5 REASONS TO GO FOR A 1X DRIVETRAIN

1x (One by) groupsets are becoming more and more common for gravel and TTs. Here's 5 reasons why you should consider it for your next bike!

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Attacus Cycling, Cervélo, Lazer Helmets, Shimano, Schwalbe Tires, Reserve Wheels, Sungod Eyewear, Tailfin Cycling, Styrkr

[Daniel-yfiy]

just got back into cycling after a 30+ year break. I bought a 1x gravel bike and after a year of riding (relatively hilly terrain) I’m liking it and I prefer the clean look and simplicity. Mine is a 40 tooth chainring with an 11 speed 42 tooth rear.

[nomadu]

I’m running 1x on my road bike (44t and 10-36), but I live in a place with only moderate hills and am a decent climber. I like it for me and where I ride, but definitely not for everyone in all situations. 2x still suits the majority of drop bar bikes.

[nibpicky]

My new BMC commuter has a 40T 10-51 cassette. Covers any gear I need so far! So simple. No trimming required.

[GokkunGuru]

1x all the way. Lighter, less moving parts, less tuning, less maintenance and service, lighter weight. Just less can go wrong.

As a PT mechanic, sure I can make more when customers bring in 2x and 3x but many riders cross chain all the time and don’t understand and expect zero noise when the chain is at its extreme angles.

[RepsacZ]

Let's be honest: it just looks cool. I have both. It doesn't have any real advantages in almost all situations. Mostly disadvantages. Unless you think shifting is difficult.

[cb]

Thanks Chris...I am OAF, and new to biking, and I bought 3 bikes without knowing enough . I have, a 2X road, a 2X MTB and a 1X gravel bike . Where I live, and my age, made me understand that Gravel is my best surface ! City drivers, and insane technical stuff convinced me to get off the road and on a rail trail in the woods ! 1X is the easiest for me, as I don't have to think about it anymore ?

[Xhadp]

Currently have a two-by and the electronic shifting and it is working well for me right now.

However, my biggest reason to probably go one-by is because of the gear ratios. The industry is so keen on keeping a 1:1 gear ratio or worse on 2by setups. A 36/28 ratio might be fine if you live in an area with low gradients and willing to get into low cadence on that hill that is only 4% steep but I love spinning and my hills can sometimes hit double digits at times. And the 3x setup I had before I transitioned to a 2x setups had an even more generous gear ratio range than the 1:1 that I now have.
I would love to have a higher climbing ratio than 1:1 which is very common in 1x gravel setups but difficult to find in 2x setups.

[xosece]

got a 2X road bike and a 3X MTB and now that I have gotten the 1X Canyon Pathlite 6 I don't want a 2X or 3X bike anymore. The only advantage of 2X and 3X is imho the emergency gear switching (well, chainring switching).

As I explained in another comment, my dream bike has always been a bike with the nimbleness of my road bike (48-34T 11-34T) and the huge gear ratio of my mountain bike (22-30-40T 11-34T), so I discovered the 1X (46T chainring 12 gears 10-51T cassette) Canyon Roadlite 6 out of sheer chance and I almost got all emotional 'cos it was like someone had listened to what I wanted and made a bike suited to my tastes. 46-10 (hardest gear of the Roadlite) is faster than 48-11 of my road bike and 46-51T (easiest gear) is much better than 34-34 to climb, specially in my very hilly and very rainy region.

I ended up getting the Canyon Pathlite 6 (same drivetrain specs than the Roadlite 6, but it the chainring has 36T instead of 46T) and not the Canyon Roadlite 6 'cos I live in a place with rough terrain and very rainy weather, but the idea of both bikes is perfect. Also I prefer flat bars to drop bars, so it's even better.

[jonpoon]

Coming into cycling later in life. Could never figure when to change chainrings and then figuring out how to change the rear to offset. So glad I’m on 1x now.
The only thing I miss from 2x is being able to quickly change big for short 2-3sec pitches

[diegoeleazar]

I cant wait til 14speed comes out. It'll be 1x supremacy!!!!

[mnt]

Get the electronic 2x12 and use Synchronized Shifting 👍🏽

[markb]

I've been on 1x for years. Main background, no other reason than it looks better/is cooler 😄

I do like the quieter bike though with a clutch mech, uk roads are terrible. 10-42 46t has loads of range, not bothered by the gaps

[PolyglotBikepacker]

Mine is a 1x crux with 46t up front and 11:28 cassette. I did a 230 km ride with 3100m of climbing and the only thing that was difficult were a few 15% hills. I was amazed by how it worked. That said, this kind of setup is for road only

[christopherhood]

My wife gets dreadfully confused with the front/rear gears. The Mason Definition I purchased for her is 1x She loves it.

[KeatB]

Have had both. 2x wins in virtually every scenario for me. The massive jumps in gears on a 1x don’t work for my natural cadence. Weight - yes, you have an extra chainring on a 2x, but some of this is offset by a lighter cassette. 1x dinner plates are heavy. More reliable? Not in my experience. The worst thing that can happen to a 2x is that you end up riding a 1x…. With di2 I’ve never dropped a front chain, nor got it stuck between the chainrings. Also, 2x grx rear mech has a clutch too.
Ultimately, I suppose 1x will work for some, but it’s not the way forward for any sort of riding that involves road or smooth gravel. The jumps between gears are just too big. Campag sort of solved it with Ekar as the jumps at the faster end of the cassette are much smaller for when you’re likely to be moving faster. But it’s a compromise.

[monsterthemink]

1x all the way for me. I remember the old times when MTBs had 3x systems and I hated them for so many reasons: never had much use for the big chainring, dropped chains, rubbing front mechs, having to think about how to avoid cross chaining, the sheer amount of gunk accumulating between the chainrings, etc. If I´d ever go back to 2x it would only be with electronic shifting which I also hate because of the exorbitant price tag and the need to keep batteries charged.

[Joelu]

Commenting to appease the algorithm gods. Gonna make a 1x my first bike. Thanks for rhe reassurance its a good decision.

[celpabedn]

I hate it that we do not have a say in it, because of the Pro's. I want a modern bike with 2x10...

[michafedorowicz]

I totally disagree for it to be cheaper, maybe for initial cost of parts thats true but in the long run smaller rear casettes are much cheaper. Having 2 chainrings in the front also makes it to last longer (the bigger the chainring it lasts longer). You probably wear chain faster too. I basically like idea of 1x but i always end at the 2x setup just because i have more options and dont have to choose between climbing gear vs speed. Also the point about 1x being more reliable is kinda skewed since i never saw broken front deraileur.

[senasplage]

real question : how much of this 1X trend/fashion is linked to the industry willing to make us change our groupesets ?