Basic Q-Ring adaptation guide

Q-Rings use a larger amount of muscles at a slightly lower intensity compared to round rings. This muscle balance
change is why it is important to follow these basic guidelines to make the adaptation period as smooth as possible.

Please do not install the Q-Rings until you have read the first page of this entirely. Once you have, remember that Q-
Rings must be set to OCP position 3 for all Road and MTB Double versions (unless you know for certain you have a
very high spinscan, in which case use position 2), and 2 for MTB triple versions for the entirety of this adaptation
period.

1 Brain training, week 1

It is normal to see an increase in spinning capacity, despite the fact that you will have the tendency to
ride a smaller cog at the back for any given speed. You may notice an initial jerkiness, which will smooth
out after the first few kilometers (very high revs may still feel choppy for a while). MTB’ers will notice better
traction as well. Focus on keeping the same gear combinations as usual, taking it easy and simply riding. Try not to
force yourself to have a “perfect spin” as this means your legs will try to make Q-Rings round (which they are not).
When this happens, simply focus on riding and give your brain a little time to adapt to the new chainring form. 

2 Easy riding, week 2

The Q-Rings improved biomechanic efficiency spreads your leg muscle loads more evenly than normal
chainrings, making them work together at different rates than conventional chainrings. Because of this
you may notice that the weaker muscle groups are being pushed harder to maintain an effort level that
feels normal. This feeling is not unusual - keep on building baseline Km’s without exerting yourself too much: this
prevents you from overloading said muscles. (So, even though you may feel more powerful than normal it’s best not to
go for wild sprints and high intensity climbs yet).

If your racing/training cadence is between 90 to 110 ppm, move ONLY the inner ring to position #4. Keep the outer Q-
Ring in position #3.

3 Muscle adaptation, week 3

You may feel a strange sensation in your stronger leg muscles because they are not being loaded as
heavily as before. This is normal, and a continuation of the feeling you had in week 2 and shows that your weaker
muscles are equalizing in strength. Continue riding as usual and this feeling will fade away.

4 Finalization, week 4
Your leg muscles will now have achieved a new, healthier balance. You should feel able to ride harder
without muscle limitations by now and ride tougher terrain more capably than you could before. Your
knees will likely feel fresher at the end of rides, and you will notice that your heart rate is slightly lower than it was for
round rings for any given output. You may notice that recovery is faster than usual, and you will feel less fatigue for
any given distance or exertion level compared to with round rings. This is because more muscles are working together
more evenly limiting individual muscles burning out like they did before.

5 option for fine tuning, week 5 and on

Now that your legs have adapted to Q-Rings, you can begin to experiment with different OCP settings to optimize your
Q-Rings for your riding style on your bike. Please read the guidelines on the following page to understand what
different OCP settings do. This will help you find your ideal setting in an analytical manner. It is important to let your
legs, heart rate and effort level speak, not your preconceptions (which can cause you to set your rings up incorrectly).
Do not be surprised is position 3 ends up being the best for you, as
this position works best for he majority of cyclists.

OCP Regulation Guide

Road Basics
53-39 RD2 130
  11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27
53 4,82 4,42 4,08 3,79 3,53 3,31 3,12 2,94 2,79 2,65 2,52 2,41 2,30 2,21 2,12 2,04 1,96
39 3,55 3,25 3,00 2,79 2,60 2,44 2,29 2,17 2,05 1,95 1,86 1,77 1,70 1,63 1,56 1,50 1,44

50/36 RD2 110 BCD

  11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27
50 4,55 4,17 3,85 3,57 3,33 3,13 2,94 2,78 2,63 2,5 2,38 2,27 2,17 2,08 2 1,92 1,85
36 3,27 3 2,77 2,57 2,4 2,25 2,12 2 1,89 1,8 1,71 1,64 1,57 1,5 1,44 1,38 1,33

53/40 RD2 135 BCD

  11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27
50 4,55 4,17 3,85 3,57 3,33 3,13 2,94 2,78 2,63 2,5 2,38 2,27 2,17 2,08 2 1,92 1,85
40 3,64 3,33 3,08 2,86 2,67 2,5 2,35 2,22 2,11 2 1,9 1,82 1,74 1,67 1,6 1,54 1,48

Find a flat road surface which is straight and smooth for as long as possible. Put the chain on the 39t chainring and
select one of the smallest cassette cogs on which the chain flows freely that has a colour in the table above. Ride for a
few minutes in this gear combination. Once you have got used to the feeling of this combination, switch to the 53t up
front and the cassette cog with the same colour in the 53 row. Ride this combination for a few minutes again, and get
used to it. Now switch between the combinations and you will likely begin to feel that one feels more natural, or one
gives you more power. If you prefer the inner chainring, we suggest you try the Q-Rings set one OCP point higher. If
you preferred the outer chainring, you can try riding with the chainrings in one OCP point lower.
 
