I’m considering getting rid of the outer chainring on my Stumpy, I can’t remember the last time I have used it on a ride, and have bashed it a few times on logs/rocks etc.

Has anyone taken their outer chainring off and replaced it with a bashguard or something similar? Sods law states that as soon as I remove it, ill need it on some sweet descent, or never bash the bashguard.

Any thoughts?

The subject was quite recently hacked over on here;

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/twin-ring-whats-the-pros-and-cons-over-triple

Yeah, I went to a 36/22 and a lightweight bashgaurd. Normally always ride in the middlering now, just dropping to the granny for super steep stuff. 36 gives me a bit of top end still. Never run out of gears so far but I don’t do much road stuff. I reckon the aerodynamics of a wide bared MTB would be the limiting factor on the road rather than gearing though.

I did it as my BB is quite low & I kept getting stuck on logs (or at least the bike did – I generally went OTB). The only time I really used the 44t was on the road to & from a ride, so I’ve not missed it off road, although I did increase the middle ring to 34t. Replaced the outer with an E-thirteen bash.

If you don’t use the outer on decents, then go for it. Just remember to adjust the limit screw on your front mech.

As above really, I run a 28T / 36T up front on my 2004 Enduro and haven’t missed the big gear up front.

I got fed up with having to replace big chainrings at £35 a pop…

on my xc bike (kinesis maxlight) i have no granny ring, and use the outer loads, but on my specialized sx, the outer has gone.
depends where and what you ride really i’d say.

on my sx, i removed my outer ring, with a view to getting a bash, but my local shop didnt have the right size in, so i ground all the teeth off smooth, with a bench grinder, and made my own bash gaurd, so that i could ride that weekend, looked smart enough, and let me get out on my bike that day!

yeah 22/36 and no bash here as I found with the extra clearance of no big ring I stopped bashing rings much anyway

yeah the big chainring is always the expensive one aint it…. my son gave me his RaceFace Bashring -looks good now… 😉 i never used the outer ring…it got bashed a couple of times by rocks..

I use 26/36 on my XC bike. I haven’t bothered putting a bash on yet and haven’t had any issues with losing the chain.

Yes, and changed the 32 for a 36. The bash ring saved me from what would have been a really nasty injury just after Xmas (it’s one thing breaking a leg but another thing having to also deal with a huge wound underneath a plaster cast). My bike has a low BB and I now ride much more positively at logs which are just that bit too tall.

22/36 here. No bash on the solo, big chunky bash rings on the tandem

yep ditched all mine, 36 on my (not very) “fast” bike, 32 on the rest. Tarmac and downhill fireroad can be a bit spinny but who cares about those bits?