It that gear setup (38 front & 10-42 in the back) still working out for you? I ask because I live in SoCal as well (near Malibu) and am getting a new bike and considering a 38 in the front and an E*thirteen cassette 9-46 in the back. My feeling is that most people don't understand how steep and long the climbs here are so the "stock" gears just don't work. I'd rather have an extra climbing gear and give up something on high end. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
I really like 1x11 on my mtbs but even there the big jumps between gears is occasionally bothersome. I would (and do) stick with 2x on my road/gravel bikes to have small gear jumps and wide range.
+1 on what DrSpoke said... Determine what you need for a high and low. Then look at the steps in between to determine if these are too large or not. If you really want (need?) closer spaced gears then IMHO sacrificing the top gear would be the place to start (read: pick a cassette with an 11t instead of a 10t).
The size of the jump between cassette cogs doesn't change with a different chainring. Shifting from a 10t to a 12t will always be a 20% lower gear regardless if one has a 34t or 50t chainring.
To the comment on waxing... Waxing my legs might not make me faster in the gravel but it does make my legs look more muscular and we can all agree that image matters. No? For anyone who missed this video from 2014, Specialized actually ran wind tunnel testing on leg hair. Enjoy! http://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/shave-seconds-shaved-legs-2-136525
Since this post has re-surfaced; I've had some time riding a 1x gear set on my Ritchie Swiss Cross, which I use as my back up gravel bike and bad weather mud bike. I have a pretty aggressive set up with a 40T Wolftooth Drop Stop in front, and a 11-40 11 speed mtn bike cassette in back shifting with a medium cage Ultegra 6800 augmented by a Wolftooth Roadlink. I'm using a standard 11 speed SRAM chain at maximum length as it came out of the box. Here are some observations after riding this rig awhile on southern NH unpaved back roads which feature very lumpy terrain with many short steep hills with very sketchy road surfaces. Most of the time, I'm riding alone and not too mindful of my speed and distance. - Despite my preference for 2x, I find the 1x simplicity for this type of casual riding very relaxing. Push the small lever to get to a higher gear, the big lever for a lower gear. Duh! - Even though the 6800 doesn't have a clutch, the Drop Stop does a great job. Have't dropped a chain yet. - The whole system works surprisingly well. While the shifts aren't lightning fast as they are with my eTap road gearing, the shifts are reliable and I haven't even needed to adjust the cable tension. This 1x is about as close to mindless shifting as you can get with a mechanical gear set. - The 40T chainring is over kill for this terrain and casual riding. I already purchased a Drop Stop 36 and plan to install it this weekend. My 75 year old legs need some lower gears for comfort on some of the stinger 15-20% climbs I encounter daily. - Yes -- some of the jumps on the 11-40 are less than optimal. But --- so what? For casual riding alone or with a few friends, I don't really care. On my roads, if you average over 10 mph, you are having a good day. Recommendation - if you race, or do high speed group rides, 1x isn't for you. If much of your riding is casual back roads with challenging hills, this will work well for you. One other comment about 2x that I'd like to reiterate: I've been using a 46/36 CX setup on my eTap gear set and have been running different cassette configuration depending on the type of riding from an 11-28, all the way up to an 11-36. the 11-32 and 11-36 are pushing the capacity and spring tension of my eTap medium cage rear der. While I've made the system work without having to change chain length or b screw adjustment, in order to safely accommodate the 46/36 F/R, I've had to use a relatively long chain. As a consequence, the higher gears shift slower than spec. because of chain slack and a rear der. spring designed for lower capacity road gear sets. Now that reasonably priced 46/30 cranksets are becoming available from major manufactures, I'd like to switch. But, I'm fairly certain that the eTap medium cage der. can't handle the extra capacity required for an 11-32 or 11-36 cassette. Maybe Shimano has figured that out with their new Shadow road derailleurs?
