You have probably heard terms like 3×9, 2×10, or 1×9 thrown around in discussions about mountain bike gearing. In case you are not familiar with the jargon, here is a quick review.

When someone says 3×9 (pronounced “three by nine”) they are referring to the setup of the chain rings and cassette on their bike. The number 3 is how many chain rings they have on the front and 9 is the number of cogs on the cassette. Therefore a 1×9 would be 1 chain ring and a 9 speed cassette, etc. You get the idea.

A typical 3×9 crankset from RaceFace.

Additionally, chain rings and cassettes come in different sizes. Both are measured by the number of teeth they have, and if you’re mathematically inclined you can use this info, along with the wheel diameter and length of your crank arms, to calculate your total effective gear ratio. I am not mathematically inclined, so let’s just skip that part.

For years mountain bikes have employed a triple front chain ring and a 7, 8, or 9 speed cassette. This is a tried and true design and it gives you an extremely low granny gear for long, steep climbs, and a decent big ring for haulin’ the mail on flat or downhill sections.

However, there are some limitations to this setup.

Weight: Three chain rings weigh more than two … or one.

Clearance: When crossing logs, rocks, etc, the big ring can scrape, and bent or broken teeth are generally the result. (On the chain ring, not necessarily your teeth.)

Crossing Your Chain: This is discussed at length in this forum post but here are the cliff notes. Every rear derailleur has a range of gears that it can handle. It is usually expressed as a number of teeth, and on a typical 3×9 system it will be somewhat less than the difference between your largest chainring and smallest cog, or vice versa. Shifting into one of these extremes will result in poor pedaling efficiency and will accelerate wear on your chain and gears.

Derailleur Cage Length: The greater the difference between your large and small gears, the longer your derailleur cage needs to be to take up the chain slack. The longer the derailleur cage is, the more likely it is to get whacked on stuff.

One obvious solution is to just get rid of the big ring and maybe replace it with a bashguard. Many riders, especially here in Colorado, have done just that, leaving the small and middle rings. This is a workable solution, however without that big ring, long stints on the flats can be really tedious.

A ‘ghetto’ 2×9 setup with a bashguard installed.

So what is a modern mountain biker to do?

Enter the 2×10 setup!

But wait, isn’t that essentially what the bashguard setup is? 

Not exactly…

A typical 3×9 setup will have something like a 44t-32t-24t chain ring setup, (t = number of teeth) and an 11-34t cassette. There are some variations such as older 8 speed cassettes with 11-30t or 32t, and newer 10 speed cassettes with 11-36t. The latter is the norm on most 29ers.

So what those clever bike engineers have done is take the traditional triple chain ring and “split the difference” with a two ring setup. The current offerings from SRAM employ a 26t-39t setup, whereas Shimano has a 26t-38t or a 28t-40t.

Okay, I get the concept, but why do I care?

Admittedly, a 2×10 setup is the very definition of compromise, as there isn’t as big of a big ring and the granny gear is a little less granny and a little more gear, but there are some advantages.

Weight: Comparing otherwise identical Race Face Turbine crank sets, the double shaves 55 grams off the weight of the triple.

Clearance: While not as radical as the old school two ring setup, the new style 2 speed cranks are still smaller than the traditional big ring so it will scrape less (and yes, there are bashguards for a 39t big ring).

Crossing Your Chain: This is my favorite feature. On a 2×10 setup you can use all 10 gears with either chain ring; there is no chain crossing. On the trail this simplicity is awesome.

Derailleur Cage Length: Depending on your exact setup, you can most likely get away with a shorter, mid cage rear derailleur.

I recently made the switch from 3×9 to 2×10 and I am completely sold on the concept, however, it may not be for everyone. The slightly smaller big ring isn’t much of an issue, but out here in the mountains the lack of a true granny gear is very noticeable. I found myself needing to keep up a slightly higher cadence in order to avoid stalling out when climbing. It was brutal at first, but once I got used to it, I really liked it. And after a month or so, I found myself significantly faster on climbs.

There is nothing wrong with a traditional 3 chain ring approach or a homebrew 2x with a bashguard, but if you’re bored with your current setup and want to shave a little weight while losing some complexity, then you should definitely give 2×10 a try.

At Interbike last year I wrote about some new products from e*thirteen and finally, after a few good months of testing, I’m ready to share my review of the Downhill crank and LG1+ chainguide. Read on to see how these components performed on the trail!

e*thirteen DH crank

The new e*thirteen Downhill crank has some unique features that I don’t think any other manufacturers have matched yet. The massive 30mm heat-treated and nickle-coated spindle features a polygon interface, resulting in 100% mating surface contact. The spindle is forged and machined 7050 series aluminum for exceptional stiffness and strength without adding too much mass. All unnecessary material has been removed from both the spider area as well as the back and sides of the crank arms which keeps the assembled weight down around 870 grams, including bottom bracket. Of course the actual weight will vary depending on the spindle length (113mm or 123mm) and crank arm length (165mm, 170mm, or 175mm).

