2016 Pinkbike Awards - Component of the Year Winner
The last few years have seen a flurry of frame design changes – everything from wheelsize to axle spacing has been tweaked in some way, sometimes to the vexation of riders who thought the bike they'd just bought would last at least a few seasons before being out of date. That onslaught of new standards may be part of the reason why 2016 was relatively quiet as far as radically different components go – the dust from all of those changes was still settling, which meant that this wasn't the year the pipe dream of a light, affordable, and efficient gearbox came to fruition, or that a completely pinch-flat resistant tire casing was developed. Maybe someday.
There were still plenty of exciting and new products in the running for Component of the Year, though, and it was SRAM's Eagle 12-speed drivetrain, OneUp's drivetrain conversion kit, and Fox's Transfer dropper post that ended up as the final contenders. Without further ado, the winner is...
The writing has been on the wall for some time now, but by all appearances SRAM's Eagle 12-speed drivetrain will be the final nail in the coffin for the front derailleur. With a 500% gear range, thanks to the 10-50 tooth spread of the rear cassette, any remaining reasons for running more than one chain ring up front have pretty much been squelched.
Yes, the complete Eagle drivetrain is relatively expensive – after all, it's SRAM's flagship, highest end group – but the Eagle will be flying on 2017's hottest bikes, and it's surely a sign of things to come at a more attainable pricepoint. There's also the fact that SRAM's dedication to 1x drivetrains has created a thriving aftermarket accessory scene, with multiple small operations churning out conversion kits to allow riders to expand the range of their existing drivetrains. Without SRAM taking the idea of a 50-tooth cassette cog mainstream, those smaller companies would be having a much more difficult time hawking their wares. The end result? Riders have loads of choices these days when it comes to ditching the front derailleur, which is a good thing.
But let's not get too far off topic – it's time to shift the focus back to the Eagle drivetrain. The massive range is the biggest talking point, but as was mentioned in the long-term review, “it's the little things like the improved B-knuckle, the elimination of the narrow wide teeth on the derailleur's upper pulley wheel, and the revised chainring profile that help make this SRAM's best mountain bike drivetrain yet.” Those details serve to create a crisp shifting, very quiet drivetrain, one that can be called into action aboard everything from an XC race bike to an enduro machine.
Pinkbike’s Take:
 | SRAM's Eagle group is the best off-the-shelf 1x drivetrain currently on the market, an achievement that earns it the title of Pinkbike's Component of the Year. - Mike Kazimer |
Author Info:
Member since Jul 22, 2013
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
@Mattin Well actually I got rid of the front mech only a few months ago. Not because it was nagging me (it works fine with a grip shift, horrible with trigger shifters), but because I wanted to run an oval chainring. The granny is still on though, just no more front mech to actually use it.
1. Loose leaf tea over teabags
2. Shaving soap over shaving foam (also much less waste!)
3. Safety razors over these multi-blade cartridges
Sorry, couldn't resist.
I got a Muhle too. Very nice.
Can I use old DDR2 ram with a DDR3 motherboard?
arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1256487
I tend to agree with @Muckal. I'll go further: we should consider the possibility that trying to adhere to standards might be stifling advancement in our still-young industry. Use standards where they make sense, yes, but not all components need to go back and forth among all bikes.
It's like saying you want a Trek front triangle with a Pivot rear end.
The big computer brands are moving away from standards in the name of performance. I don't see the harm in bike companies doing the same AS LONG AS they keep adhering to standards where it makes sense. That would be the stuff that most people do change over the course of the bike's lifetime. I don't want to see proprietary pedal interfaces on cranks, for example, but I'm interested to see where the engineering can go if we let frame designers run with non-standard suspension and (maybe) drivetrain. Specialized hasn't been able to pull it off yet, I know, but if done right I would consider rewarding an innovative company with my hard-earned dollars, even if it meant I was locked into buying their stuff for the lifetime of the bike.
I know not everyone will agree, but I think at some point it's where the industry has to go to keep improving.