bobknh wrote:Since this post has re-surfaced; I've had some time riding a 1x gear set on my Ritchie Swiss Cross, which I use as my back up gravel bike and bad weather mud bike. I have a pretty aggressive set up with a 40T Wolftooth Drop Stop in front, and a 11-40 11 speed mtn bike cassette in back shifting with a medium cage Ultegra 6800 augmented by a Wolftooth Roadlink. I'm using a standard 11 speed SRAM chain at maximum length as it came out of the box. Here are some observations after riding this rig awhile on southern NH unpaved back roads which feature very lumpy terrain with many short steep hills with very sketchy road surfaces. Most of the time, I'm riding alone and not too mindful of my speed and distance. - Despite my preference for 2x, I find the 1x simplicity for this type of casual riding very relaxing. Push the small lever to get to a higher gear, the big lever for a lower gear. Duh! - Even though the 6800 doesn't have a clutch, the Drop Stop does a great job. Have't dropped a chain yet. - The whole system works surprisingly well. While the shifts aren't lightning fast as they are with my eTap road gearing, the shifts are reliable and I haven't even needed to adjust the cable tension. This 1x is about as close to mindless shifting as you can get with a mechanical gear set. - The 40T chainring is over kill for this terrain and casual riding. I already purchased a Drop Stop 36 and plan to install it this weekend. My 75 year old legs need some lower gears for comfort on some of the stinger 15-20% climbs I encounter daily. - Yes -- some of the jumps on the 11-40 are less than optimal. But --- so what? For casual riding alone or with a few friends, I don't really care. On my roads, if you average over 10 mph, you are having a good day. Recommendation - if you race, or do high speed group rides, 1x isn't for you. If much of your riding is casual back roads with challenging hills, this will work well for you. One other comment about 2x that I'd like to reiterate: I've been using a 46/36 CX setup on my eTap gear set and have been running different cassette configuration depending on the type of riding from an 11-28, all the way up to an 11-36. the 11-32 and 11-36 are pushing the capacity and spring tension of my eTap medium cage rear der. While I've made the system work without having to change chain length or b screw adjustment, in order to safely accommodate the 46/36 F/R, I've had to use a relatively long chain. As a consequence, the higher gears shift slower than spec. because of chain slack and a rear der. spring designed for lower capacity road gear sets. Now that reasonably priced 46/30 cranksets are becoming available from major manufactures, I'd like to switch. But, I'm fairly certain that the eTap medium cage der. can't handle the extra capacity required for an 11-32 or 11-36 cassette. Maybe Shimano has figured that out with their new Shadow road derailleurs?
Very helpful feedback. Thank all of you so much. I've decided to get a Lauf True Grit bike customized with a 36T chainring in the front and a E*thirteen cassette 9-46 in the back. This should be a great setup for the steep Santa Monica Mountains that I regularly ride. Yes I'm probably giving up something on the top end but my riding is mainly back roads with steep climbs, and if I'm struggling up the hills, I can't have fun. And I can always change the front chainring if that does not work. Everyone enjoy your riding and I'll post something about my experience with this setup after I've had some time with it. Thanks!
alexbentley wrote:Very helpful feedback. Thank all of you so much. I've decided to get a Lauf True Grit bike customized with a 36T chainring in the front and a E*thirteen cassette 9-46 in the back. This should be a great setup for the steep Santa Monica Mountains that I regularly ride. Yes I'm probably giving up something on the top end but my riding is mainly back roads with steep climbs, and if I'm struggling up the hills, I can't have fun. And I can always change the front chainring if that does not work. Everyone enjoy your riding and I'll post something about my experience with this setup after I've had some time with it. Thanks!
What rear der are you planning to use? I'm not familiar with a 9-46 cassette -- especially a 9 tooth cog. I know that SRAM makes a 12 speed cassette with a 10 tooth small cog for their 1x mountain bike gear set. But this is using their clutch style mtn bike long cage der; and typically relatively small 1x chainrings.
bobknh wrote: What rear der are you planning to use? I'm not familiar with a 9-46 cassette -- especially a 9 tooth cog. I know that SRAM makes a 12 speed cassette with a 10 tooth small cog for their 1x mountain bike gear set. But this is using their clutch style mtn bike long cage der; and typically relatively small 1x chainrings.
Given that I'm a dope when it comes to working on bikes, I'm getting Contender Bicycles in Salt Lake to put it together for me. Right now their own build of the Lauf True Grit bike has a Shimano XT Di2 RD-M8050. I don't know if they will perhaps use something else to make it fit my specifications as I haven't ordered it yet.
i think anybody that has followed this forum knows i had my qualms about 1x. i think those qualms are gone after today's ride.
today was nice and sunny here in pa for once. i decided to try out the new gearing on the bike since i was so out of shape. i had a 38 tooth sram gear put on the front. the mt. i climb is a straight 3 mile climb at a solid 7-8% slope. the bike now climbs like a dream but i am so out of shape that i climb like a beached whale. i am getting use to the sram rival shifting and getting to know a little bit of what the bike can and can't do even though i still have limited riding time on it.(probably less than 300 miles) i did let er rip on the downhill today and only had 2 white knuckle experiences where i hit ruts too fast that i couldn't see. i can't wait to get more ride time on the roker. to say that the bike has exceeded my expectations would be an understatement. let the good times roll.
