SRAM introduce E-MTB specific drivetrain and brakeset

[News bot]

In the early days of mountain biking, riders were forced to settle for products that had been designed for use on road bikes. Modifications were made, but the roots of the design were not completely purpose built, not mountain biking specific. Suspension got better and frame design improved. We began to question the conventional wisdom—challenge the old design ideas that limit what can be done to push the sport into the future. SRAM 1x technology was an incredible step forward for the mountain bike drivetrain, and has had a profound effect on not only the way bikes are designed but also the way people ride them.

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[Stoffies1]

My goodness next level fatso!!!

['Dale]

Geez

The RnD team at SRAM don't sleep hey ????

[android11]

They are focused on making the company as much money as possible.

[Rocket-Boy]

They are focused on making the company as much money as possible.

That is what they are employed to do, so sounds like they are doing a good job.

[spinning round]

Honda did this years ago with Greg Minnaar and looked better than this  

[Skylark]

"The cassette, machined from case-hardened tool steel" ok so why can't us plebs with 10x and 11x get case-hardened tool steel cassettes? Maybe if you look after it you'll replace the bike before the cassette wears out... You'll see adverts " Bike is finished but cassette still 100%"

[BaGearA]

Why do you need a 48t cog , are not doing 100% of the pedaling???

[Hairy]

nice motorbike gearing

[MarcBurger]

8, 9, 10, 11.. 12 speed. What comes after 12?.. 8 does, 8 comes after 12. 

In Sramworld.

 

That said. Brakes based on Codes, I'm keen.

I'm sure the "e" suffix scratches off easily enough.

[Spoke101]

Just thinking out loud here, if the biggest chainring you can run is a 18T and your smallest at the back is a 11T you going to be spinning out all over the place.

 

That works out to 121cm of forward movement for every revolution of the crank in the 18/11T on a 29x2.3 Tyre .  and 95cm if you run a 14T chainring.

Compare that to 1x11 running a 34/10T and you get 252cm per revolution.

 

I don't think you'll be able to stay upright in the 18/48T you'll be moving so slowly. Unless the Bosch motor can run without you having to pedal.

[mikkelz]

HTFU!

[keithbe]

Yip. If you want an electronic bike go motocross. If you want to peddle use your bicycle...and your legs. Soon there will be "cars" ala Flintstones...an ecar.

[BDF]

Maybe I'm just a simpleton but isn't cycling about human propulsion? Why would you want a motorised MTB? Just get a motorbike!

[Pure Savage]

Just thinking out loud here, if the biggest chainring you can run is a 18T and your smallest at the back is a 11T you going to be spinning out all over the place.

 

That works out to 121cm of forward movement for every revolution of the crank in the 18/11T on a 29x2.3 Tyre .  and 95cm if you run a 14T chainring.

Compare that to 1x11 running a 34/10T and you get 252cm per revolution.

 

I don't think you'll be able to stay upright in the 18/48T you'll be moving so slowly. Unless the Bosch motor can run without you having to pedal.

 

I think they did this to stop hippies saying that its a motorbike and too fast etc...

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

http://nsmb.com/sram-ex1-lets-pretend-the-e-stands-for-everyone/

 

Either way, for the purpose of this re-purposed press-release, I’m asking you, pretty please, to willfully ignore the context of SRAM’s latest groupset, EX1, and consider for a moment that they may have inadvertently taken us down the path towards a better drivetrain for… everyone choosing to power their bike by Meat-Engine only.

 

Very valid points here. I think SRAM just inadvertently opened up a can of worms for people who want a wider range gear system, but don't want the sheer number of gears or proprietary freehub that 11 & 12 speed brings.

 

And the Brake combo? Sign me up... 

 

 

SRAM claims that “the heart and soul of the EX1 system is its E-BLOCK™ cassette, which is designed to provide the optimum E-MTB gear range” but I’m going to have to call bull****. Other than DH racers, who don’t need the range, and competitive XC racers, who may prefer tighter jumps between ratios to maximize output and efficiency, the EX1 cassette could keep many human-powered riders very happy.

 

1) Tool steel construction for longer life/improved durability? Sounds good, I’ll take a few grams penalty and save the weight on a non-wear item.

2) Significantly cheaper, than 10/11/12-speed, and possibly more durable 8-speed chain compatibility? Sounds great.

3) 11-48t, 436%, range over 8-cogs for better chainline in more gear ratios? AWESOME — less wear from cross-chaining and no more dropped chains while backpedaling!

4) Compatible with ‘industry standard’ (used half-seriously) non-XD freehub bodies. I guess this isn’t great news if you’re wheels are XD compatible, but better you have to buy a new freehub body than me right?

 

 The EX1 groupset’s derailleur and 8-speed, Match Maker, compatible shifter look like standard SRAM fair. The derailleur has been optimized for the 8-speed range and “engineered to handle high-torque, low-cadence shifting across the 11-48 tooth E-BLOCK™ cassette” and the new “Type 3” clutch mechanism is promised to offer a “smoother torque curve for a quieter, more consistent operation and feel” and hopefully more durability compared to past efforts.

“Okay, fine”, you say, “I guess I could handle larger jumps between gear-ratios in exchange for better chainline and the other features you’ve listed, BUT, you made it sound WAY more impressive than that… What is up?”

Hear me out: if non-E-mountain-bike riders, look at this drivetrain and see potential, the kind of potential that has them buying it for non-E-bike purposes, then perhaps the industry will refocus.  Instead of the ‘just-add-a-cog status-quo’ of the last few years, perhaps there will be consideration of what the average rider actually needs. For some people that is probably nice tight “Rythm Step Gear Progression“  from ratio-to-ratio but I certainly know a lot of riders who would trade the benefits for the E-BLOCK™ cassette and its 2, 3, or 4 fewer cogs.

 

There is another, much bolder, opportunity for EX1 to drastically change the drivetrain wars landscape. If a 436% spread over 8 cogs is perfectly acceptable for the average trail/all mountain/enduro rider, then what about 436% over 7 cogs,  6 cogs, or etc? And it isn’t just standard drivetrains this type of re-imagining could influence either.

Gearbox drivetrains have the potential to be simpler, cheaper, lighter, smaller, and more efficient if they were simplified to cover a greater range over less gear ratios. ‘Derailleur in a box’ systems like the Petespeed that promised derailleur efficiency and gearbox longevity could prove practical over a narrower width (less cogs) and the original system used 8 cogs.

 

I am, personally, not a fan of the Pandora’s Box of trail issues that E-Mountain-Bikes present to many trail communities but the potential for SRAM’s EX1 to inadvertently change the status quo of drivetrain development, for people-powered mountain bikes, is intriguing.

Edited May 18, 2016 by Myles Mayhew