Preferred Transmission Setup

Levi_501

The marketers always seem to be pushing us to the ´New and Improved, better this, better that´ however it is not always what we want.

What do you have, what do you like/dislike and advantages/disadvantages?

Have
XTR 3x9 on the MTB
SLX 3x7 on the tarmac bike

Like
Personally I like a 3x8 setup; I like the longevity and durability, decent chain size, ease of maintenance, dead easy to set up and does not go out of sync very easily and has a good range of gears.

If I could find NOS 8 speed XTR levers I would have them on both bikes!

I like the idea of a Rohloff, but the twist grip puts me off and it is a bit on the weighty side.

I would like to give the HammerSchmidt a go, but alas I do not know anyone with one.

I am not a fan of the ?x10 setups at all; fiddly chains, finicky adjustments, phantom changing after a couple of good rides, unless you have readjusted everything! Not very easy to split and re-join the chain with a chain splitting tool.

marz

My favourite isn't on the list, 1x1. Nice and simple to set up and maintain, and awesome when the conditions get muddy.

Second for me is 1x10, again nice and simple and I've found I get about the right spread of gears for me. (Very few mountains near me). Downsides are having to run a chain retention device and chain wear is slightly accelerated.

Looking to upgrade to the new SRAM 1x11 once it becomes available. Hope to add a little bit more top end for smooth trails and the road, and maybe loose the chain retention device.

supersonic

The poll won't reflect that different disciplines often have more of a preference for one set up than another, but will be interesting all the less.

specialeyes

2x9 shimano for me. I never used the big ring anyway. Would like to try a 1x10 set up though. I'll also be converting the spesh to 1x1 for commuting.

cooldad

I currently have 2x9 on my main bike, but only because I found a Kona bash on Ebay, bought it on a whim and the only way to fit it was to take the big ring off. I don't really miss it 99% of the time.
My choice would probably be 3x8 for the same reasons as the OP. It just works.

ilovedirt

I voted 1x9 as that's what I'm running on both bikes, but I would have 1x10 if funds allowed.

bennett_346

ilovedirt wrote:

I voted 1x9 as that's what I'm running on both bikes, but I would have 1x10 if funds allowed.

So surely you should of voted 1x10 as thats your preferred setup.

gezebo

ilovedirt wrote:

I voted 1x9 as that's what I'm running on both bikes, but I would have 1x10 if funds allowed.

My new bike came with a 10 speed set up. It looks great but show it any mud and it soon starts skipping and getting clogged up.

As soon as it wears I'll be going back to a 9 speed set up like my other bike, which gets minimal cleaning and zero adjustment until its worn...

ilovedirt

bennett_346 wrote:

ilovedirt wrote:

I voted 1x9 as that's what I'm running on both bikes, but I would have 1x10 if funds allowed.

So surely you should have voted 1x10 as thats your preferred setup.

If that's how you deciphered the original post, I couldn't really figure out what he was trying to ask... :?

mcnultycop

I'm not sure what the poll shows, but I had 3x10 on the Canyon, but wanted a bash and wasn't really using the outer rings, so now have a 2x10. I have 3x9 on my hardtail, but it's essentially 1x9 on that only because I don't use the inner and outer rings as it is now only my pootling around the local trails bike. I may formalise the 1x9 at some point, but can't be bothered at the moment.

felix.london

2x10 all day long 'round my neck of the woods i.e. big f.off mountains. small to go up, big to come down and can use the whole cassette in either. Don't miss the 44t one bit

And I'll even go further and say 22/36 x 11-32 I can get up everything except the steepest and I mean the steepest stuff, I can use a meduim cage rear mech and I get some nice close ratios in the middle of the cassette...happy days

Northwind

2x9 works well for me... 2x10 added very little. 1x10 is quite fun though.

supersonic

I put 3x8 - the most reliable and long lasting stuff I have ever had, and the best shifting. Old XT/XTR mechs and shifters, octalink cranks.

cooldad

supersonic wrote:

I put 3x8 - the most reliable and long lasting stuff I have ever had, and the best shifting. Old XT/XTR mechs and shifters, octalink cranks.

And the stuff is cheap.

bennett_346

ilovedirt wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

ilovedirt wrote:

I voted 1x9 as that's what I'm running on both bikes, but I would have 1x10 if funds allowed.

So surely you should have voted 1x10 as thats your preferred setup.

If that's how you deciphered the original post, I couldn't really figure out what he was trying to ask... :?