I was converted to 1X (or X1 as SRAM calls it) when I moved my fat bike to SRAM GX 1. From there I tried Force 1 on my first true gravel (vs. a cyclocross rig) bike and loved it. For washboard & B-roads the 1X set up inspires confidence due to no chain drops. I'm running 44T up front on a 10x42 for BOTH of my gravel bikes and wouldn't dream of going back to a 2X. This set up has gotten me through the DK200 and several very hilly rides in the driftless area of NW IL / SW WI. Some of the grades approach 14% and the gearing works for me.
I totally get when folks prefer to stay in a tight cadence range - which is what you "lose" in a 1X set up. However, I ride with a lot of singlespeeders and rationalize if they can rides these routes with only 1 gear, I can certainly deal with a cadence that varies by 10-15 rpms before I shift. 😃 Also one of the gents I ride with went from Force 1 back to 2 x 11 and it took him a long time to get comfortable with the 2X. He felt that for some shifts the gearing was too close and it didn't feel like he had even moved to another sprocket on the cassette. Being in a Chicago 'burb I'm fortunate to know a few guys @ SRAM who most of which happily run X1. They keep extra front rings on hand and swap them out based on the ride.
Any bets or guesses that we will see SRAM Road Eagle (X1 12-speed) debuted at Sea Otter Classic?
I am hopeful that it could lead to better cassette spacing while keeping a good functional range. Possibly have a unique cassette like a 10-45 or 10-46 range that can be chosen, as well as the existing 10-50 MTB version, depending on a person's needs.
Despite being 1x for close to 15 years now on my MTB and CX (well before SRAM setups, I remember running an inner & outer CX 'bash guard' LOL), I've been hesitant to do the same on road due to the jumps between gears. 11-28 11 speed cassette on 46:34 was my favorite with the first 7 cogs being only 1 tooth increments. Tight cassettes are ideal for those looking to maintain a sweet-spot cadence (super fast or long rides) or remain competitive in pack riding.
I just purchased a 'new' 2016 GT Grade Alloy X. Surprisingly nice bike! While it's 35-38mm max clearance does limit MTB'ish trails, I still plan to tackle some pretty aggressive topo terrain with it. The bike came with 40x11-28 which is a silly-small rear spread except for CX, so I've temporarily mounted 11-36 with decent results.
Since I rarely tempo 50kph, nor really don't feel the need to pedal when I can coast downhills > 45kph, I figured 40-11 was enough. However, what I forgot to consider are those small punchy rollers where you want to build as much speed going down/across to carry you up the opposite climb.
I could go up a larger front ring but SRAM maxes their direct mount front ring at 40t and they just look so cool, so the alternative is to run 10-42 and gain a bit of top end and lots of low end.
So far I've enjoyed being 1x on the road, simple, quiet, and to some - aesthetically pleasing (note I didn't say lighter because the gains are margin at best IMO). As previously mentioned, the jumps aren't so bad when riding solo and/or not looking for the absolute pace/efficiency. Being primarily a MTBer I tend to climb out of the saddle a lot when climbing which further negates the perception of large jumps between gears.
I agonized over 1x or 2x with my new bike. I wanted 1x because I liked the color of the bike, but end the end went for a grey bike with 2x. Hate the color, love the gearing.
If I was riding solo, 1x would be great. But I'm doing a lot of fast road rides and I need to optimize my cadence (racing or just a fast club ride) and to be able to pull hard at a high speed. Not being able to do either one of those and I'll get dropped. Generally on gravel and single track, I'm in the 36t chain ring (and 40c tires), while I'm in the 46t chain ring doing a fast road ride (30c tires). Doing a hard pull on a 11t cog just doesn't seem wise either. Besides, the 2x was a lighter bike (sram rival vs shimano ultegra). There is now downside to 2x in my case (and if I was just riding solo there wouldn't be much downside with 1x on gravel*).
cycingtips.com summed it up well.
Will they [gear jumps] be felt on the road? For some riders, the answer is a definite yes, while for others, it may amount to nothing more than a nuance. Ultimately, it will depend on how readily a rider is able to vary their cadence and whether or not they have the freedom to dictate their own pace. For those riders that need to fine-tune their cadence for any given speed (e.g. when racing or time-trialling), such nuances will be important and the benefits can be measured in terms of comfort and efficiency.
* I also do a lot of commuting and riding into the wind on the way home, it bugs me when I need a 16t cog, and have a choice between 15t and 17t.