If you live in a hilly area, repeat the same test, starting off with a larger cog up back. Find a slope which allows you to
climb according to your normal style (Ranging from seated and spinning, to standing over the bars and hammering) in
the smallest colour-coded gear that is comfortable. If you preferred the inner chainring during the climbing test and
the outer one on the flat sections, the chances are that the default settings of the chainrings are good for you, in
which case we advise you keep the Q-Rings where they are (where the majority of cyclists will have them) These
settings can be used as your reference orientations for future use.

Advanced Road settings

You may have noticed, that you liked both settings, but can’t work out why.
When deciding between two consecutive settings (i.e. #2 & #3, or #3 & #4)
the lower number will give you more speed or be better suited to a seated
position (#2 or #3) and the larger one will allow for faster acceleration or
be more suited to a standing position (#3 or #4).
 
If you are going to ride a course on which you will to stand up more often
than usual, you may put that chainring in an orientation setting one number
higher than usual, to improve the standing performance. Look at see the bike
position correction image, left. The 5 indicative OCP zones are portrayed by the colours behind the bike. Where your
butt is, is basically the number you will be using, give or take a little for your reference orientation. 2 and 3 are the
positions invariably used in the saddle. If you are going to be standing up frequently and have position 3 as your
reference chainring position, you may want to put that chainring into position 4. For those with number 2 as their
reference position, we suggest they first try using position 3 before trying 4 for a standing setting. Positions 1 and 5
are extreme, consult your local shop or specialist before using them.
Mountainbike Basics
Mountainbike Q’s have less orientation options compared to Road versions. This is because the 106 and 64 BCD of a
mountainbike crank is considerably smaller than the BCD of 130 and 135bcd road cranks, and as such the amount of
angular space a bolt takes up, is larger. In order to provide as many setup options as possible, the bolt holes were
merged to form a serrated hole with three recommended Orientation options
 
After having ridden several hundred kilometers in setting 2, you can begin to experiment with other orientations. If
you have the feeling that you would like a little more power earlier on in the pedal stroke, or want better traction when
mashing, try riding in position 1. If you would like to have the power peak later in the pedal stroke or want better
traction for spinning, you can try using position 3. (The vast majority of riders will find position 2 to be the best
option.)

Advanced MTB settings.

It is also possible that you will eventually find a combination of
different individual chainring orientation settings that works best for you.
Position on the bike plays a much larger role in MTB Q-Ring setup than road
Q-Ring setup.
 
 As a basic guideline, use the image of the Mountain bike to the left.  These
zones will vary, depending on your preference for an early power peak (in
which case the zones will shift backwards slightly, or a later power peak, in
which case the zones will shift forward slightly)

Now think of your riding style when using a particular chainring. If your butt is most often in zone 2 when using the
chainring in question, we suggest you keep the chainring in setting two, or experiment with setting one. If you tend to
stand up a lot (being in zone 3), and you value the standing power and sprinting performance, you can experiment
with setting 3. Only if you never stand up in a certain chainring, will ocp 1 serve you well.
 
As an example of these combined setups: Do you tend to hammer up climbs whilst standing using the middle
chainring, until it gets too hard - at which point you switch to the granny and sit? Then you may want to try the
following setup combination. I:1 M:3 O:2. (I: inner, M: middle, O: outer) If you always spin seated when using both
the granny gear and outer chainring and mix standing and sitting with the middle chainring, you may want to try their
following setup: I:1 M:2 O:1.
 
 Once you have come accustomed to your Q-Rings, you will be able to set them up for differing terrain if you notice
your riding style is different (for example, if you go on a biking holiday or a race event in a region with very different
terrain to that which you have at home.)