1x systems – what are the benefits?

Not being sarcastic but after a couple of years on s single speed my 1×9 seems plenty, yes run out on a downhill road and sometimes struggle on a hill but traction would probably be more significant. Have a ten speed in the house but wondering if 11 becomes weak? Never broke an 8 speed, sometimes break 9, have seen a few broken 10 speed chains (seems more than 9 speeds?)…

Are there any who have actually tried 1x drivetrains and gone back to 2x and 3x?
Because I don’t know of any.

Yep, one here!!

I was running 1×10 on both my mtb’s. But recently changed the hardtail to a 2×10 38/26 11-36. Just because I wanted a higher gear for road sections but still wanted low gears for hills.

My 160mm full suss is still 1×10 11-42 and is not changing any time soon. But I don’t intend riding that on roads much.

Have a ten speed in the house but wondering if 11 becomes weak?

Of anything I’ve broken the most 9sp chains due to using them for longer, not only snapped 1 10sp and 1 11sp but that was when I ripped the chain ring apart so probably not the chain…

Over a year into 1×11 GX and it’s really been flawless

Think it very much depends on the bike and the riding you do.
On my fs trail bike i’d happily go 1x, don’t think i’ve ever needed the top gear so would just choose ratios to match my smallest gear.

29er hardtail is a completely different story though. It sees lots of road miles, 24hr races and the odd bit of bikepacking. I run a 22/36 and 11-36 and use all of them all the time, i’d even like a bit more range, so i’d never sacrifice range for 1x

I like not having to pay attention on what ring I’m using to avoid inappropriate chain crossing (like small ring with small cog)

it’s always one tap gear up and two tap gear down. always

jam bo – Member
Are there any who have actually tried 1x drivetrains and gone back to 2x and 3x?

Me, a couple of times per week. I have 1x, 2x and 3x bikes I regularly ride.

but nothing will convince me this is anything but marketing / fashion led

I know some folk who’ve only ever ridden 1x (since the early 2000’s)

I’ll be going from 1×11 to 2×10 soon on my hardtail.

My experience of 1×11 so far is it lasts about half as long as 9/10 speed, costs 2-3 times as much to replace and doesn’t really offer many advantages for me. Where I ride is pretty gritty but having to replace nearly the whole drivetrain in less than 250 miles is a bit much, and the knock on effect of that is once the chainring starts wearing you start dropping the chain on any descents that are remotely bumpy 👿

And then there’s the crap chainline (which must cause some of the excessive wear) and the big jumps betwen gears higher up the cassette which makes it feel like you’re always in the wrong gear.

Are there any who have actually tried 1x drivetrains and gone back to 2x and 3x?

Because I don’t know of any.

Yes I have gone back to 3×9 anyone want a new narrowwide oval 36 tooth ring lol.

I used the 10 speed 12/36 cassette from my tourer to try it out it was not for me and my type of riding/terain.

wicki – Member

I used the 10 speed 12/36 cassette from my tourer to try it out it was not for me and my type of riding/terain.

OK, but did you realise that the 12/36 is actually narrower range than an 11/34? I used to use 11/34 1×9 on my Soda but it definitely wouldn’t have done me for a do-it-all. 33/36 as a lowest gear doesn’t appeal.

jam bo – Member

Are there any who have actually tried 1x drivetrains and gone back to 2x and 3x?

yes, i’m another.

it’s a bit like flat pedals or clippy pedals, i enjoy mixing it up.

and, i like the way you can tune* a multi-ring bike to run *much* smoother and quieter, especially compared to a single NW ring, which usually sounds terrible.

(yes, i clean and oil my chain between rides)

(*either using the trim-shift, or changing gear to a similar ratio, but with a straighter chain line)

Are there any who have actually tried 1x drivetrains and gone back to 2x and 3x?

me

Have 1×11 on full-sus, but went back to 3×9 on the 29er. It’s used for more XC stuff, and even get used on the road, so want the gear range at both ends.

Maybe 42-10 or 46-10 or whatever would be better but it’s a lot of money and faff, and the XT 9 speed shifters seem to feel a lot better than the newer XT 11 speed.

36 tooth ring… 12/36 cassette

I think I’d give up on it too if I tried that combo 🙂

I now have 1×11 – 10-42 40 up front. There have been a few hills that I have noticed my puff being lost on.