I don't think I'd give up 2X on my road bike but it works great for me on my gravel bike. The bigger gaps on my 10-42 may actually be beneficial in that I'm not having to click through so many gears on highly variable terrain. Maybe this is one reason 1X is now the standard on MTB's?
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\nI'm new to this forum but I must say the civilized tone and usefulness of this discussion is like a breath of fresh air. I just got done reading the 1X/2X discussion on bike forums gravel/CX and the input from a very small but rather obnoxious minority of the posters made it painful. Thanks!
windanimal wrote:I don't think I'd give up 2X on my road bike but it works great for me on my gravel bike. The bigger gaps on my 10-42 may actually be beneficial in that I'm not having to click through so many gears on highly variable terrain. Maybe this is one reason 1X is now the standard on MTB's? I'm new to this forum but I must say the civilized tone and usefulness of this discussion is like a breath of fresh air. I just got done reading the 1X/2X discussion on bike forums gravel/CX and the input from a very small but rather obnoxious minority of the posters made it painful. Thanks!
Windanimal I think the 1x has come upon the scene in cases like muddy conditions like Lands Run 100 where peoples derailleurs/drive trains were getting messed up and 1x kind of eliminates that. I am not 100% sold on 1x yet though as I miss my 2x Shimano.
I've given this question some thought and commentary. Since I have both setups, I can see the virtues of each. If I had to chose one over the other however, I prefer the versatility of 2x. What ruffles my feathers though, is the apparent attitude of many manufacturers that if it rides on unpaved surfaces, it should be 1x. This is the trend in modern mountain bikes. But gravel bikes do more than ride on challenging unpaved trails, we also ride on pavement, and maintained dirt roads at high speed. We need versatile gear sets to meet our needs. I've already seen this annoying industry trend, as pointed out by JOM at Gravel Cyclist, many of new higher end gravel bikes being shown this year are 1x, whereas 2x offerings are being relegated to entry level machines. Not to mention SRAM's attitude towards it's poorly conceived eTap front der. which virtually cannot be used with 700c tires over 40mm wide. Of course, this is very self serving since SRAM is a leader in 1x technology. I wouldn't be too surprised to see SRAM offer an eTap version of it's 1x 12 speed gear set sometime soon. I've seen this happen before --- the demise of the 3x road system in favor of the 2X "compact" set up. Just try to find an electronic 3x gear set today!
bobknh I put the Roker thru the paces yesterday. I did a 36.4 mile ride of which 15-16 miles of it was in the mts. I am really starting to luv the bike, the 1x Sram not so much. Since it had been awhile since I was on it I missed lots of shifts/gears. Ever notice the ride that you love the most is the ride you didn't plan. I planned on riding a ride that has about 10 miles to get to a mt. fire tower road and then a little bit of climbing and then some mellow gravel riding on a somewhat rough flat road. There was no rain in the forecast/not and when I was about 3 miles from the mt. rain clouds formed and it started to rain. I wimped out turned around and rode back down to the Pa. turnpike. My family owns some mt ground there and so rode up there 3-4 miles and then turned around and rode 5-6 miles on a track that I haven't probably been on for 10 years. Come out to where I do my normal mt. climb of 3-4 miles @ a solid 7-8% slope. I was already tired before the climb so I had to gut it out some. I did do some experimenting and slid back on the saddle on the downhills and left the bike roll wherever it wanted to. I was really surprised on how much difference that makes. I was hitting 20 mph + on the downhills and wasn't too scared.
Probably in the end next year after I get caught up on some bills I will be converting the Roker over to 2x Shimano. The 1x Sram just isn't working for me. There are too many gaps in the gears when I am riding with a group and I don't think I will ever get use to the shifting like I wish I could. Thinking if I plan on doing some ultra rides which I plan on if I can't get the shifting down when I am not tired no way is it going to work in the dark/into the night or when I am really tired on one of the rides. It is a shame though that Raleigh decided to discontinue the bike. I looked at their website the other day and see they don't even list the Sport anymore but have the Roker in all sizes except the 60 & 62. Beginning to wonder if they did this to try and push out/sale a lot of the Rokers.
2x for me. Attached doc makes sense to me, nerd out on it. When current rings wear out, I'm going to pick up that Easton 47-32 2x. Assuming they'll have aluminum cranks by then, I ain't paying $375 for EC90 cranks.
![[wink]](https://cdn.websitetoolbox.com/images/boards/smilies/wink.gif "Wink - ;)")
For anyone who missed this video from 2014, Specialized actually ran wind tunnel testing on leg hair. Enjoy!