1x (Sram Force 1), is it truely worth it on the road?

[shaper]

no converting that bike without a bit of pratleys... pretty sure the riders have taken it up and down a few hills and know what they're in for.

More interested to see if they can keep up on the flats. By all media reports the freehub has to be redesigned to take a 9T so that they can get enough top end speed.

 

Considering most pro teams run electronic, once set the front shift is crisp, quick, precise and effortless. I have Di2 so know.

 

Unlike MTB where you are often needing to shift the front chainring on the road you hardly shift the front.

 

Will be interested to see how they do in races and will be watching with interest.

[Shebeen]

More interested to see if they can keep up on the flats. By all media reports the freehub has to be redesigned to take a 9T so that they can get enough top end speed.

 

Considering most pro teams run electronic, once set the front shift is crisp, quick, precise and effortless. I have Di2 so know.

 

Unlike MTB where you are often needing to shift the front chainring on the road you hardly shift the front.

 

Will be interested to see how they do in races and will be watching with interest.

just wait till they get a rear flat and take a neutral service wheel

[Martin PJ]

https://ride.diamondback.com/friction-profiles-1x-drivetrains

 

I am thinking of converting a road bike to 1x. Found this interesting article, it reckons that NW chain rings do not loose power compared to normal chain rings and also a clutch derailleur is more efficient than a normal derailleur.

[Shebeen]

a 11-40 with a 48 gives you a range from 114 - 31 gear inches.

a std 53/39 with 11-29 gives 126 - 35 gear inches.

 

so you're not going to be winning the sprints.

you'll actually be fine up the hills. but take a neutral wheel and you're going to struggle on any incline

[Martin PJ]

a 11-40 with a 48 gives you a range from 114 - 31 gear inches.

a std 53/39 with 11-29 gives 126 - 35 gear inches.

 

so you're not going to be winning the sprints.

you'll actually be fine up the hills. but take a neutral wheel and you're going to struggle on any incline

 

Going to put 54T in front and 36-11 at the back.

[Pure Savage]

Who let the mountain bike marketing department into the road division of SRAM? 

 

Good luck to them in the sprints, even on the rolling stages when you have a massive climb followed by a fast decent you going to get gapped when you run out of gears and Froome is Frooming.

[shaper]

Going to put 54T in front and 36-11 at the back.

Will be interested on your feedback to whether with a 54 up front you will be spinning or grinding up hills... I think the latter.

 

The perception is that spinning is better for you when climbing, but many prefer and are grinders.  Me I prefer to spin.

 

As I said will be something of interest and a possible consideration for my TT bike in the future... but with automatic shifting now being more common on Di2, each race depending on the course I will be able to dial in auto shifting of the front FD and let the software decide my optimal gear ratio.  So really struggling to see the benefits at this point in time.

 

As a side note.  With Di2 you can record all your gear changes and at the Tshwane Classic 93km cycle race yesterday I changed the FD 17 times and RD 374.  So on the road, the changing of FD is fairly negligible in comparison to when on a MTB and continual changing in ground conditions/elevation 

[Kalahari Vegmot]

Yoh, why all this sissiness about getting up hills easier?

 

20 years ago everyone was running 53/39 and 11-23's. The hills haven't got steeper...

 

"A real climber would never use a 23"-Pantani (I think)

[Pure Savage]

Will be interested on your feedback to whether with a 54 up front you will be spinning or grinding up hills... I think the latter.

 

The perception is that spinning is better for you when climbing, but many prefer and are grinders.  Me I prefer to spin.

 

As I said will be something of interest and a possible consideration for my TT bike in the future... but with automatic shifting now being more common on Di2, each race depending on the course I will be able to dial in auto shifting of the front FD and let the software decide my optimal gear ratio.  So really struggling to see the benefits at this point in time.

 

As a side note.  With Di2 you can record all your gear changes and at the Tshwane Classic 93km cycle race yesterday I changed the FD 17 times and RD 374.  So on the road, the changing of FD is fairly negligible in comparison to when on a MTB and continual changing in ground conditions/elevation 

I think its horses for courses, problem comes in people trying to enter a Donkey into show jumping contest. 

