Gravel/Bikepack nerds enter...

[Laps]

That is beautiful…and thanks for the glamour shots, I wanted to see more but felt a little strange asking…


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[jackstraw]

What's the thought on 2x vs 1x for gravel rides?

[chaka]

What's the thought on 2x vs 1x for gravel rides?

I get by just fine with a 1x. I have 1x friends who miss the narrower jumps between gears with a 2x. I think 2x would really shine for loaded bikepacking. Here's a dissertation you may find useful.

[geomorph]

I like 2x for the rolling terrain of central NH. I am rarely spinning out going downhill in the big ring and have better than 1:1 for the ups. If I were riding steeper up/down terrain I'd guess a 1x would work but I don't see as many positives as it has in mtb.

[Vt-Freeheel]

Same ^^^ just substitute VT 4 NH.

[jackstraw]

Here's a dissertation you may find useful.

Thanks everyone. And yeah, that article was good, but clearly no winner. I certainly like the 1x on my mtn bike. The simplicity and clean look is awesome, but I think my old knees would possibly benefit from a 2x gearing. I don't have issues mtn biking, but the gravel thing appears to be different. I have zero experience with it, so it's a new venture.

[climberevan]

I'm firmly on the 2x side for gravel. The biggest arguments for MTB going 1x are suspension design & tire clearance, but those aren't issues for gravel bikes. 2x is not even heavier if you factor in a dinner plate cassette on 1x, and front derailleurs are simple and reliable. Tighter gear spacing FTW.

[buttahflake]

Hmm, new gravel rig for me this summer, 1x. Thought I would hate it coming off of 2x gravel and road forever. I was wrong, 40t up front with a 10-44 12 speed out back, and it covers it for me. No problem on the steepest grinds and I haven’t been spun out yet. I like how clean it is, less moving parts, less areas for mud to collect, no chainsuck, I’m staying 1x on gravel from here on out.
ymmv

[davjr96]

My bike (Lauf True Grit) has a bottle opener instead of a front derailleur, so don't think of it as 1x vs 2x, think of it as beer vs no beer and the decision is easy.

[jackstraw]

^ha!

So that has a little suspension fork also. I think I may want that as well.

[davjr96]

I'd highly recommend the Lauf Seigla if it fits your wants and you are in the market. It is the newer version of my True grit with more tire clearance and compliance. I have the Weekend Warrior Wireless True Grit and find it pretty much perfect and great value compared to other similar build kits. However I am primarily a mountain biker so someone with a road background might want something different. I added a dropper and 45mm tires to mine and regularly ride easy single track with it. I'm also running "Mullet" drivetrain which is the AXS Road shifters and crank plus the MTB Eagle Cassette/derailleur/chain for huge gear range. Right now I have 38T x 10-52T. I do occasionally spin out on road but spend way more time on steep climbs. The closest gravel to my house has a mile of around 15-20% grade.

[Peruvian]

What's the thought on 2x vs 1x for gravel rides?

It took me a while to convince my wife that a 1x could have “granny gear” like her old 3x 105 group set. Just last week she admitted how much she appreciates the simplicity of a 1x11.

Go full mullet and have the same cassette as your MTB mated with a 36 or 40 up front and get up and down anything.

[jackstraw]

So a mullet is road shifters and mtn bike derailleur and cassette?

I'm only a mtn biker. I've never had a road bike. I went BMX bike, motocross, mtn bike. Well, I had a 10 speed as a kid also, but I wouldn't say I was a road biker. That was just point A to B before a license.

[davjr96]

So a mullet is road shifters and mtn bike derailleur and cassette?

Yep, https://www.sram.com/en/life/stories...S-mullet-build

Very useful in certain situations (steep hills) and a big handicap in others (fast, flat, road group rides).

[Pinned]

So a mullet is road shifters and mtn bike derailleur and cassette?

I'm only a mtn biker. I've never had a road bike. I went BMX bike, motocross, mtn bike. Well, I had a 10 speed as a kid also, but I wouldn't say I was a road biker. That was just point A to B before a license.

