Has anyone made the switch from 2x to 1x for road and what are your thoughts? I think overall weight will be fairly similar but simplicity and virtually no chain drops are a big plus. It is only gaps between gears higher on the cluster that may bother.
This is a bit of not apples to apples ;On my gravel bike (700 tires) riding on the same roads, as road bike, I want to be inbetween cogs as that’s the sweet spot . It’s either increase or decrease cadence. It’s livable but something to consider.
I switched to 1x12 in 2021 when I was living next to the mountains in Japan. I had a 42-tooth chainring and a 10–36 cassette and generally was fine. The jumps felt pretty identical to that of an 11-speed Shimano 11–32 cassette, but with an extra gear tacked on. Only in the steepest parts at altitude would I have wanted an easier gear than 42:36 = 1.17 = 34:29. At the time I ordered the bike, XPLR hadn’t been announced yet. With 13-speed XPLR where the first 11 gears are identical to the 10–36 cassette, i. e. road gearing in my book, with two bailout gears.
That’s close to perfect on the road and offers wider range than a compact crank with a 11–32 cassette.
Now I live in the flatlands, sniff, and I don’t even need the range of a 10–33 cassette. I opted for a larger 46T chainring to see whether I can feel the efficiency gains (I can’t), but since I miss the closely spaced gears where I need them, I’ll switch back to 42T in due time.
In short: I think 1x works great in almost all scenarios. Would it satisfy someone who ran a compact + 11–25 cassette in the 11-speed days? Probably not.
I have definitely been one of those types that climbs in pretty big gears (10% 37-25 AXS) but as Father Time is starting to have his way I could benefit from some smaller gearing and if making that change I would like to simplify with 1x. I cannot do 13 as my road frame is not UDH but 12 speed XPLR 10-44 x 50 will give me more range than I currently have. It is just the pesky large gaps with some ratios I am uncertain if I’ll be bothered by.
2x in many ways is actually the simpler setup. 1x requires a bit more thought on setup, and for road is best when you aren’t afraid to swap cassettes and even chainrings (not to mention correct length chains, and adjusting your rear derailleur) to suit where you’re riding.
Unless you have tire clearance requirements (generally not unless youre on a wide gravel or mountain bike), 2x is the way to go for most people. What do I run? 1x with multiple cassette and chainring options right now, but it’s a bit of a pain.
I’m on the edge of trying this myself. Main advantage to me is to save on cost by not having to buy a fd. I’m cheap. Also sram fd is not the most reliable shifting experience.
Counterpoint: I find 2x less flexible, you’ll have a harder time to shift the gear range to where you need it than with 1x.
I’d argue even a compact crank gives gearing that is way too hard for most people. Perhaps not the average guy who hangs out on this forum, but arguably for the average cyclist. Yes, I know you can get small chain rings, but then you are also swapping chain rings, and likely ones that are not officially supported by the manufacturer.
Yep. I def notice the gaps with a 12 speed 10-44 cassette. It’s NBD for me on solo or casual rides, but in demanding group rides/pace-lines where I’m working close to my limit, I do sometimes find myself needing a gear between two that I have.
I respect what you are saying but for my own use case it would never require that as long as I set it up correctly from the jump. For me a 50t chainring with the 10-44 XPLR cassette (which I believe is the only one they offer) gives me more range with headroom for climbing without sacrificing big gears for fast paced group riding. I am just debating if the cost of doing it is worth it.
Well you are not wrong my friend, and partially how I justify 1x on the road myself.
That is a rub for me too. A little over a year ago I swapped to a shorter crank and needed to readjust my FD, and by some stroke of dumb luck have got it shifting as reliably as one could ever want. Not one single blown shift over this period.
Thanks to all for the input
That’s a great setup honestly! Just decide if losing the 12T and 14T cogs are ok. If so, it’s a no brainer! I find the 2 teeth jumps on the small end can be annoying for some people, where others don’t notice it.
Does anyone find themselves between gears on climbs? On flat I’m not worried about it but the gap for gears on a climb when it’s not like 10%+ is pretty big compared to some 2x cassettes.
I basically already have a similar setup on my gravel bike except I use a 40t chainring and on the road it felt odd initially but now I am accustomed to it and can go back and forth to my road bike without it feeling strange. I may not be sensitive enough to the gaps
I went from 2x Shimano 11-speed to 1x SRAM 12-speed on my road bikes. (I built a new bike and did so 1x). I love it. No regrets. I run a 9-45t 1x on my gravel. Its ok for road. I notice the jumps, but it’s not terrible. I would be ok with a 1x gravel cassette for road with the new 13 speed.
My road bike has a normal 10-36t cassette. I came from an 11-28t cassette. Honestly you dont notice it. I will notice it for the first maybe 2h on the 2x. But then I forget about it. When I go from the 1x to 2x I just have to mentally remind myself “You shift more cause the gears are closer” So take with that what you will. I love 1x and think for racing its the way to go. But my 1x is also basically just saying screw my knees, no gear easier than a 50-36. So take with that what you will. No clue if this was helpful but it was an excuse to procrastinate my Hebrew and Hummanitys homework.
Maybe I’m hyper-sensitive to cadence variations, but I’m Shimano 52/36 + 11-30 on the road, and occasionally wish for an in-between gear. On gravel I have GRX 1x 10-45, and run a 44T chainring most of the time, and when I go from road bike to gravel bike I’m shifting back/forth between gears a lot in the first hour before I get used to realizing I just need to deal with undesirable cadence for the time being.
Edited for my brain-dead math mistake as pointed out by randomcoach below: Not me on hills. When climbing dominates over wind resistance, power required goes a speed. In a given gear, 5% higher cadence is 5% higher speed and requires 5% greater power. When wind resistance dominates, power required goes as the cube of speed. In a given gear, 5% higher cadence is 5% higher speed and requires (wrong: 125%) 1.05^3 = 16% higher power. I find I need close gearing on the flats, not climbs.
I will never ever go back to 2x.
Ever.
Like ever!
That’s a pretty stiff top end gear. Do you actually need it? The flatter the terrain, the less you need at the top end, too. (As you need really tall gears for downhills, unless you are a sprinter.) Why not get a smaller chain ring instead.