wow, how expensive is 11spd!

I was costing up a 29er on crc.

jesus £200 for a cassette!

madness….think I’ll go 2×10

wont 2×10 be less of a pain…instead of all that clicking up & down the cassette?

wont 2×10 be less of a pain…instead of all that clicking up & down the cassette?

? eh? You’d do exactly the same amount of shifting, the only difference being that on 1x it’s always on the same shifter and you don’t have a (relatively speaking) clunky front shift to worry about to get the range.

i know what he means, with a granny ring up front you can shift to a MUCH easier gear with one click, and a well set up front mech drops a gear very quickly.

(especially the slx ‘double’ front mech, it’s not subtle, but it’s quick)

to get the same gear ‘change’ from the rear mech takes a few clicks, and trying to shift a load of gears at once usually leaves the rear mech grumbling a little before it settles.

i’ve recently gone from 2×9, to 1×9, and find this frustrating.

lets say your racing and peak a climb onto a flat section where you need to put down some speed. you’d have to do quite a lot of clicking (all the time you aren’t giving 100% as you are changing gears)

with a double you could change up (1click) and get some speed before doing a few little clicks on the cassette 100meters down the track.

I’d think the double would be better here.

this is the reason I run a double on my cx bike instead of going 1×10

jesus £200 for a cassette!

The cassette is machined from a single block of Alu, it takes a long time. It’s also very new and only available on 2 very high end groupsets. Wait till it’s more common for some mid level stuff.

Right, ok, I understand now. Yes, in a sense I can see what you mean but rear shifts are so much more efficient that front ones that I don’t really see the issue – or I certainly don’t notice it. Maybe if you ride trails that literally go steep up, steep down, steep up, steep down, etc you would but IME most trails aren’t like that. It’s usually a gear or two change with occassional bigger changes like that.

Unless you’re a racing snake who weighs as much as a packet of rizla, why not use 3×9. All the range you need and the full setup for less than the price of a 11 speed cassette.

(what do you mean by ‘efficient’?)

iolo – Member
why not use 3×9.

because i never need/use the 1 or 2 extra gears that the ‘big’ ring provides.

and it leaves the chain really slack in the gears that i do use.

My families dh racing experience with single ring drivetrains is that they wear out a lot quicker than dual ring setups.

Thought about 11 speed for the new bike but one look at the prices for spares put me right off. 2×10 for me thanks.

iolo – Member
Unless you’re a racing snake who weighs as much as a packet of rizla, why not use 3×9. All the range you need and the full setup for less than the price of a 11 speed cassette.

Because with 2×10 I can get all of the with spare that are current/clutch mech etc. 24/39 up front is great as I’m not a roadie.

Tom_W1987 – Member
My families dh racing experience with single ring drivetrains is that they wear out a lot quicker than dual ring setups.

Which bits? When I was 1×9 everything lasted longer, no shifting on the front removed loads of problems with shifting ramps on rings etc. just ran tougher front rings (e-13 guide rings) and the lasted forever.

just buy a 30t thick/thin front ring

spin out occasionally but itll do until shimano bring out an 11-40t cassette and I can get a 34t front ring and all will be good

Why the prejudice against front mechs? I find them easy to set up, durable and efficient and rarely seem to drop the chain. Rear mechs however are a pain to set up, last five minutes and always seem to drop the chain on the hub side however hard I try to set the limit screw.
In fact I have had three rear mechs to one front on my FS!

FOG – Member

Why the prejudice against front mechs?

it’s a fashion ting.

i tried single-ringing it, mainly as i ran out of parts while building my wife’s new bike, and thought i’d give it a go (she got my old front mech and shifter).

it’s a bit ‘meh’ if i’m honest, i’ll be buying a new front mech as soon as funds allow.

front mech = extra weight, cost, cables, etc for no real benefit over 1×10

Why the prejudice against front mechs? I find them easy to set up, durable and efficient and rarely seem to drop the chain.

Much more likely to snap a chain, derail a chain etc on the front than on the back, the less you have to shift the less chance of something going wrong.

Personnally I run 2×9, don’t use the mtb enough to justify 2×10, or more specifically when the current lot wears out I will buy it but SLX/XT is pretty durable stuff!, and I won’t touch sram*. As for gearing currently running 40/27 11×34, and to be honest it is ok, but on the road I do long for bigger gears quite often.