Gravel bike is the ultimate NH bike. With the Eagle setup or something like SRAM's XPLR (which is a slightly tighter range 1x setup) you can get most anywhere - it's a lot of fun. With all the dirt and gravel roads, abandoned double track, single track, etc you can start to connect all of it to make really fun routes that you'd never ride an MTB on.

[jackstraw]

Yep, https://www.sram.com/en/life/stories...S-mullet-build
a big handicap in others (fast, flat, road group rides).

Yeah, that's the interesting part. I'm on the coast, so a lot of flat for this type of riding as we're very limited with our dirt roads. Mostly rail trail stuff until I get 20 miles or so west and even then it's limited. And I would potentially join my rhoadie friends on a road ride now and again. Hmmm

[XtrPickels]

I like 2x for the rolling terrain of central NH. I am rarely spinning out going downhill in the big ring and have better than 1:1 for the ups. If I were riding steeper up/down terrain I'd guess a 1x would work but I don't see as many positives as it has in mtb.

Count me here in Colorado.
New Crux was 1x, but I could never find the right gear. Needed a big cassette and chainring to handle the long climbs and fast descents and it left me always in the wrong gear on the flats.

I'm all about 1x on MTB or for CX Racing, but for gravel riding I'm firmly in the 2x camp.

The flatter your rides are, the more 1x makes sense.
The more you treat your gravel bike like a mountain bike, 1x the more 1x makes sense (e.g. big knobby tires on singletrack)
But for most people, I say 2x.

[simple]

Front derailleurs should be sent to hell. Well maybe I'll allow the electronic one

[LHutz Esq]

Any thoughts on a 2x being easier on chains?

My friend has a 1x12 on his salsa cutthroat and the chain angle in granny gear looks extreme to me. But I am old and unwise on new fangled technologies.

I am considering replacing the old Jake (3x9 105) with the cutthroat grx810 with the 2x.

Front derailleurs ime don't really need that much in the way of maintenance and don't fail all that often. That minor extra flaffing would be less than replacing a chain constantly.

[Supermoon]

Front derailleurs should be sent to hell. Well maybe I'll allow the electronic one

100%. The only thing worse than using them are working on them

[jackstraw]

You guys aren't helping.

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

It's such a tough one to find a clear consensus on since gravel bikes are used in so many different ways. Do you have any sort of goal for what you'd be using it for?

Just general exploring, bikepacking, maybe some underbiking? 1x seems great for that to me.

Or do you plan to spend more time hammering forest service roads, riding fast/smooth gravel, racing, maybe even getting a 2nd wheelset or tires to use for group road rides? If so, 2x is def more the norm there. But as Buttah noted - you can do all this with 1x.

FWIW, I prefer 2x, but I'm kind of locked into it as I have a drive-side power meter on an Ultegra 50/34 crankset. I paired that with an 11-40 cassette, and, other than my setup being deeply offensive to my inner weight weenie, I love having the range. Leaves me well covered for fast group road rides, and insanely steep gravel climbs.

[jackstraw]

Seems like 2x is more versatile. Seems maybe better for my terrain. If I was living more inland I think the 1x would be the way to go.

[Pinned]

Any thoughts on a 2x being easier on chains?

My friend has a 1x12 on his salsa cutthroat and the chain angle in granny gear looks extreme to me. But I am old and unwise on new fangled technologies.

I am considering replacing the old Jake (3x9 105) with the cutthroat grx810 with the 2x.

Front derailleurs ime don't really need that much in the way of maintenance and don't fail all that often. That minor extra flaffing would be less than replacing a chain constantly.

2x is easier on chains, cassettes, and chainrings for sure.

Eagle has great drivetrain longevity, but I'd bet you still get more miles out of the cassettes on Shimano 11sp 2x. Plus the Shimano cassettes are much cheaper. That's what would matter to me more than the chain cost or chain swapping headache (everything has quicklinks now anyways).

12sp SRAM road 2x is a leap ahead - you can easily get 15k+ miles out of the cassettes. 5k on a 12sp flattop chain isn't unheard of - it's not even hard if you're swapping between 2 chains and regularly cleaning.

[buttahflake]

5k on a chain? No fucking way