Rear derailleurs for 1x10 conversion

[Guest Omega Man]

Zee is limited to a 36t sprocket on the rear end as it is gravity oriented. That's if yiu go for the wide range version.

 

Imo you can't go wrong with slx, especially with some of the pricing of local online stores. Easy to service and rugged enough.

What he said ^^

 

I had a Zee and it worked great until I put one of those 42 teeth guys on the back. then every time I'd backpedal the chain would crawl down the cluster.

 

Put on the SLX and no issues since. I did an Alps trip that was VERY wet and the derailleur worked great. No maintenance issues at all and that was on a trip where I had to replace BB bearings, freehub and all hub bearings cos of the grit and snot. 

[quickdraw]

What he said ^^

 

I had a Zee and it worked great until I put one of those 42 teeth guys on the back. then every time I'd backpedal the chain would crawl down the cluster.

 

Put on the SLX and no issues since. I did an Alps trip that was VERY wet and the derailleur worked great. No maintenance issues at all and that was on a trip where I had to replace BB bearings, freehub and all hub bearings cos of the grit and snot.

I could be wrong but the chain dropping down gears when back pedalling sounds more like a chainline issue - but then again I would also rather use one of the medium caged derailleurs.

 

Have not tried the Zee with a 42T though.

[jcmeyerSS]

I could be wrong but the chain dropping down gears when back pedalling sounds more like a chainline issue - but then again I would also rather use one of the medium caged derailleurs.

 

Have not tried the Zee with a 42T though.

1x10 your chain line is only gonna be straight in about 3of your 10 gears. depending on the frame and crank you may have to run the Chainring on the inside or outside of your crank. See which give you the best chainline in the entire range. (for me it was on the inside off the crank)

 

The cage length does not actually affect the range of gears you can run on a 1x setup. The Zee is a short cage but can run up to a 40t purely because of the size of the parallelogram linkage. This a a very different story when you are running 2x and 3x where more chain is required to run the bigger ratios. the length of the cage merely determines the amount of chain the derailer can hold firm.

In fact for a 1x setup the shorter the cage the better.

[Guest Omega Man]

1x10 your chain line is only gonna be straight in about 3of your 10 gears. depending on the frame and crank you may have to run the Chainring on the inside or outside of your crank. See which give you the best chainline in the entire range. (for me it was on the inside off the crank)

 

The cage length does not actually affect the range of gears you can run on a 1x setup. The Zee is a short cage but can run up to a 40t purely because of the size of the parallelogram linkage. This a a very different story when you are running 2x and 3x where more chain is required to run the bigger ratios. the length of the cage merely determines the amount of chain the derailer can hold firm.

In fact for a 1x setup the shorter the cage the better.

Yeah I'm not techy or anything but i never had a problem with it until i fitted the 42. the 38 i had worked fine.

[Heenan]

1x10 your chain line is only gonna be straight in about 3of your 10 gears. depending on the frame and crank you may have to run the Chainring on the inside or outside of your crank. See which give you the best chainline in the entire range. (for me it was on the inside off the crank)

 

The cage length does not actually affect the range of gears you can run on a 1x setup. The Zee is a short cage but can run up to a 40t purely because of the size of the parallelogram linkage. This a a very different story when you are running 2x and 3x where more chain is required to run the bigger ratios. the length of the cage merely determines the amount of chain the derailer can hold firm.

In fact for a 1x setup the shorter the cage the better.

That makes a lot of sense to me. XT and slx are not made specifically for 1x set up and a zee is hence the short cage. So a zee should be better for a 1x set up is that correct?  

[jcmeyerSS]

That makes a lot of sense to me. XT and slx are not made specifically for 1x set up and a zee is hence the short cage. So a zee should be better for a 1x set up is that correct?  

Provided you dont wanna go bigger than 40t on the cassette.

And to be Honest (this is just my opinion) here in RSA you not gonna be riding some that you would need a bigger gearing.

For R900 you can get two chainrings from kitted. a 34t and a 32t. you get a standard 11:36 cassette and you will be fine for any climbs we have.  if you end up in the cape or lowveld slap the 32 on. if you not gonna climb it on 32:36 you should stop worring about trying to be cool with a 1x10 groupset and go back to 2x10.

[Heenan]

Provided you dont wanna go bigger than 40t on the cassette.

