Removing your front derailleur: pros and cons

Author	Message

DeityNike

Posted: Jun 2, 2009 at 12:12	Quote
What are the pros and cons to removing your front derailleur and getting a chainguide instead? What disciplin is this best for and why? Does it change the weight at all? Is it just for looks? I have a norco fluid and am thinking of this option.

odin333

Posted: Jun 2, 2009 at 17:22

Quote

pros.

-less grinding when in odd gearing.
-one less thing to break
-most likely will lighten up the bike
-lower chance of chain falling off (if your running a chain guide after)
-you can run a bash/taco and won't be breaking teeth or worrying about gear clearance.

cons.

-less options. your either stuck with a bike that will climb well, pedal flat well, or go downhill well as far as gearing goes.
-costly, you will most likely have to buy a chain guide.

thats all i can think of.

DeityNike

Posted: Jun 3, 2009 at 7:07	Quote
Well as it is I stay in the same gear all the time anyway. I only use my rear shifting so it seems like a waste to have something on my bike I don't use. Do you take off the shift lever once you remove the derailleur? It seems kinda odd to me to have a lop-sided handle bar, but it also seems kinda weird to have a shifter that doesn't do anything but keep up appearances.

SpikeX

Posted: Jun 3, 2009 at 7:21

Quote

DeityNike wrote:

Well as it is I stay in the same gear all the time anyway. I only use my rear shifting so it seems like a waste to have something on my bike I don't use. Do you take off the shift lever once you remove the derailleur? It seems kinda odd to me to have a lop-sided handle bar, but it also seems kinda weird to have a shifter that doesn't do anything but keep up appearances.

Just take off the shifter. You'll get used to not having it on one side after a while, and you'll probably end up loving the clean look you get with no shifter, just a brake.

mr-wilson

Posted: Jun 3, 2009 at 7:38

Quote

Just made the switch myself, went from a 3-ring 44/32/22 combo to a single 38t ring and E13 LG-1.

So far,

- Cleans up the cockpit a little more, as a downhiller used to only having the one shifter (plus having X9 rear and LX front was weird)

- One less cable to worry about and tune

- Lost weight......nothing major, but offsets the brakes I put on it

- Don't have to worry about dropping the chain

- Can ride the bike and reliably in more forms of riding (XC/AM/and awkward DJ)

- Only neg. so far is some hills I can't get up......though most of them I never could and lost some MPH on the top end, but not the end of the world.

DeityNike

Posted: Jun 4, 2009 at 7:14	Quote
I suppose I stick to my middle ring (32??) is it a big difference going to a 38 pedalling-wise? Can I just keep the 32 and physically remove the other one? I use the bashguard on my third ring.

NS-FreeRider

Posted: Jun 4, 2009 at 7:32	Quote
With a front der. you have more cables and more weight. But for climbing you need a small chainring, but if you don't do that you don't need a front der., so why do you have one then!? By downhilling will a chainguide help to hold your chain on your chainring. And you have more different chainrings in several numbers of teeth's.

mr-wilson

Posted: Jun 4, 2009 at 10:32

Quote

DeityNike wrote:

I suppose I stick to my middle ring (32??) is it a big difference going to a 38 pedalling-wise? Can I just keep the 32 and physically remove the other one? I use the bashguard on my third ring.

You can stick with the middle ring you have, though suggest looking at a 36t. Nice thing is you can try the 32 and see if its enough. You may find yourself spinning quickly on flats as you've run out of gearing (the 36 may solve this, I spin pretty well with the 38 ) or it maybe more than enough. I removed both the granny and larger ring for mine and added a larger middle ring. As you said you can get a bash to fit no problem.

Removing the 3 stock rings/spacers saved 217 grams, Shimano LX shifter/derailleur/cable save 322 grams. So it's 1.2 pounds total (just for those curious). Most new guides from E13 are around 200 grams and my E13 38t ring is 54 grams.

Below is an example of someone else whos done it and fit a bash (E13 chainguide). He's kept his stock middle ring like you're considering.

3436350

NS-FreeRider

Posted: Jun 4, 2009 at 11:12

Quote

DeityNike wrote:

I suppose I stick to my middle ring (32??) is it a big difference going to a 38 pedalling-wise? Can I just keep the 32 and physically remove the other one? I use the bashguard on my third ring.

I now have 36 tooth chainring with a 12-23 ulterga cassette. That ride so nice, it's good for trails(not downhill) and good for downhilling too! With 36 tooth you're not padalling to heavy or to light... the chain is always in the middle of the cassette

DeityNike

Posted: Jun 10, 2009 at 10:57	Quote
I think I'll try that for sure then. Still not sold on the 36-38. At least not yet cuz I'm so use to staying on my 32 with no problems. Thanks for all your comments.

thebluesbox

Posted: Jun 10, 2009 at 12:07	Quote
I removed mine on my DJ build because I never use it and I dont mis it one bit, I always run in the middle ring. cleaner frame look, less parts to fall off and get outa wack. If your not using it chunk it. Besides Im thinking about going with a single front ring/crank set up anyway so that I can put a chain guide on it so I wont need a front mech anyway.

nfiorito

Posted: Jun 10, 2009 at 12:16	Quote
I took my big and granny rings off a number of years ago and never looked back. I run a Blackspire 34T middle ring with a Blackspire chainguide. It's quiet, clean-looking, low maintenance, and unless you're racing xc or something, you won't really need anything else (make sure you have an 11-34 cassette as opposed to an 11-32). I really prefer the single-ring setup.

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