Single ring front - chainguide?

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Martin.F
Posts: 781
Joined: Sat May 28, 2005 9:21 pm
Location: Norway, Drammen

by Martin.F

I'm thinking about converting my CX to a single ring front. Yesterday I did a race and I was the 46t ring all race long. I felt that it would have been great with maybe one or two more gears, so I'm thinking about getting a 42 single front. It's going to be a narrow-wide design, but I'm running a standard 105 rear derailleur.

Is narrow-wide enough, or do I need a chainguide? I have a Giant TCX alu frame, and it's running bolted-on braze-on mount. That is, the braze on is fastened by 2 bolts. What is the lightest type of chainguide I can get on there?

If I convert from 2x to 1x I can get the TRP hylex front by replacing my current 105 mechanical brake lever. How will it be like running the TRP on the left and Shimano on the right?

by Weenie


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motorapido
Posts: 332
Joined: Fri Jul 30, 2010 7:08 pm

by motorapido

If you are running 10 speed for ultimate chain security you could change to an MTB clutch mech like the Zee, which is a nice short cage.
Aas for a chain guide, there are a few possibilities but i think most are clamp on type so it depends what the seat tube is like in that area, i'm not aware of any that bolt onto the front mech braze on or 2 bolt hanger pattern. Thats not to say one couldn't be modified to fit.
some of the below would need modifying i reckon, but a Zee clutch mech can be bought for about £30.

http://www.burgtec.co.uk/single-ring-ch ... ain-guide/

http://dirtmountainbike.com/products/fr ... guide.html

http://www.shapeways.com/product/W8LVNQ ... d=15943994

mattr
Posts: 4671
Joined: Fri May 25, 2007 6:43 pm
Location: The Grim North.

by mattr

10 speed mtb mechs need to be bodged to work with 10 speed road shifters, 9 speed mtb mechs don't have clutches.
Is it possible to adjust spring tension on current generation road mechs? Might be an option.

jooo
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Joined: Wed Feb 02, 2011 3:48 am

by jooo

motorapido wrote:If you are running 10 speed for ultimate chain security you could change to an MTB clutch mech like the Zee

Unfortunately Shimano 10's road and Dyna-Sys are not compatible.

Jmdesignz2
Posts: 272
Joined: Tue Jan 13, 2015 2:27 am

by Jmdesignz2

I had a similar question and the majority consensus was even with rough rocky off-roading the narrow wide ring was enough. No chain guide or clutch dérailleur needed especially on hard tail

It did prevent drops when the ring got much more worn.

Raineman
Posts: 185
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 2:03 pm
Location: Kent, UK

by Raineman

I would go for a narrow wide chainring, and if you want the extra security you can get braze on single ring chain catchers like this

You can increase the spring tension for shimano rear mechs which would act as a small clutch.

if you changed you lever for the front brake, if would have a different reach than the shimano lever. Ben Berden was running a similar setup last year with Di2 and hylex (right and left) though I'm not sure how the Di2 lever compares to your 105

Image

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Martin.F
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Joined: Sat May 28, 2005 9:21 pm
Location: Norway, Drammen

by Martin.F

Great picture of those two levers - I'm not doing that. That's probably 1-2 cm difference in reach.

Any tips on how to get my TRP spyre brakes to work better? I feel like I have to squeeze the levers really hard to get any sort of braking power. Combine that with mud, cold fingers, bumps and me being tired and it's not a pleasant ride. Any pads that works better than others? Any housing/cabling?

I have a 11-speed 105 gruppo btw. Im thinking about dremeling away most of the body of an old front derailleur and using that as a chainguide.

mattyNorm
Posts: 126
Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2015 12:29 pm

by mattyNorm

Stiffer housing (assuming you're using stock) and metal compound brake pads will help dramatically.

OJ
Posts: 877
Joined: Wed Aug 02, 2006 5:25 pm
Location: Winterpeg

by OJ

FWIW I have been running 5800 105 this year with Race Face narrow-wide chainring. No chain guides, just took two links (I think) out and no issues with chain drops yet.

As for improving your braking. Do you still have stock 140 mm rotors? If yes, switch to 160 mm rotor on the front and get metal brake pads.
http://demarere.blogspot.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

SASAS
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Joined: Tue Oct 13, 2015 9:48 am

by SASAS

I have stock 140 mm rotors, so, I will have a try ! coquegsm

ethanfiamingo
Posts: 20
Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2015 3:43 am

by ethanfiamingo

Seconded on the stiff housing for the spyres... 5mm Der housing has worked well for me, but I would ditch them and get some cx75s.

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roadieboy
Posts: 66
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 2:19 am

by roadieboy

Hylex brakes are amazing, but the hoods are so much bigger than Shimano. You could use a set of Hylex brakes, and a barend, or Grevenale shifter. If you switch to one of those shifters, you could use a DynaSys clutch derailleur also.

by Weenie


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