2X10 Babble

I've finally ridden enough on the Superfly 100 to spew my thoughts on the 2x10 drivetrain. I know this isn't about trail building or advocacy but, hey, it's about bikes and how they move so I figured what the hell, this blog can use all the editorial content it can get.



My experience is on the Sram X0 2x10 drivetrain with a 39/26 in the front and a 12/36 on the backside. At first I wasn't sure what to think with all the hype about no dropped chains, no chainsuck, you'll ride faster, chains don't wear out, you don't need a chain, whatever the hype machine had to say in Mountain Bike Faction.



Well....



At Ouachita I dropped the chain off the large chainring twice ... and twice ripped some sweet metal flake paint clean off the drive side chainstay.



In Taos on the steep South Boundary descent I dropped the chain off the big chainring and pedal/jam-sucked the chain causing the 10 speed chain to twist a link. I didn't know why it shifted like a worn out a VW Bus until the next day while cleaning the bike.



But….



Other than those two semi-major incidents of droppage the system has been terrific. The shifter pods took a bit to get used with the upshift action being another thumb-activated push action. Unlike the Shimano system you press a smaller paddle just behind the main thumb downshifted. The shifting has been crisp and tight; on steep climbs the rear derailleur moves easily and deliberately when the going gets tough.



The gearing has been the best part. Unlike a 3x10 system where you learn about the badness of cross-chaining or how lame you are to use the granny or wonder why the big ring exists because it's rarely used when you're ACTUALLY mountain biking on singletrack, well, the 2x10 system condenses the gears down into a much more useable range. I found myself riding FASTER because the gears matched closer together and I didn't have to think about the shifting - there's no cross-chaining voodoo and the larger ring is used more often than not simply because the gear mavens have offered use a pizza wheel 36er to get us up those steep climbs.



After riding a 2x10 drivetrain most of 2011, I am convinced I won't be going back to a 3x10 ever - unless it's on my existing bikes. What I mean is that I won't be buying a new 3 ring crank in my future, not with our easier Missouri terrain. And to be as minimal as possible, I would say most people would enjoy a 1x10 with the newly available 36 hanging on the back. Those two extra teeth can conquer worlds… well, almost.



While I wouldn't say you should just go out and replace your perfectly good system, I would say that you should investigate the 2x10 options out there offered by Sram and Shimano if you are building up a new bike or have come to the conclusion that your current drivetrain is played out. I've checked complete systems and they do have that sticker shock going for them, however, the new XT keeps the price within reason and the x7 or x9 is supposedly pretty good stuff.



All of the above ramblings are solely mine and I don't take responsibility for your knee surgery should you discover the 2x10 setup is not for you. However, if you have any XT or XX product laying around I might be interested in applying it to some bikes for further testing.

Field Test-- Fanno Bull Saw

I don't know what's nerdier, using a hand saw to cut out deadfall, or writing an article about it. Anyway, most people probably never give much thought to how those trees laying across the trail magically disappear. There are several ways: trail users remove smaller ones that can be moved by one or more people, or cut with a pack saw;  staff in many parks remove them once they are notified of the location;  or GORC sawyers, with the park's permission, cut them out. There are 5 or 6 active sawyers right now, so the same guys keep getting called on.

After spending a long evening recently dealing with Stinkbait's finicky Poulan to remove a couple of trees on Dogwood and DeClue, I decided chainsaws were a real pain. Not having any desire to own one, got me looking for alternatives, and I came across the Fanno Bull Saw, which is billed as a one-man crosscut saw.

I figured that if I could cut out these trees on Deer Run shown in the pictures, I could probably do anything because:
--the tree was green
--the crown was caught up in another tree putting it in compression
--the diameter was ~10-14"
-- the tree was high  off the ground and couldn't be supported it until it got lower
--it was hot
--my assistant had a short attention span

To make a short story short, it took about 45 minutes to make 4+ cuts. I think it would have been much faster had I used wedges, and all of the above stuff hadn't been against me. A chainsaw would have probably been done with everything in about 10 minutes or less, assuming everything went as expected. Overall, the time getting ready + time spent cutting probably balanced out.

Summary:
This saw works pretty smoothly, but was certainly more work than a chainsaw. The good things: much smaller investment; no time loading up bob-trailer and necessary equipment; no need for all the chainsaw safety equipment (chaps, earplugs); quiet, no smelly exhaust. I'll use it again for uncomplicated ones, but will probably leave the more difficult ones for a chainsaw.

Edit 3/30/11: Since I wrote the original post last fall, I've used the saw again at Greensfelder and SIUE. It really makes pretty quick work of trees up to about 10", and usually only takes a short time to get through, depending on how fit I am at the time... I've run into a few problems with trees that were lying flat on the ground, but as long as they're elevated enough to get the saw underneath as well, it hasn't been that big a deal.