Absolute Black Oval Chainring
In this review, we take a close look at the Oval Chainring from Absolute Black. Does an Oval chainring help improve pedalling efficiency? Does it make climbing easier? Are there any negatives from using an oval chainring?
Also what makes the Absolute Black Oval Chainring better than other brands?
Why use an Oval Chain Ring
There is a ton of information out there on the benefits of using an oval chain ring
I’m not saying this is an approach everyone should take it’s just one I decided to. If you would rather do research before buying a product then Absolute Black has a whole page dedicated to the benefits of going oval. Check it out here But in short they’re supposed to make it easier and smoother to climb resulting in less effort required so you don’t get tired so quick.
The Absolute Black Oval Chainring
The chainring arrived next day from Absolute black in minimal packaging (which I love because save the planet). I also ordered one of their tin stickers and a sweet red stem cap for my hardtail.
The chainring is beautifully CNC’d then anodised black. It looks like they have the extra mile to mill away any unnecessary material to reduce weight without weakening the product. The chainring I have is a 30 tooth, BB30 oval ring
The absolute black chainring was really easy to install. There’s only one way it can be installed and there are plenty of guides on the Absolute Black website such as this one to help you if you do get stuck.
Testing the oval vs round
To test the oval chain ring
First impressions of riding the oval chain ring
Riding the oval on flat sprints also felt more efficient and I was comfortable riding my usual way. It also felt less fatiguing but I have no evidence to prove it. I don’t think the oval made too much difference on the downs as gravity is already doing a lot of the hard work.
After the ride I uploaded the data from my garmin to strava and was quite suprised to see how much of a difference the oval made on the ups. As you can see from the images below there are some significant gains when using the oval chain ring
So in summary the oval chainring from absolute black is a brilliant product. Not only is it really nicely made and looks awesome but there are noticeable gains when pedalling up hill without any changes to your riding style. I would recommend this product and I will be ordering another for my hardtail soon!