And to be Honest (this is just my opinion) here in RSA you not gonna be riding some that you would need a bigger gearing.

For R900 you can get two chainrings from kitted. a 34t and a 32t. you get a standard 11:36 cassette and you will be fine for any climbs we have.  if you end up in the cape or lowveld slap the 32 on. if you not gonna climb it on 32:36 you should stop worring about trying to be cool with a 1x10 groupset and go back to 2x10.

Thanks so much for the advice I will be doing exactly as you suggested

[Pointer]

Sorry, for high jacking your post.

 

Im running a 2x10 38-25 in front and 36-11 casset? How do i dtermine if i ned a long of medium cage derailleur.

 

Regards

[Brian Fantana]

Sorry, for high jacking your post.

 

Im running a 2x10 38-25 in front and 36-11 casset? How do i dtermine if i ned a long of medium cage derailleur.

 

Regards

Deraileurs have specific total capacities that they can handle. This capacity is stated on the RD data sheet.

 

Total Capacity = (number of teeth on large chainring - number of teeth on small chainring) + (number of teeth on large sprocket - number of teeth on smallest sprocket)

 

You will need a total capacity of 38 for your setup.

[Pointer]

Deraileurs have specific total capacities that they can handle. This capacity is stated on the RD data sheet.

 

Total Capacity = (number of teeth on large chainring - number of teeth on small chainring) + (number of teeth on large sprocket - number of teeth on smallest sprocket)

 

You will need a total capacity of 38 for your setup.

Thank you. Will have a look at the Data sheet.

[Brian Fantana]

Another important aspect for a 1x10 setup without a guide is how much tension the RD can provide when you are in your highest gear (smallest sprocket). When doing high speed descending on a long travel full suspension you want your RD to still take up any slack as you go through the rear travel while you are in your fastest gear.

 

For some setups a short cage could be a compromise as you need to make the chain long enough so the RD is not pulled too far forward in the largest sprocket which means that in your smallest sprocket the RD might not have the capacity to keep the chain tight as the bike go through its travel.

 

I run a 34/36 chainring with 11/36 cassette on a 150mm VPP bike (notorious for chain growth, still awesome though).

 

Only had 1 chain drop in 5000+ km. It happened on Berg and Bush day 2 going down the Bone Shaker and I left the clutch off after removing the rear wheel the previous day, so I am not too worried about that.

 

Need to do some serious training as I am going to tackle Attakwas with the 1x10 trail bike.

[nickc]

Using a Sram X0 long cage non - clutch der on a 34/32 - 42 conversion.

 

Alternate between the 32t or 34t depending where I am riding/racing.

 

Have yet to drop a chain.

[Bos]

Using a Sram X0 long cage non - clutch der on a 34/32 - 42 conversion.

 

Alternate between the 32t or 34t depending where I am riding/racing.

 

Have yet to drop a chain.

Interesting thread..

Not to Hijack it, but a bit on gear ratios.

Are most of you running 40T because its what most Standard Shimano clutch deraleurs can handle?

 

Nickc this is kind of the ratio I would think one can run as I would still like to have as big a range as possible. Perhaps a 33t chainring?

 

Im currently running a standard 2x10 (11-36 and 24/40) on My RM element 29. I was running a 2 x 9 on my Zula(26') and had a 26/42 x 11/34. This actually cave me a gear slightly harder than a 26 x 36 29er settup but the leverage ratio of the bigger wheels makes the 29er feel harder?

 

It seems most riders that have seen making the switch have been the trail riding kind so I did the calculations to see what I would be missing out on.

@Brian Fonatnna, doing a stage race with a near 1:1 granny option is in my mind pretty crazy. Unless youre comparing it to a singlespeed, which in my mind is a different sport

Here are my calculations for reference, these are bound to come up on this thread although not strictly in line with the topic so forgive me.

 

Easiest gear ratios

for a 26er:

22 x 34 = 0.65

22 x 32 = 0.69

26 x 34 = 0.76 (I could hande this on 100km rides although when not fit its tough)

32 x 34 = 0.94

 

For a 2 x 10 29er: (as reference to what you might have had before switching)

24 x 36 = 0.67

26 x 36 = 0.72

 

for a 1 x 10 29er:

 

32 x 36 = 0.89

 

32 x 40 = 0.8

34 x 40 = 0.85

 

32 x 42 = 0.76 ( almost comparable to 26 x 36)

34 x 42 = 0.81

 

Then to give you a Idea at what speed you will spin out, these are the top gear ratios at a cadence of 95 its as fast as you will be going comfortably.