I keep toyinng with the idea of a 38 or 36 up front, but do worry about the loss of top end speed, although I very rarely used by old 50×12 other than pegging it down hill.

Will I be really pissed off with a 38 or 36 up front?

Most people are using a 32t on MTB’s from what I’ve read.

38 is pretty big. I think I have a 36 if you want to give it a try? But I found that too big too (well, correction, I found it great for about 4 rides then the 5th ride broke me :lol:)

I’m 30T on a 29er with the 10-42 cassette and find that a good balance. Occasionally I could do with a lower gear- the kinlochleven enduros with their endless grinding climb- but then I’ve done that race on 2×9 and it was no less grim 😆 Maybe if my cranks would take smaller, I’d go smaller but 30 works.

30 here…

Quirrel must be talking road if he had 50×12. In which case 40×40 ie 1:1 is enough shirley?

I prefer 40 but the 38 was fine. 36? I doubt it.

Just ordered a 32 tooth oval in the superstar sales, the chainsuck from claggy frozen mud the last few nights is threatening to chop off my chainstay

30 on the 650+, 32 (oval) on the 29er and looking at 38 or 40 on the 700cc alfine road commuter.

Cheers, Steve

The differences between wheel sizes map to a difference of two teeth on the chainring, so: 32T on a 29er is roughly the same as 34T on a 650b and 36T on a 26er.

Personally I wouldn’t go bigger than 34T on a 29er or equivalent. I’ve only come across one person with that and he found it hard work and dropped to 32T. Most people I know with 1x use either 30T or 32T on 29ers and that includes some very strong riders.

Personally I’m going to stick with 1x but if a bike I was interested in had 2x or 3x then it wouldn’t be a deal breaker. The only problem I can see are those frames that are designed as 1x only as you are locked in, at least with bikes with front mech mounts you can try 1x and go back if you didn’t get on with it.

Personally I think for general mtbing it makes sense to go 1x on a FS where you get advantages improved suspension design and a slight drop in weight. But on a hardtail these benefits no longer really exist so 2x or even 3x makes more sense.

Odd how things change, when I started mtbing there was a big resistance to move to small chainrings and cassettes as it increased wear. Now people are talking about running 30 x 10, that’s not a lot of area for the chain to be sitting on, so not surprised if wear rates are up. SRAM will be lapping it up.

Front 1x chainrinngs don’t have to shift, so teeth can be much longer, wear not an issue in the same way.

In practice, I’m getting better life from my 11 speed setup than I ever got from 9 or 10. Not sure why- maybe I’m using the spread of gears more evenly and spreading the wear, maybe because it doesn’t clog up with mud in the same way, or maybe it’s just harder wearing. The 10T thing doesn’t seem to be an issue- I guess just because of the way you actually use high gears?

It’s not enough to outweigh the higher cost of the cassettes, mind, but it surprised me. Front rings wear relatively fast with the alu ones(and the chain retentions suffers as they wear) but they’re also very cheap. I’m pretty sure keeping my bikes in single rings is cheaper than triples were (I used deore steel on my double setups so I don’t know how long those last, a thousand years probably…)

Then again, if you put an alu ring on a bike when steel is available, and then complain about short life, you’re probably a plum.

Quirrel must be talking road if he had 50×12. In which case 40×40 ie 1:1 is enough shirley?

Mixture road, hard packed clay and loose rocks – 700cx42 drop bar. Some steeper climbs, weekend saw 200m vertical over a km or so on loose dry dirt and stones, may not have helped much in the real world.

Hmm, looking at what riders used on this year’s Tour Divide and HT550.

Mike Hall on the TD: 1×10

Phil Addyman, Lee Craigie, Ian Fitz, Ian Barrington all 1x. I’d have added Javier Simon as well but he was on a singlespeed, Stewart Cowperthaite who was riding at the same pace as Phil Addyman but bust his Achilles tendon also rides with 1x. Not sure what Liam Glen uses.

So, 1x no good for long distance or XC rides then? Maybe it’s the rider.

Longevity? Not bad IME, I’m on my third cassette in 30 months having ridden over 7000Km in all weathers and conditions (until recently I’d only one MTB). Chainrings last about a year but it’s a bit more awkward now as I’ve a couple of different sizes to suit ride and fitness. I use an XT cassette with Hope TRex expander – the expander is the original so I can’t use it that much! Most of my riding is in the Yorkshire Dales which do have one or two hills around.

