[Closed] 1x11 cassette weighs as much as the rest of my bike.

I can't say I recall having dropped a 1x chain on a NW ring yet... Still on original XX1 cassette with 0 issues after over 3000km - but on 4th chain to prevent excess wear.

Has anyone tried the E13 TRS cassette? Look interesting as you can replace individual parts.

Thinking about this a whole 1lb stuck right out back is not a good thing, I'm thinking about when you want to flick the back end sideways etc.

Steve Peat, weak legged loser:

(he doesn't weigh his own I'm sure, he has people to weigh things for you)

When your income depends on it why not. For everyone else a few grams here and there makes no difference, like shaving 2 seconds off the red route will make or break your day.

Might price up a sram driver and cassette.

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Which is why people buying 11 speed cassettes themselves buy Shimano or Sunrace.

If your frame is optimized for 1x drivetrain there are also weight/strength benefits to be had from the symmetrical chain stays, burlier main pivot and loss of the front mech mounting gubbins

That's the thing cpon... it's not a few grams it's a few hundred compared with my old 10sp 11-32. Guess that's why I'm noticing it.

On the flip side I'm blown away by how light the xt m8000 cranks are!!!

cpon - Member

When your income depends on it why not. For everyone else a few grams here and there makes no difference, like shaving 2 seconds off the red route will make or break your day.

Not about 2 seconds- light bikes and heavy bikes ride differently and feel different, so why not make it ride like you like it to?

Which is why people buying 11 speed cassettes themselves buy Shimano or Sunrace.

munrobiker - Member

Which is why people buying 11 speed cassettes themselves buy Shimano or Sunrace.

Went 11 speed for myself- bought DT freehub and sram cassette (and XT shifting). It's a bigger expense the first time but it's better, and once you've got the hub it's barely any more expensive than XT.

. Can I run 11sp sram cassette with shimano 11sp chain mech and shifter?

Yes, I do just that, sram x01 11 speed cassette and chain with shimano xtr lever and derailleur, works nicely.

Thinking about this a whole 1lb stuck right out back is not a good thing, I'm thinking about when you want to flick the back end sideways etc.

well stop thinking about it so much!

generalising here so don't pull me up on specific weights...

VERY heavy cassette ~500g
heavy cassette ~400g
normal cassettte ~300g
light cassette ~200g

So ~200g difference between 'normal' (which is actually underestimated on) and 'VERY heavy'

So now get a random group of people together, think typical group ride and 200g is less less than the variation in rims, or tyres, or tubes Vs tubeless between any two random riders, let alone other bits of the bike .

If having 200g strapped to the centre of your back wheel suddenly renders you incapable of handling your bike, kicking the back end out or 'pulling a move' then I respectfully suggest you MTFU.

I'm all for saving weight where appropriate, and the Shimano cassettes ARE heavier than other options, and if you're on a mission to lighten your bike then it's a reasonably cost effective place to do so, but keep it in perspective please!

If having 200g strapped to the centre of your back wheel suddenly renders you incapable of handling your bike, kicking the back end out or 'pulling a move' then I respectfully suggest you MTFU.

I'm all for saving weight where appropriate, and the Shimano cassettes ARE heavier than other options, and if you're on a mission to lighten your bike then it's a reasonably cost effective place to do so, but keep it in perspective please!

But if I pick the heavier/normal version of everything then I put 2-3kg on my bike, that is noticeable (the difference between the nice spec and the base spec model)

which is why I clarified about if you are trying to save weight it's not a bad place to look at doing so, but more to the point that exactly illustrates the keeping it in perspective thing, even a 'massive' weight gain of 3kg is the difference between posh and base spec, and nobody would be daft enough to suggest the base spec model would be unrideable or stop you 'getting the back out' would they?

As for performance and reliability the lighter option seems better from my perspective.

I'm also going to take this with a pinch of salt from you specifically Mike as I was under the impression you were a SRAM user through and through and so haven't spent any decent time on a Shimano 11speed setup?

FWIW, neither have I, and only 2 of my riding buddies have gone Shimano 11sp (for MTB), and only recently so I don't have much of a frame of reference with longevity/reliability yet either.

If there is a difference then it could be worth the weight penalty, and It might even be worth it to some given the cost saving, but its silly to use the heavier version of a component if there are lighter, equally durable alternatives for the same or very similar cost.

Looks like we'll be heading back towards 2x drivetrains as the 'must have' soon.
We have hills where I live, so I've never even considered changing to 1x. I know a couple of folk who have made that mistake...

I'm also going to take this with a pinch of salt from you specifically Mike as I was under the impression you were a SRAM user through and through and so haven't spent any decent time on a Shimano 11speed setup?

We have hills where I live, so I've never even considered changing to 1x. I know a couple of folk who have made that mistake...