 

You would easily be able to do crits with a 55 on the front and a 23-11 on the back. 

 

If it was a flat TT, same. 

 

If you have a rolling course with steep climbs, flat crosswind sections and some undulating hills I reckon one would fall short.

[Pure Savage]

Yoh, why all this sissiness about getting up hills easier?

 

20 years ago everyone was running 53/39 and 11-23's. The hills haven't got steeper...

 

"A real climber would never use a 23"-Pantani (I think)

They have got faster though....

[Breezer]

I am a grinder, and this might me a good option for me, i do all my riding in the big ring. Vissers hok, chappies, hels, bothmas kloof and suikerbossie I go up in my 53/25. But this is Western cape and there is no big climbs and long 15 km desents like in Europe. I can't see this how this will work on a stage race through the alps.

[shaper]

Yoh, why all this sissiness about getting up hills easier?

 

20 years ago everyone was running 53/39 and 11-23's. The hills haven't got steeper...

 

"A real climber would never use a 23"-Pantani (I think)

Because modern thinking with scientific fact FWIK is that spinning up hills is faster and less tiring on the body....

[bradwentzel]

Will be interested on your feedback to whether with a 54 up front you will be spinning or grinding up hills... I think the latter.

 

The perception is that spinning is better for you when climbing, but many prefer and are grinders.  Me I prefer to spin.

 

As I said will be something of interest and a possible consideration for my TT bike in the future... but with automatic shifting now being more common on Di2, each race depending on the course I will be able to dial in auto shifting of the front FD and let the software decide my optimal gear ratio.  So really struggling to see the benefits at this point in time.

 

As a side note.  With Di2 you can record all your gear changes and at the Tshwane Classic 93km cycle race yesterday I changed the FD 17 times and RD 374.  So on the road, the changing of FD is fairly negligible in comparison to when on a MTB and continual changing in ground conditions/elevation 

 

I run this exact set up on my TT bike.

Its the business.

 

Handles the cradle/broadacres route (1100m climbing in 70km) with zero issues. 

 

Rode a 52t 11-28 ratio over the weekend and only really started to grind at a 10% pitch.

 

Honestly 1x is the way to go.

[Martin PJ]

Will be interested on your feedback to whether with a 54 up front you will be spinning or grinding up hills... I think the latter.

 

The perception is that spinning is better for you when climbing, but many prefer and are grinders.  Me I prefer to spin.

 

As I said will be something of interest and a possible consideration for my TT bike in the future... but with automatic shifting now being more common on Di2, each race depending on the course I will be able to dial in auto shifting of the front FD and let the software decide my optimal gear ratio.  So really struggling to see the benefits at this point in time.

 

As a side note.  With Di2 you can record all your gear changes and at the Tshwane Classic 93km cycle race yesterday I changed the FD 17 times and RD 374.  So on the road, the changing of FD is fairly negligible in comparison to when on a MTB and continual changing in ground conditions/elevation 

 

Will post feedback, it is for my son. He is definitely a grinder. Seldom he goes onto the small ring, then normally drops his chain in a race. Done it three times this year already in a race.

 

54/36 is an easier gear than 39/25, I don't think my son has every used the 25 in his life. So even the 36 on the 1x is not going to get used.

 

I am more worried about the technical aspects of the conversion, going to buy a derailleur extender attachment and use with normal Shimano 10 speed rear derailleur. The narrow wide chain rings they sell on Aliexpress, all different sizes. Go with a 10 speed Cassette for MTB. I converted my MTB to 1x and did have problems with component selection at first. These were sorted out in the end after a bit of trial and error.

[Halfdoesyn]

You'll be cross chaining most of the time with 1x. At least with 2x you have 2 sweet spots.

[Martin PJ]

You'll be cross chaining most of the time with 1x. At least with 2x you have 2 sweet spots.

 

This is true, they talk about this in the link I posted. It is worse going small/small than big/big. Counteracting this is that there are power gains with you use bigger cogs. Smaller cogs are less efficient than bigger ones as the chain bends more and has more friction.