What a strange issue to have.

well, i’m running 11-34 and all i know is that when i hit a hill and need to grab a lower gear then in most cases one jump ain’t enough. furthermore, as the shifter is designed to shift three cogs with one push it’s a fair assumption that rather than being a strange issue this is in fact what shimano were expecting!

I have run XT 10 speed as a double since June and had no problems what so ever.
I have just replaced it with XTR 10 speed and it saved 1/2 pound over the XT.

1×10 on a 29er 32/11-36 xt and a wippermann chain with connex. just about right round here. the new xt shifter is mighty smooth.

XX here since April. Chain is way past the stretch limit and both rings are worn up front, cassette is probably well worn too but can’t tell from looking but everything works still so its all going to the grave together. For what its worth I believe wear rate is higher as the chain is narrower and from my experience has stretched rather quickly plus the teeth are narrower which means there’s less width across the contact with the chain rollers. I don’t find myself riding in easier gears.

Rode new XTR last weekend though. Cranks are very nice and still look smart after 150 miles of heel rub, brakes are my new favourite, not massively powerful but beautiful action and feel. That was 3×10 but I didn’t find myself pedalling any easier gears so wouldn’t say there was any less force on it.

I understand the SRAM chain is the same as the road one whereas the shimano are mtb specific for higher loads. Got to say I like the idea of this and hopefully it means they won’t stretch as quick but had a few issues with shimano chains recently including an Ultegra one which cracked in no less than 12 links. Got a Dura Ace replacement on warranty but not felt like using it yet. Might stick it on the XX to see how nailed the cassette is!

I’m running 8,9 and 10 speed (across 3 bikes) all mostly XT (but a few bits of XTR and SLX). I never found much difference between 8 and 9 speed, if anything I always found the quality of the 8 speed kit was better than 9 speed (more aluminium less plastic!).

However I’m finding 10 speed to be noticeably better than the other two. I think it suits my riding style more. I rarely stand on my peddles to push up a hill, much preferring to spin up the hills. So the extra gears really help with keeping a steady cadence.

Also I do find myself using the front ring more, as in the granny ring you can shift much further up the rear cassette without the kind of problems I had with 8/9 speed doing the same. So on the really steep stuff again it suits my riding style.

So for me personally a 3×10 set up is a good step forward. With a traditional 3×8 being my runner up.

For what it is worth we have 10 fingers so 10 gears kinda makes sense 🙂

Ouch dasilva…worn out your XX in 6 months…that transmission must be more expensive to maintain than a car’s 😯