What should Rip van Winkle do with his steelie?

[uber]

Welcome. If you would like to keep that frame, I agree that a proper fit will tell you if it is worth upgrading. If the bike is a good fit, 12 speed Ultegra with a 50/34 would be my choice top. If you can't make that frame work for you.....the world is your oyster.....

[Toddtwenty2]

I have a 9 speed FSA Gossamer crankset and bottom bracket with 50/34 rings and 170mm length. I would be happy to send along for the price of shipping, as I am not using it for anything now. It should work well enough to test if the issue lies with the front gear ratios.

PM me if you are interested.

[mhespenheide]

I'd keep the frame and components for now. A quill stem gives you plenty of adjustment range to raise up the handlebars in the short term if you've lost flexibility, and then lower it back down as you regain flexibility and core strength.

We were just talking about gearing on another thread, and I'll repeat here what I said there: with a square-taper bottom bracket, you can get either a compact double with a 110mm bolt circle diameter or -- better yet -- get an old mountain bike triple crankset with a 94mm bolt circle diameter. Take off the inner ring from than and you've got a super-compact crankset; maybe even as low as 30 teeth for the inner (former middle) ring. Move the front derailleur down and readjust the cables and you're good to go. If you can find the right crankset, under $100.

Assuming you're using a 170mm crankarm length, go grab these:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Sug...YAAOSw55Jepy6T

As an aside, I just bought a steel LeMond Buenos Aires frame a week ago. It's two years younger than you Zurich, but they're still great bikes. Use this bike, with slight modifications, to get back into it. And if you fall back in love with the sport, then you can start thinking about upgrading.

[vitaly66]

The IRD 46/30 crankset would be a good choice for this bike.

[RWL2222]

Hmmm...hadn't thought of raiding the components of my MB. It's just sitting there all all, and my son's got his own now. Maybe I will try that. Thank you.

[RWL2222]

Whoa I didn't know a 46/30, and will keep it in mind. I am going to accept the kind offer above to try a 50/34 set up first. That will get me going on DIYing things without too much out of pocket. Thanks for pointing me to the IRD setup.

[Pegoready]

Originally Posted by Peter P.

Your LeMond is certainly worthy of a gearing upgrade, but looking at the setup, I say the bike is too small for you. Time to size up to a proper sized bike.

I'm going to agree with this. 20 years and no riding does a lot to a body and it simply looks like you need a bike with more front end stack.

Add in the uncomfortable skinny tires and rim brakes (yes, I know everyone here loves rim brakes...) and it just exacerbates any sizing issues. I'd take a good hard 1 hr. ride and really put the bike through its paces to confirm it still fits or is in the window. If it doesn't fit, you must acquit.

There are still Lemond enthusiasts out there. If you put a nice Nitto quill stem on there and took some good photos I would bet you'll get half way to a decent used all-road bike.

[m_sasso]

I am going to say save your dollars, go conservative, get a larger range cassette for the rear, 13/30 and/or smaller inner chainring 39t, ride the rest of what you have for this summer, plan your rides and stick to what you can handle with what you possess, fitness and equipment wise. Do some reading, viewing and research online, ask questions here, make some riding friends, find out what's currently available then think about spending real money.

Most members here are not everyday fitness, commuter cyclists, you are dealing with fanatics and they will happily spend your dollars and get you into a bike that far outperforms your current needs and abilities. I know its un-American but be a shrewd consumer, not every one has a lottery winnings budget.

If it fits that's a great bike, better then 97% of the people you will come across riding in public. Start off walking, you are not going to be running a 10,000 meter Olympic steeplechase tomorrow.

[Fivethumbs]

Shimano 600 tricolor is one of my favorite groups. If it was my bike I would try to find a 38 or 39 tooth inner chain ring and replace the 42 tooth one myself. I originally had a Shimano 600 group with a 42/53 chain set and I didn't like it so I switched it out with a 39 and it made a big difference. I have seen some pretty inexpensive complete crank and chain sets (<$40) for 8 speed square taper bottom brackets that come with 52/39.

[kiwisimon]

that offer from Toddtwenty2 is what I'd do. And back off the riding for a while to give your knees a chance to recover.

[fogrider]

with an 8 speed, you can run a 11-30 cassette for 20 bucks at JensenUSA. I'm pretty sure you can't run a 32 unless you go with a wolftooth extender. ride it for a year and when you get into better shape, you might be able to justify a new bike!

[kiwisimon]

Originally Posted by fogrider

ride it for a year and when you get into better shape, you might be able to justify a new bike!

or a modern groupset, that rear dropout can easily be spread to take 11 or 12 speed. Be a shame to let that bike go after you've kept it this long and it's practically new.

[smontanaro]

I will offer a contrarian pov.

If you are patient and willing to ride yourself back into shape taking the less hilly routes when necessary until your personal geometry and fitness improve, your current Lemond should be just fine. As someone else indicated, you can easily adjust the bars up now, then lower them as you gain flexibility.

I'm temporarily in Portland OR (hills are generally involved to get where you want to go) but normally live in Evanston IL, where one of our biggest "climbs" is Col Du Tower, a massive 5% climb of 0.08 miles. I brought a '78 Schwinn Volare with me, first gen Dura-Ace with a 45-inch low gear (upgraded with a SunTour ultra-space 6sp freewheel). I managed to get up anything I attempted (often 7-8% grades with short pitches above 10%). I'm no spring chicken, nor was I a racer in a past life. I enjoyed the experience immensely, and my knees did not explode.

If I can do it, you can do it. If you loved that bike before kids, companies and corpulence, you can love it again.

[Ken Robb]

Originally Posted by smontanaro

I will offer a contrarian pov.

If you are patient and willing to ride yourself back into shape taking the less hilly routes when necessary until your personal geometry and fitness improve, your current Lemond should be just fine. As someone else indicated, you can easily adjust the bars up now, then lower them as you gain flexibility.

I'm temporarily in Portland OR (hills are generally involved to get where you want to go) but normally live in Evanston IL, where one of our biggest "climbs" is Col Du Tower, a massive 5% climb of 0.08 miles. I brought a '78 Schwinn Volare with me, first gen Dura-Ace with a 45-inch low gear (upgraded with a SunTour ultra-space 6sp freewheel). I managed to get up anything I attempted (often 7-8% grades with short pitches above 10%). I'm no spring chicken, nor was I a racer in a past life. I enjoyed the experience immensely, and my knees did not explode.

If I can do it, you can do it. If you loved that bike before kids, companies and corpulence, you can love it again.

Are you at NU?

[RWL2222]

I really appreciate the chance to get the insights of pros and other highly experience peeps on my path back into the saddle.

After three days off, the kneecap pain went away, and I have had four rides since then of an hour of easy spinning. I will check out getting a new quill. I am pursuing a related fit thread in that PL forum.

For now, I will go with trying the 50/34 crankset that @Toddtwenty2 kindly offered up. I will set a target of 1,000 miles by end of August (gonna need a bike computer), then keep my eyes peeled for a further setup here on PL (once I get the green light to respond to classifieds posts.) and a new rear hub, as I am told that the current ultegra hub for the FC 6400 won't take a 10 speed cassette.