Here's a Link to my Channel : Many people ask me about how many gears I have. And I answer 10 gears, And they freak out. and, yes… that does deserve some explanation.
As I’ve seen, many of you are kind of… ‘shocked’. After all, this is a good bike and I paid a good $1000 for it.
So why does it only have ten gears, while other less costly bikes have 21 or 24?
Is it really true that the more you pay for a bike, the less gears you get?
Yes, from a point, and don’t worry, because it’s actually a good thing. It ‘s a trend among bike manufacturing companies. And there are many reasons for it. It’s not always “the more the merrier”.
You see, this is a front chainring, and beyond a certain cost, bikes can have only one.
Before we start, note that a system with one front ring is called a one-by. Two rings, a two by, and three rings are collectively called a three-by.
You may have seen more expensive bikes at your local bike shop with only two, while cheaper ones have three.
There are reasons for that, starting with Weight, or lack there of.
With only one front chainring, you lose the weight of two more or one more, lightening your bike. A Lot.
And then there’s chain – noises, or… lack there of. Less chain noise equals a quieter experience out on the trails, and more pleasure with it.
And then comes room for error, or… again, lack of it. With less rings and the lack of complexity of a front derailleur, there’s much less that could go wrong.
Dropped a chain? No problem, there’s enough space for your hands to place the chain back on the tooth of the ring.
On a 2 by or 3 by, this space may be very, very limited.
Oh, an did I mention that with less up front, there’s a much lower chance of the chain coming off?
And it’s true. My chain has only come off twice in the last 10 months. And none of them happened while I was riding the bike.
And finally, here comes my personal favourite advantage.…
Simplicity. With only one derailleur and shifter to deal with, it’s way easier on your mind.
You don’t have to learn a list of combinations for gears in the front with gears in the back. You can just… shift to your heart’s content, with no worries in the world.
There are more advantages too, which won’t fit on this word document. But now, I hope you see why you get less gears when you spend more.
If you want more proof, just look at Seth’s bikes on Seth’s bike hacks.
If you have any comments, questions or ideas… I don’t have to tell you where to put ‘em down.
Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed today’s ride, and I’ll see you on the next one.
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