Or are they considering SLX a 2017 component?
and most frames nowadays can't even clear bigger than a 32t on chain stays...
Sram Eagle reminds me of the type of shit some a dentist who drives a range rover Evoque would buy. Yeah it's sweat and all mighty, but end of the day, its an impractical polished pieces of gadgetry.
It's another product to evolve and push the boundaries of innovation. Don't complain when there will be better for half the price soon. This is how we get better products later down the road. Expensive and new now, than normal prices for the same quality for us normal folk.
I myself am a Shimano fan. Look how expensive XTR brakes were a few years ago and we get the same quality out of SLX a few years later. The brakes are incredible for how cheap they are. I have tried this Eagle. It's incredible. Never afford it though. Shimanos M8000 isn't far off but a 1/3 of the price and a little less range. That would have never happened without Eagles talons on their ass!
Go technology, go!
First experience of SRAM was an X9 mech and shifter on my old demo, the thing use to eat gear cables for fun, I would have to put a new one on about every three rides. Gave up after 3 months and got a Saint shifter and mech.
I now have SRAM NX on a brand new bike, I've done 5 rides at just over 70 miles in total and the SRAM NX is already failing, it will go up the cassette ok but doesn't want to release to come back down to harder gears. I swear they make their kit of a soft French cheese. It worked brilliantly for the first few rides and I'm quite anal about cleaning and lubing so I know it's not lack of maintenance.
@SramMedia Why is this?
That said, entirely correct on people dumping AMG and M cars that were neglected or issues ignored (like the rod bearings on BMW M V8 and V12 motors). I stay away from those. N55 on the other hand, great motor.
@thebikings I don't need a bike shop to tell me how bad SRAM is, I've worked that out from personal experience
SRAM, put my check in the mail if you didn't already think of this.
The E-thirteen cassette: costs enormously less, weights less, has a bigger range, it is modular, so you only need to buy the replacement section you need, and it is 11 speed compatible with either SRAM or Shimano shifters, so you do not need to buy a new shifter AND derailleur AND chain to gain a bit more range.
Amazingly bad choice: this is just a shameful payed commercial for SRAM, really!
Are cassettes this size and their accompanying long cage derailleurs compatible with 26 inch wheels?
On top of that, the value is ridiculously poor. Sure, it is Sram's highest end stuff but it costs way more than anything else produced.
a bit disappointed tbh
The narrow wide top jockey on my 11sp x01 RD is really noisy
Argue all you like about the cost :-)
You could argue that 12 speed is a small incremental step over 11sp, and that is a minor evolution and not pushing the sport forward. But look at what it's already doing, with others bringing out solutions to get more range onto a 1x11 drivetrain. I personally don't need that much range (my 10-42 sees the 10T used no more than maybe five minutes per week if there's a big tailwind on the downhill section of the road back from the trails), but there are lots of people who want the range, in a 1x, or else you wouldn't have all that aftermarket stuff being made.
It's really hard to argue with this thing being very expensive and of interest only to a small slice of the market. But it's also really hard to argue with this thing being a pretty big deal in the marketplace, and the harbinger of good stuff to come. Is this whole cassette expansion thing hitting seriously diminishing returns? Sure - but this iteration still seems to make a fair bit of sense, and I'd argue that the point about killing off FDs is pretty damn valid.
It is a cassette. Incompatible with everything else. And using SRAMs freehub that is engineered without thought about supporting budget options. Meaning it will never take over as a universal standard. Thus it is a dead end. Accommodating 10t or 9t can be done with a better architecture. Once Shimano moves there, with their typical measured approach, it will be obsolete.
sram-cdn-pull-zone-gsdesign.netdna-ssl.com/cdn/farfuture/TueqrF_MUC9CZJcFGNr-u0W_fvqucTEPMKu5ulZ5eY8/mtime:1457977167/sites/default/files/images/products/accessories/sm_eagle_chainring_38t_front_l.jpg