is this possible?
my cannondale is currently single-speed and i was thinking of throwing on a cassette and xt rear mech and keeping a single ring forwards.
would this work?
it strikes me as more reliable, more simple and lighter... i should at least then have enough of a spread for most uphills and most downhills.
thoughts?
if it is possible... what size chainring should i run if i am using an average spread cassette on the back?
32 to 40 teeth on the front is reasonable depending on how big the hills are round your way and how wussy/heroic you feel. A short cage rear mech will give better chain tension.
If you're riding off road you'll most likely need a guide of some sort to stop the chain dropping off on bumpy trails. This could be a £5 cheapie cheap front mech or £100+ purpose built device with bash ring
i'm currently running singlespeed with no chain device at all.. this works fine.
could i get away with a road mech?
There are a million and one threads on 1x10 and 1x9. Consensus seems to be that you will need some form of chain retention on the front, ranging from an old front mech, through jumpstop and bashguard, to full DH style chain device, depending on how bumpy it is.
I've gone with an unramped 32t chainring and an ethirteen 1x upper chain guide.
On my old commuter I used an old front mech and a ramped chainring and never lost the chain, however this was road use, not sure I'd trust it offroad.
stuey,
thanks for that.
what sort of rear mech and cassette do you run with?
Road mech should work but even that will bounce about on bumpy trails and allow the chain to drop off. A front chain ring with full height teeth (ie no ramps or cut outs to aid shifting) will help.
Short mech is wise, as it gives better chain tension.
The Shimano 105 seems popular?
And a wide range cassette too.
I've got a medium cage SLX mech, as that is what I already had. And a 9sp 11-34 cassette, so I've still got an easy climbing gear.
Chain is adjusted to the length round the chainring and big sprocket plus 2 links. Seems to have pretty good tension.
Fitted a full on chain device not long ago and the real difference seems to be a greater feeling of confidence on technical riding. Probably not doing much more than an old front mech and unramped chain ring, but nice to know that it is there.
okay... a plan is coming together.
i'm thinking of getting a SRAM PG970 cassette from chain reaction (11-34) as they are only £18 at the mo.
i will run this with a SRAM PC951 chain, also from chain reaction.
in terms of a mech, i guess i will have to match this up with a shifter of some sorts (time to hunt the classifieds). will a 105 rear mech work with a 9-speed XT shifter?
last but not least, i'll put a superstar front upper chain device on there. they seem identical to the thirteen item.
throw in an unramped 32 chain ring and i'm off the races.
from chain reaction, as they are only £18 [b]+ a couple of O2 top ups[/b] at the mo
...well someone had too. 😉
IIRC road mechs wont work as they dont swing up enough to clear more than a 28t chainring? Thats why shimano 'short' MTB mechs are the ewuivalent length of SRAM medium mechs.
You can run without a chain device, I did for a while but the chain falls off a lot even with a DH chainring. SS is different as there's more tension in the chain and perfect chainline.
Sorry, road mech's are popular for DH bikes, which often run a roadie cassette.
I suspect he means road mechs can't cope with the 34t mountain bike cassette, only a 11-28.
Just changed my ss to 1x9
11-34 rear 36t front
Short cage xt durallier
Superstar Guide
Rigid forks.
tis uber quick compared to the ss version
The superstar guide's pretty nice, works a charm on mine. I broke it a bit through cackhandedness (forgot it was there while knocking the old crank out with a hammer, doh!) but it still works fine. An old front mech would also do the job. I got basically nowhere riding without a device, even with a short cage mech and the chain as short as it can go it still dropped constantly on rough stuff.
i'm now looking at 34 or 36t chainrings... i quite like the look of these which are available in two different gauages, but i'm not sure whether they can be run with 9-speed transmissions (the text is a bit ambiguous as I can't work out whether it implies that one can and one can't or whether neither can?!?)
bascially, i need a ring with no shift gates at a sensible cost (circa £25 or thereabouts) which will fit on the 4-bolt shimano deore hoolowtech crankset
thoughts?
Im running 1x9 on my dialled love/hate, using an unramped 32 front ring with a bash guard and an ngage jumpstop on the inside, looks neat and does the job, my regular riding is Afan, Cwm Carn area, if you are after a front chain ring Charlie the Bike Monger has a good selection and being a 4 bolt Shimano you are looking for something with a BCD (or PCD) of 104.
Slight edit, have also got a 36 ring for the front but 32 suits me better round here, standard rear cassette.
[url= http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/fsa-104bcd-chainring-92-p.asp ]CTBM[/url]
http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/104-bcd-4-arm-20-c.asp
I'm using an FSA ring and works fine for me - £16 bargain!
1x9 here too.
After experimenting with different ratios, I eventually settled for a 40t chainring, 11-25 Shimano cassette & short cage road mech, and a SRAM chain.
I've used Gusset and raceface DH rings and both have lasted for ages with good performance.
Currently using [url= http://www.ukbikestore.co.uk/product/54/rrdh104x/raceface-dhss-chainring-4-bolt-104-bcd.html ]this Raceface ring[/url] and it's still running well after 3 years of use.
Gusset Tribal R [url= http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/product/115022.html ]£25[/url]
34 front with an xcx chain device and sram short cage mech here. Perfectly fine on short and steeps around mendips, quantocks and similar.
It was fine at Afan too, although towards the end of the day I had a glimmer of maybe struggling on bigger days in the hills, so I'm about to put a 32T on the front.
I'm inspired now, I think I'll run 1x9 on the Croix De Fer frame.
But excusing my ignorance, how does that Superstar components one fit?
I assume it goes between frame and BB, but will it fit all frame and BB combo's?
I'm thinking Raceface Evolve with 24 ring, 105 on the back and a single bar end shifter.
SLX med cage, a blackspire unramped 32 ring, E13 hive chain device.
Very good except for those long, steep, draggy hills when you miss your granny 🙂