VERY heavy cassette ~500g
heavy cassette ~400g
normal cassettte ~300g
light cassette ~200g

SS sprocket ~ 20g?

I can feel the difference at the back of the bike between 1-36 and SS, so I'm pretty sure I could feel almost the same difference again.

I'm a tight arse and would rather gurn up hill with 10speed than pay more for a cassette than I do for most of my frames!

Everyone should please indicate what percentage of their bodyweight they can deadlift, then we can resume the bickering. Thanks

Surely a squat is more appropriate if we're also discussing pre-ride ablutions?

The Shimano cassettes do seem a bit portly compared to SRAM, but are more cost effective because they'll work on standard freehubs.

A mate who I ride with most of the time is onto his second XT cassette, he's ridden less than I have and I'm on my second chain on the GX and it's probably going to do a 3rd and at that rate triple the life of the XT. Met plenty of early adopters of SRAM 11 and very few that disappointed.

Similar here too - a mate is on his second XT cassette compared to my one GX and rides less than I do.

A mate who I ride with most of the time is onto his second XT cassette, he's ridden less than I have and I'm on my second chain on the GX and it's probably going to do a 3rd and at that rate triple the life of the XT. Met plenty of early adopters of SRAM 11 and very few that disappointed.

Well, skipping over the 'sample of one' issue entirely... how does that compare to [i]his [/i](rather than yours) previous drivetrains? I always find it difficult to compare longevity of my kit to my friends, even when we ride the same stuff as I can get a lot more miles out of somethings, and less out of others.

Met plenty of early adopters of SRAM 11 and very few that disappointed

Same here, and I know you rate it, but I'm trying to play devils advocate here a bit as the Shimano 11sp stuff hasn't been out as long and just because people are happy with the SRAM kit, doesn't mean they wouldn't be equally happy with others. I don't think the longevity question can be properly settled yet as at the moment the only people who have really put enough miles on 11sp Shimano stuff are already in the 'edge-case' bracket so not necessarily representative of joe average, and although I know a fair few people with SRAM 1x11 who are happy with the performance, they are still (rightly or wrongly) worried about the cost of cassettes and chains.

Honestly no idea but as he went 1x11 XT after we all did 1x11 SRAM and changed before any of us did it's a bit more than sample of 1. As for the weight it does look like the XT is the unfinished prototype that his production. Extra machining does cost but seriously just a little would help, when was the last time you snapped a cassette?

when was the last time you snapped a cassette?

Know any roadies riding 11speed shimano? Or it might have been 7900, either way shimano made some carbon spiders, they cracked.

when was the last time you snapped a cassette?

Know any roadies riding 11speed shimano? Or it might have been 7900, either way shimano made some carbon spiders, they cracked.

So good he said it twice 😉

Their we go must be why they leave all the spare metal in there

but seriously just a little would help, when was the last time you snapped a cassette?

Typically Shimano though isn't it, they always err on the side of caution, especially in the mid range and their kit is often a bit heavier because of it, always have done and I imagine they always will especially below top level.

I doubt they have the power to do so (at least not yet) but I would love to see some more people getting into the groupset market in a big way rather than at the high end (Box, E13, Hope etc.) and low/mid end (Microshift, SunRace), it might push things forward a bti more and give us more choice.

FWIW some of the top end stuff from microshift isn't bad these days, not perfect but improving all the time. Also, a lot more SunRace appearing OEM on bikes now so interesting times ahead maybe...

I suspect with electronic shifting we'll see more choice as it effectively halves the number of fiddly bits.

Their we go must be why they leave all the spare metal in there

I did wonder as I typed it (and your comment that it looks a bit 'prototype') whether that's why it weighs so much. Whther they planned on releasing the carbon version, then hurriedly re-designed it when it didn't work.

Surprised they've not solved it though, I can't be alone in the camp that would rather have Shimano over SRAM even at a slight weight penalty, just not that much.

I can't be alone in the camp that would rather have Shimano over SRAM even at a slight weight penalty, just not that much.

Well, skipping over the 'sample of one' issue entirely... how does that compare to his (rather than yours) previous drivetrains? I always find it difficult to compare longevity of my kit to my friends, even when we ride the same stuff as I can get a lot more miles out of somethings, and less out of others.

The 10 speed stuff he ran before seemed to last ages. He reckons he's done 1,000 miles or so on his drivetrain since Feb and it's time for a new one. That seems pretty poor - over ten months or so, that's not that much riding.

The 11 speed XT cassette does look unfinished compared to the 10 speed ones that I always ran and got good life out of. I've spent two weeks on M8000 and cant wait to get back to my SRAM 11 speed stuff - they just seem to do it better than Shimano. Whereas I thought the Shimano 10 speed bits that replaced my 10 speed SRAm stuff was loads better.

Just Google it... 460g. Isn't that a whole 1lb?