Due to the unique 30mm spindle size and corresponding bottom bracket shell, e*thirteen includes the tool required to torque the shell in place. Speaking  of the bottom bracket, this unit is a bit different in the installation phase. It comes together very much like a BB30-type system using a wave washer on the thrust side and shims on the non-drive side, all pressed onto the bottom bracket bearing shields.

LG1+ chainguide

Along with the DH crank I also installed the LG1+ chainguide on my DH rig. The LG1+ is one of the lightest guides that e*thirteen has available (second only to a new carbon unit which just hit the market). The LG1+ mounts on the existing ISCG05 tabs on your rig or with the use of the provided adapter (an ISCG OLD version is also available). Made of lightweight machined aluminum and impact resistant thermoplastics on the guard, Taco, and Tech 3 Stealth Idler pulley cage, the LG1+ represents a top tier product. To further reduce weight, alloy bolts and hardware were incorporated into the Taco and Idler as well. The Taco, Tech 3 Stealth Idler pulley, and rear plate are all adjustable to fine tune the chainguide and ensure a perfect fit.

Installation

Installing both the Downhill crank and LG1+ on my DH bike took a bit over an hour since there are some critical steps and measurements that must be made accurately for these units to work correctly. Following all the documentation is paramount. I would not recommend installing either product unless you are comfortable using Vernier calipers and other precision measuring tools.

Installation starts with carefully measuring and checking that the bottom bracket shell has been faced and that the opposing sides are parallel. After this the BB shell must be within +/- 0.50mm of the appropriate shell width, otherwise things will start to go south. Once that is done, installing the BB cups (and required spacers) is easy using the provided tool and a torque wrench. After that you’re going to have to follow the directions carefully to find the correct number of shims for your bike. On my bike I ended up with three shims and one spacer on the crank side for the correct BB positioning.

Don’t put away the tools just yet because now it’s time to correctly space and place the LG1+ chainguide. To save some time I looped the guide on the drive side then placed my crank and torqued it in place. After that I carefully started adding the washers provided with the LG1+ to get the correct chainline. It’s a bit tricky fitting in the washers once the crank is in place, but here’s a tip: cut a piece of thick card stock to look like a miniature shuffle board paddle to hold and feed the washers. Once the chainline is done, fit the Taco and the Tech 3 pulley correctly (the back is indexed with the corresponding chainring). Fortunately the e*thirteen instructions are clear and nicely illustrated.

On the trail

During my testing I certainly struck more than my share of rocks with both the crank arms and the bash guard. Fortunately my Banshee’s ISCG mounts are very robust and they didn’t suffer at all. The LG1+ chainguide, unlike other systems including the SRS+, transmits impact forces through the fixed bash guard into the actual mount and then to the mounts themselves. By the end of my tests with the LG1+, I did find some hairline cracks on the replaceable portion of the guard. I’m guessing I would need to replace the lower guard (a $50 part) some time in the future, perhaps after another couple dozen hits.

As for the overall performance of the Downhill crank and LG1+, they both worked well together. The crank is definitely one of the stiffest I have ever ridden – standing on the pedals through rock gardens, doing 10ft+ drops and everything in between, these felt solid. One of the things I personally love doing on the bike is to pump through the flatter sections of the slopes and boost it over obstacles. With a decent platform pedal these cranks really do a great job at keeping me on the bike, and when I land there’s no hint of flexing. Having periods of extended dusty conditions and even times of drippy mud, the bottom bracket showed no signs of ingesting any debris. After every ride I typically take the bike apart and inspect all the points of stress and so I’m happy to report that the crank shows no signs of failing any time soon.

Other than the small cracks which started to develop on the replaceable bash portion of the chainguide, the LG1+ performed flawlessly (cracks could have started due to an incompatable lube I used, see e*thirteen for further details). Not once on even the gnarliest slopes did the chainguide drop my chain. Another great thing was the silent performance of the LG1+ – if I didn’t look down I would have forgotten it was even on the bike. Some other brands cause chain rub on a block or wear guide, which does two things: first, it generates noise. Second, it induces drag. For me, I choose drag free whenever possible.

For $300 you can get the DH crank (no chainring as you gotta get a 4×104 BCD) while the the LG1+ is $150. I would definitely recommend the crank to anyone as it can take a beating for a long time. I would reserve the LG1+ more for the competitive person or someone who needs to get their bike as light as possible. Otherwise the SRS+ would be a better choice simply for longevity reasons. Check out e*thirteen for yourself and see these and other cool items including sweet 1×9 and 1×10 gear.

Thanks to the folks at e*thirteen for providing these products for review.

Here is yet another great MTB product from the Great White North Shore for ya, eh. Race Face was nice enough to send down the Respond component group for my dream project bike, the Opus Nelson Freeride. Today I’m going to give you the skinny on just the crankset – you’ll have to wait to hear about the rest later.

Whoever said you can’t have performance, light weight, and low cost in one package obviously hasn’t see the Respond crankset from Race Face. At just $160 MSRP, this crank is a big time value. Not only are you getting a high performance crank at a budget price but you’re also getting DH strength at all-mountain weights.

