The Pinkbike Podcast: Episode 89 - The Derailleur Pickle

 Levy wants to do an episode on F1 but wont cover Fatbikes ridding in the snow? I thought this was a podcast for folks that love bikes? P:rehabs we need some hardy folks on you editorial board and not just tender West Coasters? Winter riding is a huge amount of fun and even though I love summer and dirt I actually look forward to sliding across the ice and snow.

I know it’s niche, but it really is great riding and shouldn’t be dismissed, not if you’re really do love bikes.

 Question for next week: would building more aluminum bikes make it easier for bike companies to produce locally and ease some of the supply chain issues? I know it's better for the environment and obviously better for our wallets... why aren't there more aluminum bikes?

 Why can't we go to smaller chainrings instead of bigger cogs? Do people really need 32x10? I feel like at that point I'm better off tucking or pumping rather than pedaling (except in an xc race scenario). I'm running a 28t front ring on my enduro bike with 10-42 and I feel like I could still go smaller in the front.

 I've run 12 speed GX, and (currently on one bike) XT with an e13 Helix Cassette in addition to my trusty Single Speed hardtail. Both shift really well, but feel like a step down in terms of reliability compared to my years on 11 speed stuff.

Yes- there are places where that extra gear really feels better.

However... I live in NW Arkansas where 500ft is a big elevation change, and I've decided that 11 speed XT is the best most reliable thing I've run here. I would LOVE to see a high end 10 or 11 speed option from Sram or Shimano with a new cassette that goes from 10-45 or 10-48 and works with a medium cage derailleur. The Sunrace 11-48 is good if you don't mind the weight. (around 500g)

In the mean time, 10-42 gets the job done, and I find the benefits outweigh the drawbacks in this terrain.
Did I mention 1) cheaper 2) lighter 3) you can actually find parts right now 4) more durable and reliable 5) slightly easier to work on

 I would 100% listen to Levy and Henry talk F1 for an hour. Make it happen bois! Also Levy is dead right, that was an INCREDIBLE drive from Hamilton last week.

 @mikelevy I disagree with AXS.
I think the reliability of AXS overall is much better. The derailleur is that much stronger than a mechanical. The parallelogram axles on a mechanical get bent pretty easily, making the top gear not working well. AXS derailleur are that much stronger, and the way they get out of the way is a big difference. Now that applies to places like Sedona, Moab or other very rough terrain, where hitting your derailleur is frequent. As far as pure shifting, I d say they are similar when everything is brand new, but that doesn't last long on mechanicals. Also i found that the cable routing has a big impact on how well the mechanical shifts. I have a couple 2 years old AXS derailleur that I still use without any issue, but i can't say the same for mechanicals with the amount of time I spend on trails

 I'm sure it has everything to do with the terrain I ride and they way I ride but, 90% of the time I'm skipping 1 or 2 cogs when shifting up or down the cassette. For me, a 10 speed cassette 10-46 or 50 seems ideal. I'm not sure I would even notice the jumps between gears.

 More cogs are to keep jumps between gears at a good level while providing a larger gear range. Going to a single front was bad for total drive range, so they're trying to make up for that. 6:1 total range is a good goal. 5:1 is a bit small.

Remember that bikes are used in all sorts of places, not just the PNW.

 I haven't listened yet, but if Shimano 12 speed with the smaller 45t cassette and shorter derailleur doesn't come up, that's a big miss. Haven't broke a derailleur since switching to this setup.

 I ran SRAM gripshift from 3X9, to 2X10, 2X11 and was running it on 1X12 until June 2021. I loved it found it reliable in bad, muddy conditions, or very cold where you start to lose control in your finders to change gears.

My new bike came with trigger shifters recently (first complete bike build in a long time) so I just ran with it and didn't bother to change over to gripshift.

 How did a conversation about triple rings and front deraileurs not also include a reference to those dark days when we would all pull the largest chainring off to swap it with an ENVE or RaceFace bashguard...or better yet ripping it down to one and running a MRP chainguide?

 Sorry haters, but Gripshift is the best, for single and multi shifts, and reducing clutter on the bar. The SRAM and Shimano paddles and triggers are terrible. I’ll never get my dream of AXS gripshift, until it’s made after-market and costs a bomb. God damn it!

 I'll take an F1 podcast with a side order of Hammerschmidt V2, thanks!

 if you view your own advert on buy/sell, does it add to the view count?

 Aluminum has no place in a drivetrain. All steel cogs and a steel chainring will outlast Al-based drivetrains by at least 3x

 Could you guys do a podcast about installing tires? And how crazy hard it is to get dh casing tires with inserts onto a damn rim. I recently had an experience where I was getting the last bit of a dh casing dhf on with an insert and the f*cking SPOKE on the industry nine enduro s wheels broke! I know it was probably just a manufacturing defect on the spoke but still, it was crazy!

 @mikelevy I'd like a short discussion of you reviewers' opinions on what "climbing efficiency" actually is. On trails, at least, not fire roads. I've been on an evil insurgent lb for a couple years and singletrack climbing is okay, but not great (although Kazimer wrote "There's minimal undue suspension movement, but when faced with rough ground the suspension stays active and supple, which makes it easier to keep the rear wheel stuck to the trail rather than bouncing and skittering around on tricky climbs" - a view I do not share). I took a demo stumpjumper out and was astonished by how well it climbed. It was sublime. I just got a propain tyee, which is a good climber per pinkbike review, and I am underwhelmed with its uphill ability.
So what is it that is "efficient"? The evil has all the antisquat in the world, and does not feel great on singletrack climbs. The stumpjumper has lower antisquat and has infinite traction instead, making it extremely comfortable and sprightly. The Tyee is somewhere between the two.