When your income depends on it why not. For everyone else a few grams here and there makes no difference, like shaving 2 seconds off the red route will make or break your day.

When your income depends on it why not. For everyone else a few grams here and there makes no difference, like shaving 2 seconds off the red route will make or break your day.

From a quick bit of googling I get;

all 11 speed.

XT 11-42 445g £60 at CRC
NX 11-42 538g £60 at CRC
1050 (GX?) 10-42 400g £95 at CRC

XT seems a decent option?

Not about 2 seconds- light bikes and heavy bikes ride differently and feel different, so why not make it ride like you like it to?

As amedias says, the difference between a light cassette and a heavy one is about 200g. I've jetwashed more than 200g of mud off post ride. A different tyre/tube would negate the difference. As been said 200g doesn't make the difference between a light bike or a heavy one, but it does make a difference between a light wallet and a heavy one.

Leku - Member

From a quick bit of googling I get;

all 11 speed.

XT 11-42 445g £60 at CRC
NX 11-42 538g £60 at CRC
1050 (GX?) 10-42 400g £95 at CRC

XT seems a decent option?

GX is £75 from Amazon or Wiggle.

cpon - Member

As been said 200g doesn't make the difference between a light bike or a heavy one

Course not, but adding over 50% to the weight of a couple more components will.

Ahh. £10 for 45g and a wider spread of gears. I can see the attraction of that.

11-46 is the same range.

As amedias says, the difference between a light cassette and a heavy one is about 200g. I've jetwashed more than 200g of mud off post ride. A different tyre/tube would negate the difference. As been said 200g doesn't make the difference between a light bike or a heavy one, but it does make a difference between a light wallet and a heavy one.

Course not, but adding over 50% to the weight of a couple more components will

Well, while I agree with both sentiments, I'll just point out again that I was replying specifically to the comment about a heavy cassette causing problems like not being able to 'flick the back end out' and other such madness.

200g is not a lot of weight, in isolation, and I wouldn't be that worried about it in isolation, but I was on a mission to have a lighter bike it would be a sensible place to save a significant chunk in one go [i][b]if[/b][/i] durability is not compromised and it doesn't cost a fortune to do so.

I think people are making too much of a big deal about the [i]absolute[/i] weight, when the obvious bit is why is there such a relative difference to a similar part from the competition, and that's mostly down to the construction, and hence the consequent price differences which may or may not be important.

sillyoldman - Member

11-46 is the same range.

The XT 11-46 is more expensive though, £85's the best I can find, and it's heavier still. The Sunrace might be a good option though.

Fair points Amedias.

It's all horses for courses anyway...

- Both my XCO race bike and 12/24 race bikes are still using X0 9speed gear, light, cheap, perfectly functional, XCO bike is never raced longer than 1.5hrs so I grunt through on an 34x11-34 just fine, 12/24 bike just uses a smaller ring at the front to gear for the long haul instead.

- My trail/general purpose bikes are all Shimano 10sp with 11-36* cassettes, mostly because it all still works and is cheap to run.

- My Winter slop bike is either SS or 11sp Alfine and apart form the initial re-adjustment to feel of adding ~1.3kg of hub gear hanging off the back end it makes little difference to speed or handling

*I've just stuck an 11-42 10sp sunrace cassette on one bike to extend the range a bit, might put 11sp on there at some point, might not, but I doubt cassette weight will be a deciding factor, cost of parts definitely will be.

Thanks for the input folks. Returned my 32t chainring and ordered a 30t.. I'm going to run the 11-46t with slightly too easy top end through the winter grime then switch to an xx1 10-42t when the weather gets nicer. That way all the winter grime won't be wearing a very pricey cassette from new.

Returned my 32t chainring and ordered a 30t.

good move, that has saved you another 4 grams. It all adds up...

30? 32? Thought you could deadlift twice your body weight?

I could only deadlift a bag of sugar (probably) and I run 32T with the 11-46. 30 is pretty damn short gearing.

Like Amedias, I too have stuck with 10sp Shimano on the geared bikes (FS and CX). 11-36 for everyday and a Praxis 11-40 for mountains. Collection of NW rings in both 104 & 110 for up front. Set for life imho.

Just out of curiosity is XT 1x11 lighter or heavier than XT 2x9?

I've stuck with 2x9 as I really like having the range of being able to do 8-45km/h @ 90RPM and I find jumps >15% annoying. If I was fitter then I suspect I'd have less problems with less range and a higher granny speed.

Expect 2x to be all the rage in 2018 as manufacturers realise they're losing sales with 1x specific bikes.

A different tyre/tube would negate the difference.

and be a compromise in order to claw back some of the weight.

I just don't get it, what exactly are the benefits of 1x over 2x?

It's not weight, it's not price, it's definately not chainline and it can't be a chain retention thing?