Going back to 2x10/11 from 1x10/11

paulmon

Currently in a bit of a dilemma. I've been running 1x10 (30x40) on my FS for 18 months and its perfect for that bike. I was also running the same on my 26 HT but with a 32 up front and all was good. However I recently updated the HT to a 29er and every time I've been out on it I've found myself running out of gears or constantly riding towards the bottom end of the cassette. This is partly due to the type of riding I've been doing on the 29er, more XC than AM.

I'm currently looking at upgrading the SLX mech and shifters and the older Deore brakes to 11 speed XT. Initially I looked at the 1x11 with a 34 ring up front but I'm now thinking a 2x11 (38x28) will give me more flexibility. Has anyone else made the jump back for similar reasons?

Cheers
Paul

Herdwick

Not that I know, it's not in trend... yet
You get better range with the 2x11 which fits the long rides of xc, better high and low range plus less gaps between gears. If you don't mind the extra heft and cluttered bar then go for it.

Escher303

Yes I did. Went 1 x 10 on my trail bike and 29er but have gone back to 2 x on the 29er for the same reasons you mention. 1 x 10 is fine on the trail bike, less clutter by the dropper shifter is great and the range of gears is fine (same 30/40), I can spin out the hardest gear but it doesn't matter on that bike. On my 29er I do much more long XC up to 75 miles and I want something for long hills, stretches of tarmac and when my legs are buggered after a lot of miles. The closer ratios help as well when doing a lot of climbing, it's much easier to ride the same as I do on the road in a rhythm at a certain cadence. However my 29er came with 2 x 10 so I didn't need to fork out again when I swapped back.

The Rookie

With the new 50t sprocket you could up the front chainring size and not compromise hill climb ability, that said if hill climbing isnt an issue with what you use the bike for now you can go to a bigger chainring anyway of course. You can always use the bail out ring approach of fitting a granny ring (but no mech) and flipping the chain onto that (relevant rear mech sizing of course) for the odd steep climb and then manually putting it back on the big ring after if you expect to only use it very very rarely.

Unless a bike was already 11 speed I really don't see much benefit from 2x11 v 2x10.

kajjal

I do mainly xc riding and kept 2 x 10 as i get a wide range of close together gears. Just get the gearing that works for you.

paulmon

It would be nice if Shimano released a 11 speed cassette that had closer ratios and sacrificed the 40T for people using a double. Something like the Ultegra 11 speed would be ace but replace something down the bottom of the cassette (12t) with a 36t at the top.

Herdwick

On long distance xc it's not about having a bail out gear only, it's when you need to keep a steady pace for 20 to maybe 45mins depending on terrain, with out being to hard or spin out which is more difficult on 1x drive trains. The obvious benefit of 1x drivetrain being a bit lighter will go out the window once your legs give out because of the above reasons

*accidentally post as smartphone keyboard to small...

The Rookie

Yes but you can still use that bail out gear for that long climb.......bail out doesn't mean short usage, in fact by its very nature it would only be when it's worth the effort.

Herdwick

Not arguing about bail out gear, you get that in both conf. The closer gear gaps is the advantage of a well thought 2x which help maintain a helthy pace with out having to push to much as you will run out of juice to soon, or spinout and get similar effect or ride slower and none of the above is desirable on xc rides

kajjal

1 x 10 for me works better on flatter trails and trail centres. On those i rarely use the smaller chainring if ever. When doing longer xc riding getting the right gear is more important as it reduces fatigue, especially on long, steep, technical climbs.

supersonic

How about a 38/24? You wont need as big a range cassette then, is lighter, and closer cassette ratios. Easily doable in 10 speed. You can sometimes find yourself changing more at the front with this wider front range though.