Sorry for the thread hijack, but need some advice -my front mech has just died (running 2 x 10 with 2x roller chainguide and a slx medium (gs) rear mech) and I’m debating what to do. Thinking of going 1x 10 with an expander, but will need 30 front and 42 I think given my location (hilly), fitness (erm, not great atm) and trailer pulling with a 2 yr old.

From what I can see I’ll need a longer b tension screw, but any other nuggets of wisdom / problems from people with that setup before I spend cash? Anybody reckon I should get a new mech and stick to 2x? Don’t really do epic long rides btw, it’s on a 150mm/160mm bike and time / fitness not there for epics.

So, 1x no good for long distance or XC rides then?

Has anyone ever said that?

Maybe it’s the rider.

Yes, personal choice.

Without a doubt. Which is why anyone suggesting that a limited gear range is all anyone needs is incorrect.

@simondbarnes – Just checked the thread and there’s at least seven posts along those lines.

Colin – I’ll be on a 1×10 for next year’s HT regardless of what anyone else decides to use.

IU wish I could find some data on weights. ( I have looked a bit) I cannot believe there is much if any weight saving when you are swapping a small chainring a cable a shifter and a mech for 2 dinner plate size sprokets

Anyone know the comparative weights of the casettes? 11/34 9 sp and 10 – 50 11 speed?

Meh. I can’t believe you’re not single speeding 😉

Fortunately, it’s not a referendum, and nobody on the losing side needs to change their opinion and back the majority 😉

Tried 1×11 on my new FS, definitely fewer gears, descent is basically freewheeling only. Ascent could use one more ratio, aka exactly the one that is missing according to the calculator.
Swaying towards 2×10 or 2×11 on the HT when I upgrade that, now that I have tried 1×11.
So not really going back, but certainly not becoming a devout “1×11 is the only valid way”.

Right kit for the right job.

Was going to get a southpaw for the uppy downy post, but glad I didn’t. Nearly reached for the lever on that side to drop to the granny a couple of times. That could be entertaining.

I think I’d need at least another year of training to even consider SS! Even then I don’t think my knees or hips would cope over that sort of distance and terrain.

I wish I could find some data on weights.

Any particular reason? Its about 7th on the list for reasons to change to 1x, maybe lower. If you are doing it for weight saving then you are doing it for the wrong reasons IMO

Not sure if anyone has pointed it out yet, but the absolute best thing about 1x drivetrains is that they’ve given the Internet something new to bicker about now people have got bored of arguing about wheel sizes. In fact I’d be so bold as to say 1×11 really makes the trail come alive.

Or in other words, if you don’t like it don’t buy it, the same as you don’t buy fs if you want ht, don’t buy 29 if you want 26 and don’t buy a dropper if you want a fixed post.

nickjb – people are claiming weight saving – one chap even a whole lb – I would like to know if this is really true

tjagain – Member

IU wish I could find some data on weights. ( I have looked a bit) I cannot believe there is much if any weight saving when you are swapping a small chainring a cable a shifter and a mech for 2 dinner plate size sprokets

Anyone know the comparative weights of the casettes? 11/34 9 sp and 10 – 50 11 speed?

11/34 XT is 316g, XTR 253g, inc lockring. The Eagle 10-50 cassette is 354g. But the SRAM 11-speed freehubs are generally about 20g lighter. Course, Eagle is mentally expensive too, it’s still in the scalping phase of SRAM’s pricing strategy. We’re probably a year or two away from more sensible options, unless Shimano can catch up a bit.

With a little loss of ratios to get away from the bleeding edge pricing, an 1195 10-42 cassette is 260g (what I use; got the cassette in a sale for just over £100) so taking into account the freehub is lighter than an 11-34 XTR, or the £75 1180 cassette is 395g.

(best way to check weights these days is images btw, you need to do a little doublechecking to make sure it’s the right item though)

Not sure exactly what I’m saving over my old 2×9. Probably about 300g- the mech is heavier but I don’t need a chain device any more- but I don’t have weights for all the bits.

A quick look through Wiggle or CRC should get you very close: Find weights for double/triple crankset; front mech; front gear lever and cable; cassette – these are what you’ll lose. On the plus side you’ll need a new crankset (inc chainring) and cassette.

Assuming you don’t go for carbon cranks of course!

Ta northwind. 300g? I am surprised.

couldn’t find weights for much of the stuff I looked at.