Thinking of trying 175's

[terry]

Anybody around 6'1" with a 34" inseem riding 175mm cranks? I've been on 172's forever and was wondering if I'd notice/feel the difference & would it help my climbing. Anybody?

[FlashUNC]

Just about the same measurements as you. Used nothing but 175 cranks.

No complaints.

[oliver1850]

.

[biker72]

I'm 6'1" with a 33" inseam and upgraded a Trek 2300 from a 172.5mm to a 175mm crank a few years ago.

On paper this move makes sense but honestly I saw very little improvement in climbing. I do presently have 175mm cranks on all my bikes.

[oldguy00]

I'm 5'10 and have always used 175's, about 20 years now. I've tried going back to 170 and 172.5, and always end up back at 175, just personal preference. I will say that I've never been a 'spinner', more of a gear masher.

[Ken Robb]

I'm 6'1 and have ridden 170 to 180mm cranks. I can detect 5mm difference but not 2.5. The 180s gave me noticeably more leverage but I also felt some twinges in my knees when I used them to muscle up hills in taller gears than usual. I can't say if it was due to the slight increase in flexion caused by the longer arms or just because I felt like I COULD mash a bigger gear and overdid it.

[don'TreadOnMe]

33" inseam here.
175's feel best for me, 172.5 feel 'blocked'.
Don't know why...maybe from all the mtb and bmx'ing...that's just the style my body has always had.

[sand fungus]

6' 1" 35" inseam and have never ridden anything other than 175s.

[Louis]

I think you'll find a positive improvement. I've worked my way up from 170 to 175. (Started off way too low) The most noticeable change was 172.5 to 175, after which it seemed easier to stay in the same gear on rollers. I have a 177.5 crank I purchased on e-bay to try that out, but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

It's worth trying, you'll probably like it.

[terry]

thanks guys-i'm going to do it.

[gearguywb]

I am a couple of inches shorter but have about the same inseam. Switched from 172.5's to 175's a couple of years ago. Can't say that I notice any difference.

[avalonracing]

thanks guys-i'm going to do it.

I think you'll dig them, especially if you also MTB or do much climbing on your rides. I'm also of a similar height and inseam and while I rode 172.5s for many years I now seem to like the 175s better. More lever equals more torque, right?

[crownjewelwl]

I'm about the same specs and made the change to 172.5 to 175...if I'm intellectually honest about dropping the cheese to do it, I'd say that I really can't notice the difference. Emotionally I'd like to think they made me into one bada$$ mofo...

[oldguy00]

...
175's feel best for me, 172.5 feel 'blocked'.
...

I think that's how I'd describe it too. I know a lot of folks say they can't notice a difference, but I found it very easy to notice.

[Fixed]

I'm the same size. I really don't notice the difference.
+1
cheers

[ckamp]

I am 6"4 36" inseam and I use record 180's. I can feel the difference from 170's but not 175's.

[HenryA]

180s here at about the same size as OP.
I rode 175s for a long time but have been all 180 for about the past 10 years.

[gasman]

+1
cheers

+2
But I don't think I would notice a 2.5 cm difference

[TimmyB]

I've ridden everything from 165mm to 175mm.

TBH I didn't notice much of a comparative difference betwen 165 and 167.5mm, or between 167.5mm and 170mm. However, I definitely noticed more leverage between 165mm and 170mm. I didn't notice much of a shift from 170mm to 172.5mm, but noticed a huge difference between 172.5mm and 175mm. Out of the crank arm lengths I've tried, 175mm has definitely felt the best to me.

I switched from a 175mm standard crankset to a compact 172.5mm crankset at one point because of some knee issues I was having, right around the time I'd been off the bike for a couple weeks from getting sick / finals. I thought at the time my decreased performance / climbing ability was because of residual sickness and decreased fitness. A couple months later I built up another bike with 175mm crankarms and remembered what it was like to be able to climb. I switched the 172.5mm cranks on the other bike for 175mm cranks and have never looked back.

Like anything, YMMV. It all depends on your riding style / knees / personal preference / how sensitive you are to changes on your bike. I have a friend with bikes that have cranks that range from 165mm to 172.5mm and he can't tell the difference...

FWIW I'm more of a "masher" type - 6ft 33" inseam (i think?).