Poll asks "What is your preffered transmission setup"

Post asks you to comment what you actually have.

schmako

3x9 for xc
2x9 for dh

my mate runs 1x9 with a middle ring on the front, screw cycling that uphill!

Northwind

2x9 for downhill?

YeehaaMcgee

as long as it makes my bike go, I don't care.
I have 2x9 on the MTBs, and 2x11 on the roadie.

For a long part of the year, I only had a 1x9 on the MTB, with a 38T chainring, since the front mech had seized up. That made some of the climbs round here, er... interesting.

Chunkers1980

I thought it was a x10 on the cough bike?

Levi_501

As I suspected some interesting responses.

I must confess, I am not surprised by how many people still want 8 speed systems! Come on Shimano, listen to us

YeehaaMcgee

Chunkers1980 wrote:

I thought it was a x10 on the cough bike?

Is it?
Oh, you may be right then. Hell, I don't know. and I don't care, really.

cooldad

Northwind wrote:

2x9 for downhill?

Special BR downhill.

warpcow

I have 4 bikes, 2 with 1x10, an SS and a very old Sturmey Archer 3spd hub, which I hate and is effectively SS too. Before this I had 1x9, and long, long, long before that it was 3x9. It's been so long since I used anything else that I don't remember anything well enough to compare really (apart from a brief fling with 2x10, which ended with me never even actually shifting the front mech, except when I indexed it). It all works for me; I use the full spread but never feel like I need any more.

njee20

Oh, you may be right then. Hell, I don't know. and I don't care, really.

Aye, only Campag (and the forthcoming Dura Ace groupset) is 11 speed.

my mate runs 1x9 with a middle ring on the front, screw cycling that uphill!

Well you're not gonna run 1x with a granny ring... :roll:

I am not surprised by how many people still want 8 speed systems! Come on Shimano, listen to us

3 people have voted for it, and 3 have commented, presumably the same ones. Not exactly overwhelming! I'd certainly not go back to 8 speed irrespective of the quality. Can't say I find 10 speed remotely fussy of mud etc!

peter413

1x10 for me nearly all the time. Run it on my DH and AM bike but if I was building up a proper XC bike it would be 2x10 but with 38/26 chainrings. Never had problems in the mud with 10 speed Shimano, anyone see the Innerleithen IXS this year? Not a single gear related issue, wish I could say the same about my 9 speed Sram setup I was using beforehand. Also means I can't knock the chain into the granny ring mid run on my AM bike, bloody annoying when that happens and can hurt a fair bit. I'm not entirely sure on how 10 speed stuff wears out faster, the chain links are just as strong surely as the pins are just narrower instead of the plates being a different size. Someone care to enlighten me?

Road bike has 3x8 but that's only because that's what it came with and I don't care enough about it to change it because it just works.

cooldad

njee20 wrote:

Can't say I find 10 speed remotely fussy of mud etc!

Could this be the same person who mentioned in another thread they hardly use their MTB in winter and nasty conditions and stick to the road bike? (Insert smiley here if you're into that sort of thing)

njee20

You're paraphrasing there, I don't enjoy riding in muddy conditions particularly, but still do plenty of mountain biking in winter (as much as I do in summer, which is less than I ride on the road), plus I race all over the place, often in really crap conditions.

Been on 10 speed for 3 years, not noticed any difference in longevity. Using a single ring chains last far longer in fact.

YeehaaMcgee

njee20 wrote:

my mate runs 1x9 with a middle ring on the front, screw cycling that uphill!

Well you're not gonna run 1x with a granny ring... :roll:

True, which is why that bloody stupid thread annoyed the crap out of me the other day.

idiotdogbrain

24/36 + 11-34 2x9 here as that's what it came with but used that by choice in the last bike. Never really used the outer ring so prefer having a bash and increased ground clearance. Plus no chance of skewering my calf in an off. Also like being able to run shorter cage rear mechs.

Don't really need the inner ring round my way if I'm honest - last bike but one was 3x7 with 28/38/48 + 12-28 cassette, so lowest gear was 1:1 anyway, and that got me up pretty much anything.

Northwind

I don't use the granny much on my 2x9 bike... But on the rare occasions I do, I'm really, really glad it's there, and that makes it worth dragging it around on all the rides I don't use it.

mrmonkfinger

2x9 for me, MTB and road

I'm too chubby to piss around with 1 x whatever, and like my low gears.

I think I could happily live with 2x8 or 2x10 or 2x11 though, the x9 is just because that was the common stuff from about 2 or 3 years back.

Having said all that about low gears, I did have a fixie road bike a while back and got on fine with it.