The Respond crankset is all about the features. Made from 7050 aluminum, the crank arms are not only relatively light but super strong. The newly designed DH Race bottom bracket, which starts out its life as a forging and is then machined in a CNC, keeps the crank arms all lined up and spinning smoothly. The over-sized bearing cups hold 35% more bearings and are packed with Phil Woods lube to prevent water wash out; and Race Face keeps it all contained using completely revamped triple seals.

The “Whitemare” model pictured above (love that name), comes with a ton of fitting options. Choose from crank arm lengths of 165 / 170 / 175mm and BB cup sizes including 68/ 73mm / 83mm. On top of that you also get choices on ring sizes. I opted to get a single chain ring with 36T and a matching light weight bash guard.

Installing the Respond took a bit of work but nothing a semi-skilled home mechanic couldn’t handle. Just make sure you have all the necessary tools on hand: an external BB tool such as the Park BBT-9 and an 8mm allen wrench or 8mm allen socket and wrench. Seeing that everyone out there has their own favorite chain retention device and various chainlines, it is also wise to have a ISIS crank arm puller.

Once you have all the tools gathered, it’s time to remove the old BB cups and give the BB shell a good cleaning.  After that, read over the instructions and pay close attention to the width of your BB shell so you can match the correct number of spacers and get their respective positioning (keeping in mind the chain retention device if you’re using one). Once the spacers are configured, tighten up the cups to get the shell all squared away. Install the cranks and check alignment.

For my installation I found I had to shuffle the provided spacers to get a no noise condition with the chainrings and top guide on my e-thirteen SRS+. After all is said and done, expect to spend about 30 minutes getting the cranks set up. Be sure to check the final torque (61 N-m) and don’t forget the pedals before you head out.

Hitting the trails with the Race Face Respond crankset was awesome. Off jumps and rockgardens there was zero perceivable flex from the cranks on landing. Hammering the bike in rock gardens and bashing the crank on the occasional rock didn’t seem to affect the crank at all and I really enjoyed the smooth pedal feel from the new bottom bracket. Even after a few good rides with all kinds of crud and repeated washings, I didn’t notice any loss in bearing smoothness or performance. Clearly the bearing cup and seal re-design made a big difference in how well this unit seals out contamination.

The beefy DH specific chain ring and the relatively light bash ring also make a good combo on the trail. The strong chain ring kept my chain moving along nicely and the bash ring saved the teeth of my chainring more than once. The bash ring also kept the chain from getting pulverized, giving me a confident feeling when wailing over the sharp and unforgiving Canadian Shield granite. I found myself looking a bit further down the trail than usual instead of worrying about my cranks getting bashed.

Stay tuned for more on the Race Face Respond group as well as some other great goodies from RF as well. If you’re on the fence on getting a new AM/DH/FR crank, then check these out for sure.

Specs from Race Face

BUILT FOR:AM/DH/FR
SIZE: 165,170,175 68/73, 83mm BB SHELL
WEIGHT: 1092g (22,32 & BASH)
RING CONFIGURATION: 22,32 & BASH
24,36 & BASH
DH & BASH
DH RING
COLOR: Whitemare

I would like to thanks the great folks from Race Face for providing the Respond cranks for a review. Ehh..

Having been around mountain biking for sometime I have been blessed and I guess cursed with many products, some good and some… well, let’s just leave it at that. Anyhow, in this review I want to talk about a great mountain bike crank that will not break the bank or just break period. The Race Face Atlas crank is designed for all-mountain and light freeriding plus it’s a solid crank for clydesdale riders.

The Atlas shares the same X-type bottom bracket as both the Deus and Evolve cranks. Installation is a breeze and I recommend adding some loctite to the threads and torque the bolt to the correct value of about 30-50 ft/lbs.

In terms of performance, the first thing you’ll notice about this crank is that it feels very smooth underfoot with a solid feel and no noticeable twisting. You can really put the power down with these cranks and even if you’re a clydesdale you won’t notice any flex while climbing. Shifting is crisp and positive with very little chance of a mis-shift thanks to the Shimano-like stainless steel ramps and pins on the rings.

Despite the great crank arm strength I don’t recommend power shifting with this crank – you could bend a tooth or two. I did a fast power shift with my Race Face Atlas and noticed afterwards when I was cleaning that I did in fact bend a tooth. That being said, I’m sure most riders won’t encounter this through the course of normal use.

There are a few Race Face Atlas options this year with a beefier version called the Atlas Freeride. You can order the Atlas with 22,36, bash or 22, 32, bash or a triple – your choice. The Freeride is available with 4 different options depending on your needs.

After a whole season of crossing rivers, logs, dirt, mud, and the occasional squirrel (just kidding), my Atlas shown very little signs of wear on the rings and the bottom bracket bearings are still top notch. Bottom line: The Atlas is a great all-mountain crank that shifts flawlessly and keeps performing. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy the Race Face Atlas again – though I probably won’t need to since the thing is so darn durable!