Can I change my rear cassette to get lower gearing?

[north woods gal]

Wow! Great thread, everyone.

Emily, I have three MTB/fats with the 1x systems and love it. They have huge rear cassettes of 10-36 all the way up to 10-42s. Love the simplicity of this system, both for the sake of operation and one less thing to go wrong, plus front derailleurs do tend to be more of a headache than rear derailleurs. Don't know if the system will ever make it over to drop bar bikes, but, right now, it's taking the MTB/Fat world by storm. All my future bikes, when possible, will be 1x systems.

As for standing in the pedals, probably as a result of all my MTB work where I am up off the seat so much, I now stand to pedal quite often, even with the roadies. You do have to develop both the skill and the strength to do it on a regular basis, though. You're working a different set of muscles and so on. I find myself standing on the road bikes to mostly avoid having to shift a lot. Don't know about the rest of you, but on a long ride, I find a lot of shifting to get tiresome and annoying. Usually use standing to crest short humps or the top of hills to avoid another shift. Sounds counter-intuitive, but when I stand to pedal, even on a hill, I often shift up, not down, to be in an efficient gear. If I time it right, my speed either stays the same or actually increases, compared to remaining seated to pedal.

[emily_in_nc]

I agree, NWG, I stand with some frequency to crest a smaller hill just because it's easier than shifting, often. It does take more upper body strength and aerobic capacity than sitting and spinning, so I find that if I am getting tired on a ride, I stand less and less than when I'm feeling "frisky" and energetic.

I think it would be great if the 1x gearing system would come over to the roadie world! I guess the key would be getting the right size ring in the front for your style of riding, strength, etc. It might be more difficult for manufacturers to choose a chainring that would work for most riders in that kind of setup.

Crankin, I do know about downshifting to the granny by first upshifting ahead of time. When I first started riding fairly seriously on the road, I did a lot of reading on proper techniques and also learned a lot from my DH and folks in our club. So I actually do do that frequently when approaching a hill that I know is going to require the granny. A few in our old neighborhood in NC come immediately to mind.

I think part of the issue here is that we are traveling most of the time, so I am very often riding in unfamiliar areas on roads or paths I've never scoped out before. Sometimes, especially on a new route, it can be hard to visually judge a hill on first sight, or if it curves partway up. To me, part of becoming stronger and faster is not to use the granny unnecessarily and be spinning crazily, but of course to have it there if I need it. If I see a monster climb coming up, like some of the ones we did out west and in the northern plains last year (Teddy Roosevelt NP Scenic Loop springs to mind -- ack!), I shift to the granny in plenty of time. I think my issue is more with hills that look doable in the middle ring, but they end up being a bit longer or steeper than expected, so my cadence drops, and I think "shoot, I should have shifted to the granny back aways...but if I just had ONE more gear, I would be fine in the middle chainring. I am definitely a spinner but have been very fortunate not to have any real knee issues even if I do have to mash a little to get over the occasional hill.

The 42-25 (middle ring to largest in back) combination does not sound like cross-chaining (i.e., no ugly noises result). My understanding of cross-chaining was always that it occurred when in the inner ring up front and outer 2-3 gears in back, or the outer ring in front and the inner 2-3 gears in back, but that in the middle ring all gears in back were fair game. Not so? If that's the case...I've been doing it wrong for a few decades. It's certainly possible!

[emily_in_nc]

Since you want lower gearing, using a 12 to 29 (or 12 to 30) cogset would be within the limits. Shimano does make a 12-30 10-speed cassette. This would give you one step lower gearing using the “30 tooth front x 30 tooth rear” combo. This ought to be low enough for road riding.

If you do an internet search, you’ll find that some people have successfully exceeded Shimano’s capacity spec.

P.S. If you decide to replace you current cassette, you should also get a new chain.

Thank you very much, Jean. This is exactly the kind of information I was trying to find out. I would love to be able to go to a 30 in back and agree that a 30x30 should be fine as my lowest gear. If not, I will walk!

My DH is going to be unhappy if I have to get a new chain. We always buy expensive stainless Wipperman chains, and it hasn't been that long since he replaced mine. But I know that you are right. I'll get him to look up when he last changed it out -- perhaps it has been longer than I think.

[Crankin]

Yes, you will have to get a new chain...
I had a compact with an 11-30 on my Trek Madone rental on my trip to France and it was fine.
Cross chaining does not necessarily mean noises, although that certainly is a sign! If you see your chain in a diagonal position, you are cross chained. Maybe not one cog past straight across, but usually with the 42 middle ring, in the 25 you are definitely at risk of dropping the chain. I say this from experience.