Chad991

I have a problem I'm hoping you guys could help with. I have a Cannondale Trail 7 29er. I was kinda clueless when I bought it and was told I could justupgeadewhen I wanted . Lately I have been riding bikes at work, they have the sram 1×12 gx..wow those are pretty slick bikes. I wanted to switch mine over to the sram nx or go 1×12 but was told by the lbs that sold me the bike thati couldn't due to it not being a boost frame??? And also my hub wouldn't do the 1x...is this right or wrong, would it just benefit me looking for a better frame to build on?

eshew

You probably have a shimano freehub which isn't compatible with 12 speed SRAM GX, that requires a Sram Driver hub. What you can do, if you want is most likely upgrade to a Shimano 11 speed XT drivetrain. That will allow you to go 1X and save you a bunch of cash compared to SRAM. I've got both 11 speed Shimano & 12 speed GX bikes. 12 speed GX only benefit is the 50t rear cog compared to the 46 on shimano. The shimano shift's better as well.

In terms of going 1X, shouldn't be an issue if your crank can accept bolt on chain rings. Another option is upgrading your crank and BB to a shimano SLX setup.

Chad991

Actually,that is good news, I like shimano too. I was going g to buy the package kinda like this

This group? Deore XT

qclabrat

you can probably reuse the crank, unless you like matchy-matchy

Chad991

And with shimano,I won't have to muck with the hub?

nomadmax 

What I know about the 1x thing you can put in a thimble. But aren't the 1x chainring teeth different than the standard 2x, 3x versions? Different inasmuch that they're designed to help keep the chain on?

DeadGrandpa

I have about the same amount of drive train knowledge, and I am aware of a "narrow-wide" protocol in the 1x version that prevents interchange of chains and chain rings from 1x to 2x or 3x.

qclabrat

good point, a NW chainring will still be cheaper than a new crank and BB.
You could even experiment with oval rings if that's your thing. I have one bike with an oval ring, and I like it, but not enough to switch all my bikes over.
Between clutch derailleurs and the NW, x-shifting and drop chains have been almost non-existent for me. I don't miss the extra gear ratios and hate some jumps, but for MTBs can deal with it. Though, I personally don't get road/gravel bikes with the 1x. I'm too picky with the right cadence over long periods to have only 11 or 12 choices. 2x furever for 700c...

qclabrat

btw: good to see a fellow pocket llama owner. The BF is with my brother at the moment, for packables, currently riding a Airnamal Joey. /thread steal

Canker

12 speed will work fine you just have to run a cassette like Sunrace's 11-50 12 speed cassette that still use the standard freehub.

Chad991

Well thanks all for the good news, I am going to go with the shimano like others have suggested...probably order the build kit I posted above and enlist Nomadmax to run point on putting it together for me,lol....I'm not nearly the bicyclists most of you guys are and I doubt I would ever notice the difference between an 11 or 12 speed out in the dirt.