Rear and front mech knackered - options?

larkim

Yet another ding on the rear mech (and another new hanger) and the cage holding the two small mech cogs has been snapped. It's workable, but can see it fouling something up soon enough.

And the front mech seems to have seized too. Cable moving freely but could only just shift it inwards with some force, and now having removed it can't get any movement out of it at all so likely time for a new front mech too.

Rear is 10spd XT (non clutch currently) cassette is 11-36, front is 3spd SLX (FD 670) on a 40-30-22 triple. Front largest chain ring is also in need of replacement as it is severely worn.

So would it make sense at this point to bite the bullet and simplify things with a 1x10 based on the current rear cassette (11-36) with a new mech, different middle cog (96 BCD I believe) and a bashguard? What would be general preference at the front, 30T or 32T? Presume there should really be no issues with chainline if the crankset stayed the same and the cassette stayed the same?

Any buyer's recommendations for this potential foray into 1x10?

larkim

Of course, could just re-use the existing front cog as a bashguard presumably? Would there be any issues with putting a NW 30 or 32T ring on an existing triple and just ditching the mech?

ade555

You can just go for another xt rear mech or slx with clutch, you will have to mount single chain ring in same place where your middle cog is if you not happy with chain line you can get spacers, due to 1x system design when you in lower or higher gear chain gets pull at angle. I would say got for 32t unless you have very high hills or legs aren't the strongest, shop arround for single chain ring you can pick up from the likes of superstar for £20, double check your BCD to be sure.

The Rookie

Single narrow wide up front in the mid position (more likely 104 but you don't mention the crankset) and fix or replace the rear mech, clutch isn't really necessary but nice to have. A 32t would be my suggestion, I rode a 32t with an 11/34 9 speed for a long time without issues.

larkim

Cheers all.

Definitely 96bcd, measured it centre to centre of opposing bolt holes. It's a shimano 40-30-22 triple.

Looks like NW is the way to go so in the meantime we've just removed the mech and left it running on the middle cog. Only one chain drop so far and it dropped onto the granny so no harm done.

LimitedGarry

Went for the same setup last year. Bashed the chainrings really bad once. Screwed up the largest one, bent one of the chainring holding arms by about 1-2 mm, and I think one of the crankarms was bent slightly (I realised this only after getting new cranks).

So after the crash (which was pretty lame, compared to the epic damage it caused) I kept riding on the middle chainring for a bit and thought that 1x might work for me. So I bought a 30T narrow wide chainring to try out a 1x drivetrain long term and see what the fuss is about. Also had an 11-36 cassette. First rolled with 1x10, then downgraded to 1x9 (12-36) to cut down on my maintenance costs (I ride over 1000km a month during summer, worthwhile investment for me). I also bought a medium cage mech.

For 29er, the 30T was fine, a 26" would probably be better off with a 32T. That is, it's fine if you want to do the middle of the spectrum riding with considerable amount of climbing. For more of a flat riding, I'd pick a 34T (on my 29er). To get an idea of what you'll have, google for "bike gear calculator" and see for yourself which ratios you'll lose.

The setup was good enough for just about anything, excellent at trails. And the simplicity of 1x compared to 3x is a bliss. However, my top speed on flat dropped significantly, from 30-35kmh on hardpack with no wind, to 27kmh tops, typically 25 and below). The cadence simply wasn't a good fit for that. Also, I started to orient myself very heavily towards climbing and some of the climbs in my area did actually make me wish for an even lower ratio. Where there is a climb, there's also a descent, and usually once I got over 40kmh, there was no way I could get any faster by pedalling and had to rely on gravity to do all the work.

When I finally cleared the budget for new cranks (actually, about two weeks ago), I bought Shimano XT M8000 2x cranks. Meant for 11 speed drivetrains, but they work just fine with anything else, just gotta get a front mech of appropriate make to fit a wider chain. Main reason for purchase is the 36-26 chainring combo which, combined with the 12-36 cassette, turned out to be absolutely spot on for my riding. I utilise the entire range of the cassette and never long for a lower or higher gear.
I did have to put back the front shifter, but considering I recently ditched the lockout remote, it's a non-issue. The 2x is really nice too, very simple to think about during riding. Like a said, a perfect fit for me, so the simplicity of 1x wasn't even so hard to say goodbye to.

Just a bit of personal experience. Definitely give 1x a go. It's great. Once you're going to be buying new cranks, you'll have a good field of reference to pick something that will suit you perfectly.

larkim

Got a Works Components NW 30T arriving today so should be able to get it on tonight. Son (for his bike it is) has been riding on the existing middle ring for a few days without too many slippages but hopefully the NW ring will reduce this further.

For the time being leaving the existing rear mech in place, as although the pulley cage is cracked it is still straight and doesn't seem to be causing issues.

Need to get a shorter screw to fill in the mounting point for the front mech though as simply reinserting the old one causes is to protrude out of the back and looks like it would scratch the bottom of the seat post tube when the rear triangle moves.