OK the ’emergency budget’ econoMTB that I purchased (£100) is proving to be a royal pain in the wallet.

Turns out it was in good condition all round but my haste and lack of foresight didn’t account for the likelhood of a totally shot drivetrain

It’s currently a 3×9

Only good D/T bits now are:

New 9 speed chain
New B/B
Crank arms are LX and are OK.

Cassette and rings must be shot because new chain results in chainsuck and skipping aplenty across most of the range.

So, absolute cheapest solution to this is prob single-speed but I’m not in shape or place for that.

If I stump up £50-£60 for a new XT cassette then I suppose could go 1×9 but we’re still looking at near enough 100 quid with the tensioner, chain and decent rings.

If only there was 3speed hub solution as I only tend to use three gears.

WWSTWD?

Put the old chain back on.

Forgot to say:

Old chain was blitzed by snow/grit/damp storage. Salvageable?

I do have £50 left over from Xmas so would like to sort something more long-term. Shame to waste the new chain I bought. Maybe a 1×9 could work in that range?

WWSTWD
Cheapest steel ring i could find and the cheapest 9 speed cassette available. Plus the 9 speed chain you have on there. Should be less than £35.

If you only use 3 gears, you could use a road cassette, then tend to be slightly cheaper.
Keep the chain nice and short and you *might* even get away with a normal front chainring, instead of a 1x ring.

I have a 9 speed drivetrain you can have. Pretty sure cassette is an XT, chain is a sram and i have a selection of rings knocking around all pretty much new. And a rapid rise rear and a front mech too, both XT from memory.

If you are interested drop me an email.

gnusmas, email in the mail 🙂

If you only use 3 gears, you could use a road cassette, then tend to be slightly cheaper.
Keep the chain nice and short and you *might* even get away with a normal front chainring, instead of a 1x ring.

Funny I was just looking at road cassettes and wondering..

Good advice thnks. It’s not a clutch mech what does anyone recommend to keep the chain on for 1×9?