*another recall announced today? by the way.

Mike, the chain and rear cassette.

extra weight = a few hundred grams, not exactly loads.

extra cost? – eh? – we’re talking about removing something that’s probably already fitted. Most people seem to need new a new specific chainring, and a new rear mech, and while they’re at it, why not ‘upgrade’ to 10speed, so requiring a new shifter and cassette.

no real benefit? – granny gears can be very handy, and so can the ability to drop a lot of ‘gear inches’* in one click.

(*roughly 13, by my maths)

front mech = extra weight, cost, cables, etc for no real benefit over 1×10

You’d better be very light and fast yourself if you’re using 1×10 for ‘less weight’ reasons : )

11spd is daft money at the mo, but it’s just a ‘nice to have if you like it’ rather than ‘need’. I’m all for having less parts on a bike tho so that’s reason enough.

sefton – Member
lets say your racing and peak a climb onto a flat section where you need to put down some speed. you’d have to do quite a lot of clicking (all the time you aren’t giving 100% as you are changing gears)

Do folk actually think this will make a difference?

extra weight = a few hundred grams, not exactly loads.

A few hundred grams for a relatively cheap change is a lot!

extra cost? – eh? – most people seem to need new chainrings, new rear mechs, etc. (and while they’re at it, why not ‘upgrade’ to 10speed)

No its cheaper, one less shifter, and no front mech, if you are upgrading anyway.

no real benefit? – granny gears can be very handy.

Can they? I suggest you get fitter. For some riders granny gear may be useful, but, in theory, as you ride more you get fitter and you can use bigger gears, not that the difference between the bottom end of a 1×11 and a 3×10 is actually that great.

Just as a reference the lowest gear shipped you could get at one time was 26×30. and plenty of cheaper mtbs came with stupid ratios like 30/40/50 13×30!!!!!

wont 2×10 be less of a pain…instead of all that clicking up & down the cassette?

Having run both, the answer is no.

sefton – Member
lets say your racing and peak a climb onto a flat section where you need to put down some speed. you’d have to do quite a lot of clicking (all the time you aren’t giving 100% as you are changing gears)
Do folk actually think this will make a difference?

I’d guess yes…in cx races it can give the guy just infront of you a few bikes length

could mean a position

300grams is a poo. it’s not a lot of weight.

i’m as fit as i’m ever going to get, i still sometimes struggle without a granny ring.

300grams is a poo. it’s not a lot of weight.

define a lot of weight for me 300grams is a lot, have a poo and save 300grams even bigger saving! 300grams off a 10-12kg bike Is a reasonable chunk.

As for me loosing weight, I might be able to loose a bit more… maybe a few hundred grams, but I tend to feel like crap if I loose much more. So not really much of an option.

front mech 150g, shifter 250g, cables 50g (according to weight weenies for xt)

who wants to carry an extra lb in weight on a bike for no reason?

and youve now got space for you dropper post remote- oh wait you think droppers are pointles too, oh I seeeeeee

jesus £200 for a cassette!

Bargain! a replacement for my road bike is £250+ 😳

1xWhatever, microshift thumby (light), crash down 4 or 5 gears in half a pedal stroke.

Do folk actually think this will make a difference?

I reckon so, more so the other way though – you can shift up the block without really easing off the power – but you’ll need to ease off to shift on the front. If you’re on someone’s wheel on a climb and you need an easier gear you can shift on the cassette with no ill effects – back off to drop down on the front (and the requisite shifts on the back to counter the jump) and you go backwards.

Do that 10 times a race and that’s quite a lot of time.

kimbers – Member

who wants to carry an extra lb in weight on a bike for no reason?

not for no reason, some people like granny gears.

and youve now got space for you dropper post remote- oh wait you think droppers are pointless too, oh I seeeeeee

er, what? no one even mentioned dropper posts?

(i like dropper posts, and granny gears, both add weight, both aren’t entirely necessary)

Pleasantly surprised to see my soul drop from a little over 28lb to just over 27lb when going 1×10. The clean un cluttered look of the bars, and being fine out on the trail has convinced me to do the same on my FS (converting to 1×10 as well).
As for 1×11. No way for me at that price! I’m a cheapskate, buying all my stuff 2nd hand!