In my opinion, when climbing over obstacles, I want the suspension to take the entire hit and the saddle to not move an inch. 100% traction, 100% comfort. Is this a downside of high antisquat, and would I then get along better with a bike with low antisquat on the climbs? And is this view opposite of what you testers prefer in an "efficient" bike?

 not using gripshift, but i did buy it for 9 speed in the mid '00s, but realized trigger was better, and changed over. and I was into it in '98 as well. i think part of the appeal was that the trigger shifters at the time weren't very good, and on cheaper bikes, you were picking between thumb shifters and grip shifters, triggers weren't even an option.

 @mikekazimer there will be a hub limitation if it goes bigger and more gear. Most hub companies are already fighting the reliability because of extra torque with those huge pie plates.
Some system would need to improve on that side. It would become a compromise on how much bigger the freehub needs to be, or the axles... and that will likely leads in new standards

 Tech question for the next pod: I’ve got a 27.5 trail bike that I’d love to try as a mullet but I don’t want to change the geometry too much or dropping the fork travel. Do you know of any 29er forks that have a significantly lower axle to crown than other brands or any 27.5 forks that are known to have enough clearance for a 29er wheel?
Love the podcast, keep up the good work.

 These podcasts are a highlight to my week, they're that good. And frankly, I could give two shits what you guys talk about. Just keep them coming!!

 I'd love to get the team's thoughts on a product like Intend's Magic cranks where the freehub is in the cranks, not at the rear wheel. For me doing it that way seems to get rid of a few of the drawbacks (the big one being shifting without pedaling) of the current drivetrain setup without the need for massive changes to the current setup. More of an evolutionary change than a revolutionary one

 I assume this was quiney on the aforementioned wet ride.

mobile.twitter.com/cbcnewsbc/status/1460404957258170373?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1460404957258170373%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fd-5006395642804002620.ampproject.net%2F2111060251003%2Fframe.html

 The biggest issue with current drivetrains is the jump from 52/50/etc is the that the next cog is too many teeth of a drop down. I'd rather give up my top speed (high speed 10t) for a cog in the middle. I almost never spin out my fastest gear but man do I spend some time in the 50t.

And let's take a minute to appreciate that wide range cassettes help balance out the rear end with a 200mm rotor!

 I have Eagle grip shift on both my mtb’s. I’m a vet moto guy and it reminds me of twisting a throttle plus doesn’t make my arthritis act up.

 Was listening to you talk about bikes with gearboxes not being up to much....these guys make pretty sweet gearbox bikes with both chain and belt-drive options - Zerode Bikes (zerodebikes.com) - may be worth a look..

 Would love to see a discussion, or even a review of North American production for bikes/bike parts, especially given the supply issues with parts coming from overseas.

 All this derailleur innovation going on lately, and here I am, reading the title and thinking someone made a derailleur out of an actual pickle.

 Topic for another podcast: there's lots of parallels between the car/motorcycle worlds and bike world, lot's of the truism or maxims of car have mtb equivalent. For example, when talking about bike suspension travel the phase "there's no replacement for displacement" from drag racing is used. Meaning that an 180mm enduro bike is a big bike, but it's no 200mm dh bike.

What are the mtb equivalents of sayings like "lights before lockers", "with age comes the (roll) cage", "spinning ain't winning". I've heard the last one about motocross but it could have originated in any motorsport?

Any one else think of good sayings to add?

 Question for another day: What would happen to the mountain bike world if energy drink companies suddenly decided to change their marketing strategy and pull out of sports? Speaking of Red Bull--bring on the F1 pod.

 I've been running X01 11 speed gripshift on my fatbike for 7 years now, and love it. Easy and fast shifting, plus shifts easily with mittens on and no metal levers to freeze your fingers.

 Prediction: some sort of clutch electric gearboxes that shift in less than a tenth of a second while under load. Belt drive.

 Come on! XT front derailleur is really easy to set up.

 do we wait for the shimano wireless option or try the franken-drive of GX AXS-XT combo?

 Stick to two wheels please. There are lots of places to go for four wheels. No skis as well. Fat bikes have two wheels, ski bikes do not.

 @mikelevy Topic for next time: setting up bikes for big / small riders. Go recruit a couple guests at either end of the bell curve.

 @mikeley Sunrace have a 9 speed wide range mech and cassette. You should run a test?
Items are: RDM900 (mech) and CSM 993 11-50T cassette.

 All I want is an axs drivetrain that works with the 10-42 11 speed cassette. Mountain bikers are getting too soft. If you need a 50t cog you might as well just walk your bike or get an ebike.

 Best short cage drivetrain option: 10 speed 36-11 cassette w a Zee derailleur.

 Proud twist shifter on my Lefty Cannondale Habit ✊

 Mmmmmm, pickled derailleurs.

 If I have to listen to an F1 podcast, I want a Supercross episode... season is right around the corner.

 Mud boggin racin and tracter pull racin would be mighty nice! Levy grew up rastlin' sheep so there's that too!

 alternative sports and F1 for the effin WIN! +1000!

 Still waiting on mike to finally get that alien theory's podcast out.

 Internal chain routing?

 id love to see an other sports podcast.

 Sounds like this could be a salty episode.

 Today I learned Danny Beer's brother works for pinkbike

 Dick Punches for those who say "pickers".

 A 6 speed that is every second gear of a 12speed.

 I would listen to a Pinkbike F1 podcast but also MotoGP > F1.