Road bike 1x

THATmanMANNY

Well-Known Member
Front derailleur, worst invention ever
I don't know anything about this topic and hope to gain some more knowledge.

All our bikes are compact crankset 50/32? and 2x10.
We do central jersey riding so the most we would ever ride is up sourlands.

Would 1x11 achieve the same? Wouldn't mind 1x12 if it buys me some more range.

I only have 100/130QR bikes. I'm just jumping to conclusions but a new bike is probably more cost effective than upgrading parts.
 
I like having 2x10 with a compact range (50/34) on my bike so there are 10 more gear choices within the high and low gears compared to 1x10.

I like having twice as many gear choices to find the right one....not too easy, but not too hard - a la Goldilocks.

For a road specific bike, I am definitely looking to 2x12 and am waiting for the new Di2 to see if I they switch from buttons to levers for shifting. With e-shifting will be nice to not have to worry about cable tension or trimming the front derailleur.
 
Front derailleur, worst invention ever
I don't know anything about this topic and hope to gain some more knowledge.

All our bikes are compact crankset 50/32? and 2x10.
We do central jersey riding so the most we would ever ride is up sourlands.

Would 1x11 achieve the same? Wouldn't mind 1x12 if it buys me some more range.

I only have 100/130QR bikes. I'm just jumping to conclusions but a new bike is probably more cost effective than upgrading parts.

my nj road bike got converted to 1 × 11 last year. Works fine for me - I never used the smaller front ring anywhere locally anyways.
 
My CX bike is 1x11. Sold the road bike, so this is all I have now. It's 42/11-32. I think a 34 on the rear would make some of the hills less sucky, but in general it twerks. Check Sheldon Brown for actual ratios.... You'll need a n/w chainring, and a rear der w/clutch. Mine is an XTR di2 rear der paired to road di2 shifters.
 
I like having 2x10 with a compact range (50/34) on my bike so there are 10 more gear choices within the high and low gears compared to 1x10.

I like having twice as many gear choices to find the right one....not too easy, but not too hard - a la Goldilocks.

For a road specific bike, I am definitely looking to 2x12 and am waiting for the new Di2 to see if I they switch from buttons to levers for shifting. With e-shifting will be nice to not have to worry about cable tension or trimming the front derailleur.

there are probably 6 in there that you never use! :D
and a couple more that aren't needed unless going down one of those big hills you have up there!

i think there are 34T road cassettes - more than enough for the sourlands.
 
I gravel-ized my cross bike last year and have been riding it as my main road bike lately.

I've got the same gearing as @MadisonDan , single 42t up front, with 11-32 on the back (11 speed) and I've been digging it.

As a long-time road racer who ran a 13-21 straight block and 39/53 up front, back in the 9 speed days, I'm not thrilled about the larger jumps between cogs, but what I do like, a lot, is not playing the big ring/little ring game. I never find myself wondering which ring I want to/should be in, since there's only the 42. Move the right shifter until the pedals feel OK, and that's that.

For the kind of riding I'm doing most of the time these days, it works.
 
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Switching to 1x will leave bigger gaps between gears. Some people don’t mind it, personally I do. I had 1x11 on my cross bike and found it hard to match my desired cadence to the gearing, often being over or under geared. The more range you want the worse it gets. Only place I’d run 1x on the road is a really flat area or for a crit bike.
 
I don't even use say the 3-4 highest gears on the compact 2x10 setup. Not even on zwift.
I guess I can change my current setup to 1x10, NWN 'big' ring and bigger cassette, correct?

fielding bike recs... 1x11/12, disc brakes, wider tires (not spec gravel is fine)
GO!
 
Switching to 1x will leave bigger gaps between gears. Some people don’t mind it, personally I do. I had 1x11 on my cross bike and found it hard to match my desired cadence to the gearing, often being over or under geared. The more range you want the worse it gets. Only place I’d run 1x on the road is a really flat area or for a crit bike.
Yeah... mine is only a 10spd but when I get tired, I can't seem to find that right gear.
 
i'm sure you are aware of sheldon browns gear calculator, get to work.
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on my gravel bike i have an 11 speed setup, 40t front, 11-40 in the back. (flex incoming) i did a 67 mile gravel race with minimal elevation and averaged 20mph. You could easily find a front ring that works for you if you wanted a little more speed, but still want to climb hills in the sourlands. I'm sure a 42/44 would be the ticket for a little more flat/descending speed.

shimano xt 11 speed cassette fits on 10 speed wheels, so you gucci on that front
 
i'm sure you are aware of sheldon browns gear calculator, get to work.
tenor.gif


on my gravel bike i have an 11 speed setup, 40t front, 11-40 in the back. (flex incoming) i did a 67 mile gravel race with minimal elevation and averaged 20mph. You could easily find a front ring that works for you if you wanted a little more speed, but still want to climb hills in the sourlands. I'm sure a 42/44 would be the ticket for a little more flat/descending speed.

shimano xt 11 speed cassette fits on 10 speed wheels, so you gucci on that front
11 speed cassette do not work on shimano 10 speed wheels, specifically the shimano c24’s. I know from personal Experience. I have had it work with white industries.

I think there are a few other brands where it doesn’t work, just a warning. Also, slx cassettes use the same spider as xt and are only 40 grams heavier but much cheaper.

Manny lives right next to the sourlands, which is big front ring climbing territory. I climb everything there with 50 and 11/30. And I am a high cadence guy too, pretty much don’t go below 80 rpm. So you should be good with 46-50.
 
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My SS roadie is a 46 upfront. If I had gears in the back I think it would a great non-torture device. Back when I was really trying I was able to get just shy of 20mph avgs on rides. So I think that would be a great choice for the front.
 
there are probably 6 in there that you never use! :D
and a couple more that aren't needed unless going down one of those big hills you have up there!

i think there are 34T road cassettes - more than enough for the sourlands.

I didn't think about the cassette when I responded. Duh! I had an 11-25 cassette and changed to 12-28 a few years ago.

I need that 50x12 for going down River Rd. and the 34x28 for going up Tinc Rd. @Patrick.
 
@stb222 here is a ⭐ For you
Thanks Manny!

So, @Pearl had a texting battle about cassette compatibility and it turns out that it is the shimano 11spd road cassettes are what didn't work on 8/9/10 HG hub bodies (at least in many cases). If you care, Lennard Zinn has it well documented. However, I was curious about Pearls claim of XT 11 speed fitting on 8/9/10 HG hub bodies. So I dug out the 10 spd C24 i had and an XT 11 speed cassette I just took off my son's bike and it did fit.

Also, SLX 11 speed cassettes use the same spiders as the XT, so they would be compatible also and are only 40 grams heavier. 10 of those grams are the steel lockring compared to the alum on the XT.
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To further help Manny, I ran that Voodoo i had with 10 speed 11/25. I ran a 42 and a 46 and found the 46 limiting with the 25, however with a 32 it would be more feasible.
 
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