spotted the singletrack eurobike article yesterday on E13 bringing out a 46t cassette. shimano already have one out.
but it it just me or are things starting to get a bit bonkers with these cassette sizes?
they just seem to be getting bigger and bigger. if they get any larger they’ll soon be as big as the wheel itself!! lol
is the demand for larger cassettes market driven or consumer driven?

Consumer driven – consumers want a single ring setup, but they don’t have the legs of an XC pro = need huge cassettes.

I had a customer who wanted to change to 1×11 from a triple but didn’t want to lose any of his gear range.

I explained that it isn’t possible to have the whole range you will lose out at one end or the other depending on chainring size bit it is close enough most people adapt to it pretty easily.

He said “can’t you just add some more cogs or something” there is definitely a market here for people who want 1x drivetrains (for reasons they don’t often understand) but don’t want to compromise range.

Most of these people also don’t want to pay eagle prices…

Not seen the sram 50-10 12 speed one yet then eh?

How much do these cassettes weigh?

depends how much you spend…

12 speed xx1 eagle weighs 360g
11 speed xt weighs 410g (40t big sprocket), but is £270 cheaper

Weigh? Less than a front mech?

On a typical 1×10 setup with an XT 11-36T cassette and a 40T extender you lose about three ratios compared with a 3×10 drivetrain. Where you lose those ratios depends on the size of the chainring, with a 30T you lose one at the bottom and two at the top (approximately). Drop to a 28T and you have the same bottom gear but then lose three at the top. On a 29er 30T with 1-40T at the back is fine for most things I’ve come across and I’m no XC pro!

The gap between gears has a limit of about 15% before moving from one gear to another affects cadence too much – this is why you need to shift front and rear rather than just front on 2x & 3x systems, on a triple going from middle to granny is ~35% difference so you need to adjust at the rear to compensate.

I had a customer who wanted to change to 1×11 from a triple but didn’t want to lose any of his gear range.
Most of these people also don’t want to pay eagle prices…

I think some people need to learn what compromise means. Or stick to triple ring.
Fashion eh?

Ah if it works, it works. It’s not like front Mech’s were the most graceful, reliable things in the world.

Having bigger cassettes means bigger ranges – personally I had a x10 set up with a 30t front and 36t rear which was okay, but I really suffered at the high end, not so bad a trail centres and parks etc when you’re not pedalling much at high speed, but “out there” on bridleways etc it was limiting. my current x11 set-up with a 32t-42t first means the top end is a bit better – I’m probably going to get a 46t when my current cassette is worn, I’ll have to check sheldon-brown again, but I think I can run a 36t front and have the same first ratio (ish) so top end will be all I need.

Just what speed are you doing? 30/11 on a 29er @107rpm is 25mph (drops to 100rpm for a 32T). If I’m doing that sort of speed then I might as well be freewheeling

It’s not like front Mech’s were the most graceful, reliable things in the world.

Never had a front mech fail in over 35 years.
Couple of snapped cables when I was a kid, that’s it.
😐

Just what speed are you doing? 30/11 on a 29er @107rpm is 25mph (drops to 100rpm for a 32T)

spinning ~100rpm is fine for roadies, if you’re careening down a rocky path, 107rpm isn’t doable, sticking a few pedal strokes in is going to prove troublesome. True not many people will want to accelerate in those situations but it’s still there.

If I’m doing that sort of speed then I might as well be freewheeling

slacker 😉

Ah if it works, it works. It’s not like front Mech’s were the most graceful, reliable things in the world.

they worked reasonably well. 1x has some valid plus points but it also has drawbacks (mainly range), if those drawbacks don’t suit you then you really should consider ignoring this current trend. I ditched my big rings a while back after spending most o fmy time grounding out on rocks, lost top end speed but for most of my riding that was fine, but it was a bit limiting on my “fast bike” so I went 22/36 upfront this made it a big jump from granny to middle ring, another compromise but one I was happy with. Compromising one thing to get something else you’re after is reasonable, compromise to be “on trend” is less so.

slacker

I know 😳

Just what speed are you doing? 30/11 on a 29er @107rpm is 25mph (drops to 100rpm for a 32T). If I’m doing that sort of speed then I might as well be freewheeling

Depends on the bike and what its used for.
If i’m out training linking up offroad section with tarmac its not uncommon to really need 36/11 (30+mph), however I don’t know any intervals that involve freewheeling, so better keep pedalling.
Likewise at the other end of the spectrum, climbing steep stuff at 10 under/Relentless 22/36 is used regularly, and i’d happily take 22/40.
So ideally, to go 1x i’d like a cassette even bigger than the new eagle – 55/10 15 speed with a 30t chainring would do nicely.

55/10 15 speed with a 30t

Surely the whole point of mega-wide range cassettes is that you can run a bigger chain ring? When would you ever need 30 x 55? Are you trying to ride up walls?

When would you ever need 30 x 55? Are you trying to ride up walls?

Pretty much, yes!
https://www.strava.com/segments/1469757
https://www.strava.com/segments/11208569

Obviously you can power your way up them in a bigger gear a few times, but doing that as a 24hr soloist is a recipie for disaster.

Did it last year on 22×36 which would be equivalent to 30×50, but would rather have a lower gear still so i can climb steep at a more moderate effort level

It’s pretty steep round here.

On most local rides, with a bit of road linkup I’ll use the highest and lowest gears on a standard MTB triple.

I really see no need to restrict my gear range at either end.

Bigger cassettes mean doubles are a viable option now though.
I’ll see what’s available in Deore next spring after this cassette and rings wear out.

Would nicer rings and a lighter cassette on an older triple negate the weight saving of switching to a double?

I suspect so, cheaper too.

Would nicer rings and a lighter cassette on an older triple negate the weight saving of switching to a double?

Probably, each time you add a gear you add a bunch of weight to the cassette – unless you’re looking at top end groupsets. I don’t have figures but nice eg XT 3×9 will probably be lighter than less nice (deore) 2×10. The thing is, 10spd seems to have the best deals at the moment, 9spd was close to rrp last time I looked (need a 9spd mech for my cx) and who wants to pay that?
So a 10spd drivechain may well be cheaper than 9 – but of course you have to factor in what other gear gubbins you need, could possibly get away with just rh shifter and rear mech.

Pretty much, yes!
https://www.strava.com/segments/1469757
https://www.strava.com/segments/11208569

Fair enough, that second one is quite extreme in the middle, I can’t say I hit climbs like that very often.

What’s the limit of current rear mech designs re. the range of cassettes? My 11-42 (10 speeds) didn’t need anything other than a couple of turns of the B screw. Surely by 46 you’re loosing something, somewhere?

I run a 32T front and, as I said, 11-42. I’d be interested in a 34T x 11-46 if it shifted nicely.