!
I commuted on a biopace ringset for a while. I don't know how much it could have helped me but I liked it.
I tried one on a collegues bike once and just sprinting down a road once i thought it was obvious how much they shortened the turnover phase and allowed me to push more. It's clear that they won't make any difference to the speed you can push on regular road for long periods of time but especially when you need as much power as you can physically get for a short uphill segment, i am sure they work very well indeed. The only problem is that my frame probably won't accept an oval ring in the same size as i run right now.
Just because I want to be different not like everyone else. I running 2x10 xtr on my hardtail. and xt full suspension. To me I fine it better range.
well said
content wise
2thumbs up
The other week I threw on a 28 tooth oval chain ring replacing my 28 tooth round chain ring to see if the hype was real. Believe the hype. It definitely makes the crank rotation feels smoother (no more smash and pause). I found myself getting over obstacles that I’ve never been able to clear.
I got a cheap 32T oval off of amazon and I dig it. As far as the basic feel is concerned, I didn't notice a massive difference while pedalling. I'm a beginner biker though. One other thing that I think it's worth mentioning is the angle of the chain to the highest/lowest gears.
Just ridden first oval chainring for three days straight and so far good. No noticeable change in the feeling during pedalling on the fire road, which I think is a good thing. But once I hit rocky climbs I can hammer those pedals, while having smooth feeling in the legs and far less slipping on the rear tyre. I think I'm going to keep it for a while, probably forever :) Not a game changer but definitely HUGELY nice thing to have.
I’m upgrading my hardtail from a 2x10 SLX/Deore mix to full 11-speed XT with a Sunrace 11-46T cassette and 32T oval chainring. I’ll do a dropper later.
Perfect video. I just broke my chainring and am looking at a new oval one.
That the bad thing about 1 X's. No back-up gear.
Yep, switched over to the oval 30T on my trail bike. Absolutely blown away but at the same time it doesn’t feel much different. I guess the stroke feels a lot smoother but not radically different enough to make me dislike the feel.
Love my MRP oval. Also "narrow wide" chainrings should be mentioned.
I ordered a 30t AbsoluteBlack to replace my 30t SRAM chainring on my hardtail, now waiting for it. Sometimes when there are many climbs, I tend to get sore knees after a ride, so my hopes are high in smoother pedalling!
I haven’t ridden in like 20 years till a ride last year on my 20 year old stump jumper XC and it was brutal. Been wanting to get back into it though so will only get a new bike if I can get back into it to justify the costs.
Found your channel when researching hard tails and love your stuff man. Wish me luck on getting back into it. I live in San Diego so kind of hilly and rocky but not too bad, will probably look at a trail bike when that time comes. Would also be great to try the oval ring.
Good luck. Despite the bike shortage, it's an amazing time to get back into mtb
I have time trial setup road bike, previously it has 42t/52t circular chainrings, then couple of days ago, I replaced those with 1x 58t oval chainring, during the pedal stroke, I felt like my acceleration over my power output was so efficient compared with smaller round chainring like 52t.
immediate difference felt when i switched from round to AB oval. our chunky rocky rooty northeast trails are much easier to keep pedaling through. i get a much better last pedal stroke for going over logs and step up type things. only time i feel it being slightly weird is in the parking lot or on roads between trails.
I love oval chain rings. I’ve got one bad knee (from an old skiing injury) and the oval seems to allow me to maximize force on the strong part of my stroke without irritating my knee as much. I’ve used one for about ten years without any problem.
Next time I need to change a chainring I'll give an oval a try, sounds like an advantage for hill climbing.
They remind me of the old Bio-pace chainrings of the early 90's. My first Mtn bike, a Schwinn High Sierra, had them.
You can go to Absolute Black website and see videos about Biopace and the new generation oval rings. It's quite interesting.
My 1980 diamondback arrival had a sprocket called biopace.. We'll still does. 😊
Absolute convert here, smooths out torque and lessens tire breakaway on steep climbs also reduces that saddle bounce you can get when pedaling hardtails! Maybe slightly harder on the legs (better workout?) because there's no let up!..
I switched to a 32t oval from a 30t round and honestly the oval feels no different at all. Put like 25 miles on it so far and feels the same and that’s a good bit of climbing. I might switch back to round just to see if I feel a difference.
I felt the biggest difference when I was in loose steep terrain. It smoothed out my pedal stroke and I was able to limit the times I lost traction.
Do you still use oval? Any updates to your opinion of it?
32t is different from 30t, try to use the same 30t oval chainring..
The movement you mentioned that “wears out the clutch” is apparent on all chainrings, it is just a matter of how accurately the chainring is made.
It is significantly more pronounced with oval chainrings.
Just ran across this and you just explained something that confused me for years. In 2mins 35secs. Thank you. Now can you do the main principles of thermal dynamics?😇
I have an oval on my Rocky Mountain Altitude and on my Giant Trance 29 I still have the stock round. Once it’s worn I will put an oval on it. I don’t “specifically” feel it but where I do notice it is when climbing. It definitely makes a difference.
on my 2018/7 hardtail, I have a 3X8 system with a 48t max chainring that I use on trails (bc the chain gets stuck between chainrings when shift the front derailleur), After this video I am thinking about going 1X 12 using a a $20 38t oval chainring with a $100 9-50t 12speed cassete. I did some gearing calculations and it looks like the 1X12 setup will obviously give me a better climbing while better for speeds up to 50km/h at 90rpm! I really hope this will allow me to keep up with my dad on his E-bike.
That was a very good explanation as to how they work I've been a little confused about it myself plus I didn't think I had enough room that Clarence thing I have the same issue a 32 tooth barely fits on my bike I would probably have to go down a size I think to 30 tooth if they even make that
Pretty happy with Wolftooth CAMO with separate spider and ring (it replaced my worn out Cannondale SpideRing round 30T). The stainless oval 30T is hardly showing any wear so far since mid last season (?) Using with 10-42 so far, hoping to go 10-46 or 10-50 at next cassette replacement
I just switched to an oval chainring. More than anything, I've been feeling the climbs in my knees and I've heard they help reduce stress on the knees. Although I expected to feel some difference in the pedal stroke, it feels very natural. On short, steep climbs and switchbacks, it's much smoother and I was able to get out of the seat with much better traction. That hard/easy pedal stroke is gone. On longer climbs, seemed to have much more fuel in the tank at the top than with the round ring. Knees also feel much better morning after the ride. Sort of amazed at the difference.
I live in Colorado and had an oval chainring for a little bit. Didn’t notice any difference climbing but I did notice “dead” spots when riding on the flats, especially when pedaling hard or going from coasting to sprinting (like out of a corner). It almost feels like you have a hub with less engagement.
Hi...I'm doing a bike up (slowly)...My Nkp Scout frame 27.5 takes a 32t Boost chainring...I will also consider a 34t oval also. You don't know until you try for yourself! Thanks.