Just de-cluttered my bike by ditching the larger chainring and associated gear stuff. This leaves me with just the smaller of the two chinrings and a bash guard i've fitted. I feel like a bit of a wuss cause most of the people who run 1x10 seem to be running a 32T chainring, but mine at the moment is a 24T - I might move upto a 28T soon ish, but to be honest a 24T chainring feels about right as its quite hilly round here in Derbyshire - short but steep climbs, alot of them rocky and quite technical so you need the ratio to be on the low side to get that quick spurt to get over a big rock or step. Not sure I could push a 32T up some of the hills and climbs round here.
For those running 1x10 with 32T chainrings, are you mostly running it for downhill bikes or cross-country/All-Mountain duties? If the former then I wont feel such a weakling. If the latter then I will, unless you're in areas that are not so hilly!
36t on an XC bike for me. Run what you're happy with, fairly irrelevant what everyone else rides. Personally I'd find a 24t (or even a 28t) woefully undergeared particularly when riding to the trails, but if it works for you!
Been running 32t but after today going up a very long hill I'm gonna go for a 30t. I did it, just, but be nice to have a spinny easy gear.
32t for 1x9 on an all-round bike here (that really isn't designed for climbing) and only fail to climb where lower gears wouldn't be much help. Do ride a fair bit of singlespeed though, so am used to having to exert myself on climbs and being in the "wrong" gear.
Looking to switch to 1x10 here, and planning to go from a 44-32-22 triple and 11-32 cassette to a 34 chainring & 11-36. I reckon I'll lose about two gears off the top and two off the bottom.
Do trail/XC riding on the notoriously flat plains of E Lancs.
Andy
Depends on what you have out back.
1x9 here, 32t-11-36
For Lake District riding I had a 34 ring up front with 36t cassette on nukeproof mega but dropped it to 32up front without noticing any loss in the high gears. Its hard work on the long climbs but you get used to it. Always a compromise but I'm loving it at the moment.
33t with 11-36 here. Average ride is 1000ft/10miles of climbing.
With a 24t you must be freewheeling anything past a slight slope or be able to spin like crazy.
IN the Lakes as well about to go from 2x10 22-38 and 11-36 to 1x10 30 and 11-40
32 ring for me , not hilly bit not flat
I do a lot of Tarmac miles to link the trails together
So don't want to be to slow on the road
But it's what works for you that matters
Use what you want. But, I wouldn't do 1x10 with such a small ring, just because of the lack of high gears- sometimes I wish my 32 was bigger (though, not on a long climb)
32T here (and 1x11 :oops:)... i just wouldn't be able o manage at 23T 1x10
32/34 with 11-36 cassette seems to climb all but the steepest for me
I run a 34 with an 11-36 cassette - the only time I run out of gears is on the very steepest climbs, where you're faster walking anyway 🙂
34-34 is my smallest gear. Mostly ride singletrack and Surrey climbs that aren't too steep, but even on big long climbs in Wales/ Peaks/ Yorks I manage.
Depends what your riding style is though - I'm a masher with breaking knees and cadence <60. Plus i have to ride 15 miles on the roads to and from the station.
The 24T up front is just about OK for the flat - I can maintain half decent pace in gear 8 or 9, but it does get very spinney quickly on the flat descents even with 11-36 on the rear, which is why i'll probably go 28T soon. I don't think it will be a huge loss on the lower gears. My commuter is single speed so can spin my legs if I want to, but since i'm not cross-country I don't really mind slowing down and conserving energy for the next climb and off-road downhill - they are gruelers round here. On the off-road down hills I don't find I pedal too much anyway, just use gravity and pump!
Thanks for feedback though - nice to know what other people are upto. Loving the simplicity of losing all the gubbins up front though and will be nicer in the mud where the front mech gets clogged up pretty quickly.
I'm weak, and a spinner, and I appreciate the lowest gear that a 28t chainring gives me. With FS I do start to run out of gears on the trail though so I'll try 32t again now. Can't see me ever wanting/needing anything lower than 28t though, and at that point finding chainrings with the proper chainline and chainguides goes from being a faff to being impossible AFAIK.
Also, it's quite amazing what you can do with a bigger gear if the alternative is to walk.
Peak- 33 with 11/36
If anyone's interested, the maths suggest the difference between 26" & 29" wheels works out at about 3 teeth on the chainring.
I'm in West Yorks and using 32t chainring with 11/36 cassette. Works well for me on my hard tail, can still get up everything I could with a granny ring and only spin out on tarmac descents but I avoid them anyway!
Debating whether to go 1x10 on the full suss too....
I run a 28t front ring. If you are fairly happy with the 24 stick with it. I've never had anyone running 32/33/34/36 front chain rings outrun me down a trail but a few have been envious on the way up...