 

32 x 11 = 2.91 (38km/h)

34 x 11 = 3.09 (40km/h)

36 x 11 = 3.27 (40km/h)

38 x 11 = 3.45 (45km/h)

 

 

 

This makes me wonder if its really worth the added technical issues of a 42t casette vs just going one smaller on the front chainring. Which probably answers my first question regarding the 40t vs 42t.

 

a 34 T chainring up front paired with a 42 on the back is comparable to a 26 x 32 gear on a standard 2 x 10 29er, its your second lightest gear..Im going to go try ride like this and see how I would do..

[jcmeyerSS]

Zee Derailer. is a great 1x specific derailer. The short cage and clutch gives great chain retention, however it is limited to 1x and has a cassette limit of 40t.

 

Here is mine on a 36: 11-36 setup.

 

[nickc]

Interesting thread..

Not to Hijack it, but a bit on gear ratios.

Are most of you running 40T because its what most Standard Shimano clutch deraleurs can handle?

 

Nickc this is kind of the ratio I would think one can run as I would still like to have as big a range as possible. Perhaps a 33t chainring?

 

Im currently running a standard 2x10 (11-36 and 24/40) on My RM element 29. I was running a 2 x 9 on my Zula(26') and had a 26/42 x 11/34. This actually cave me a gear slightly harder than a 26 x 36 29er settup but the leverage ratio of the bigger wheels makes the 29er feel harder?

 

It seems most riders that have seen making the switch have been the trail riding kind so I did the calculations to see what I would be missing out on.

@Brian Fonatnna, doing a stage race with a near 1:1 granny option is in my mind pretty crazy. Unless youre comparing it to a singlespeed, which in my mind is a different sport

Here are my calculations for reference, these are bound to come up on this thread although not strictly in line with the topic so forgive me.

 

Easiest gear ratios

for a 26er:

22 x 34 = 0.65

22 x 32 = 0.69

26 x 34 = 0.76 (I could hande this on 100km rides although when not fit its tough)

32 x 34 = 0.94

 

For a 2 x 10 29er: (as reference to what you might have had before switching)

24 x 36 = 0.67

26 x 36 = 0.72

 

for a 1 x 10 29er:

 

32 x 36 = 0.89

 

32 x 40 = 0.8

34 x 40 = 0.85

 

32 x 42 = 0.76 ( almost comparable to 26 x 36)

34 x 42 = 0.81

 

Then to give you a Idea at what speed you will spin out, these are the top gear ratios at a cadence of 95 its as fast as you will be going comfortably.

 

32 x 11 = 2.91 (38km/h)

34 x 11 = 3.09 (40km/h)

36 x 11 = 3.27 (40km/h)

38 x 11 = 3.45 (45km/h)

 

 

 

This makes me wonder if its really worth the added technical issues of a 42t casette vs just going one smaller on the front chainring. Which probably answers my first question regarding the 40t vs 42t.

 

a 34 T chainring up front paired with a 42 on the back is comparable to a 26 x 32 gear on a standard 2 x 10 29er, its your second lightest gear..Im going to go try ride like this and see how I would do..

 

 

 

 

 

 

I find the 34 x 42 perfect for up here in the Big Smoke on my 29er where the races/rides are flatter, I have used the 32 but find I spin out too much on the top.

 

I can ride big climbs as well no problem but I do find for a race/ride with sustained climbing like Sabie the 32t gives a more comfortable option - epecially on long distances.

[Guest Omega Man]

Having run 1x10 with one of those dustbin lid sprockets on my Tracer for a while now I have to be honest about the whole 1x thing. I'm not completely sold on the idea.

 

It's not a one size fits all solution and the only real benefit that i can work out for sure is a slightly quieter drivetrain. To have a decent spread of gears where you aren't spinning out on the downhills you have to run quite a big ring up front which means you're a really strong rider or kakking off on the climbs or pushing. I've also felt noticeable drivetrain feedback when riding uphill with the clutch on.

 

 When I was running a 2x10 with a 26/36 combo up front I had a better spread of gears less drivetrain feedback.