Looking for a dual chainring xc bike

I have been in search of an XC style hardtail with 27.5 wheels with a dual chainring. I had been saving up for the 2019 Canyon Exceed CF SL 7.0 which came with a dual chainring and also came in under 11kg but that version is no longer available as part Canyons 2020 lineup.

I don’t have any trails right on my doorstep so need to ride to get to my local trails, hence the need for a bigger chainring for a decently fast ride while on the roads. I also have my fair share of some decently steep climbs so something lightweight would also be beneficial.

I am open to any suggestions and have a budget of around £1500 that could extend a bit further for the right bike.

I think you will find modern 1x set ups with a good wide range cassette will be fine. 11 or 12 speed on the back will most likey be all you need. If you need to you can always change the front ring and go up a couple of teeth. THats a cheap change.

Given you are sat upright on a mountain bike with mountain bike tyres, I dont think you actually need / want to be trying to ride at road bike speeds for the road bits.

The trend for wider tyres, short chain stays and the requirement that there’s a minimum gap between tyre and chain in all gears has led to the 1x only frame.

As @Trimix says a 1x setup with a wide ratio cassette will cover most of what you want – you might lose one or two ratios depending on what you compare. I went from 3×9 on a 26″ wheeled bike to 1×10 on a 29er and lost three ratios but that was before wide ratio cassettes were available and it was a case of remove a cog and then add an extender cog at the bottom end to make an effective 11-40T cassette. With 11-46, 11-50, 10-50 and 10-51 cassettes now available you really aren’t as restricted.

Have a play on http://gear-calculator.com/ to compare setups.

As for spinning out on road – at the speeds this happens you’d be riding at pro peloton speeds! (on a 29er at 110rpm then 32-11 gets me at 44km/h)

If you need to you can always change the front ring and go up a couple of teeth.

Or not depending on how the frame is designed. I had a hardtail earlier this year and biggest chainring I could fit was 32 tooth and that was very close (too close really) to the chain stay.

That gave me 32 / 11 which wasn’t as high as I would have liked for fast road sections (and fast gravel and downhill).

@Trimix Modern cassettes certainly do provide a wide gamut of ratios which when coupled with a 32 tooth chainring at my usual 80-90 cadence would give me around 20mph / 32kmh which is certainly “ok” for some flat stretches of road.

@whitestone I only recently found that gear-calculator myself recently and is such a wonderful tool. While 44km/h would certainly be a decent enough speed on a flat piece of road, I would also quickly run out of steam on a good decent where 60-65kmh on the road isn’t uncommon.

@kerley This pretty much nails my problem on the head with the lack of larger chainring sizes and being limited to 1x frame designs that finds me in such a quandry. 🙁

If you find anything it’ll be from a European, probably German brand.

Radon do this-
https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/radon-jealous-al-9.0-2×11-787075

Once you are at those speeds why are you even thinking of pedalling? Just chill and coast! I think 75km/h is *my* record and on the basis that I’d another kilometre of steeper downhill to go there was absolutely no incentive to think about pedalling.

32km/h plus on the flat riding an MTB? Why aren’t you riding for a pro road team? 😉

Some of the Cube Reaction range[/url] come with doubles.

@munrobiker Thank you for the great suggestion and the link.

@Pjay Thank you.

I have a 53T chainring and a Tioga disc wheel if it’s any use to you? 🙂

Get a frame only (something like a Trek Procaliber carbon for instance) and build it up with a double groupset and finishing kit of your choice.

edit : although that Trek option is 29er

Would this do – Merida Big Seven?

@simondbarnes A worthwhile suggestion and one I am hoping to avoid if I can help it, at least for now.

@Pjay Thank you Pjay that’s a great find and certainly looks like a bargain at the discounted price…

11sp isn’t enough in many applications for my adventure bike. 12 might be, but 2×11 probably still has its use. There are plenty of long steep road descents out there. I totally get the OP’s requirement.