I have been round to oval chainring for years and then back to round. I also went from 170 to 165mm cranks on the MTB. While I could feel a difference I wouldnt say either was “better” necessarily, the body just adapts and after 60 mins or so I couldnt really notice anything was different.
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I went bigger by 2t going from 175 to 165 since you’ll have less leverage (if that makes sense)
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I would have thought it would have been a reduction in chainring size.
I’m not changing my front ring. I’m not missing any gearing just I’ve not quite adapted to the subtle difference for musucling over repeated obstacles when at a low speed on a climb.
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Yeah I’ve had a similar experience to you.
I just cant ever be 100% sure if it’s just lack of fitness, or if there’s actually a measurable difference.
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I went from 175 to 165 on my MTB and I did not notice a difference with issues that most people raise. I raised my seat post accordingly, but that was all I changed. I really can’t feel any major change in torque, cadence, or anything else. What I do notice is not banging my cranks on rocks so much, which is super nice.
I run 170s on most of my MTBs except for my race HT which has old school 175s right now. I pedal strike so much on the 170s on my full squish that I’m considering going 160 or 165 but I love the way a longer crank feels on the MTB for long steep climbs. I just feel like I climb faster. Obviously this could be due to it being a hardtail and that’s also why I don’t pedal strike on that bike. I also tend to just run a higher cadence with the shorter cranks which can be nice for uphill tech climbs and situations where I have to ratchet over rocks, etc. Been thinking long and hard about the carbon Era cranks in 160 for my full squish but planning on sunsetting that bike in the future. On the drop bar I am loving the 165 but on a MTB for me jury is still out–I think I prefer longer cranks from a performance perspective but would appreciate less pedal strikes that a shorter crank would deliver. Maybe horses for courses depending on tech of the trail. FTR I am 5’6" with nearly a 34" inseam so all legs.
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Update…
I’ve just done a 130km gravel ride with 165mm cranks and with my back issues. They made no difference in comfort… So for me I’m going back to 170mm
I did enjoy having fewer pedal strikes, but I’d rather be comfortable and the extra torque (even if that’s just a mental thing)
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