11 speed for touring?

[AdyJapp]

Currently looking at fitting a new Groupset on my Ultra Galaxy. At the same time as building some nice new wheels. A quick question. Does anyone here use 11s for touring? What is the general opinion about such a mad idea?

[foxyrider]

Why is it mad? In fact I might just beat you to it!
In the next couple of weeks my touring steed, a Focus Mares AX, will go 11 speed Campagnolo but not only that with some extreme kit that has fallen into my hands at the right prices!

Campag Athena carbon 11 speed Ergos
Campag Super Record 11 speed carbon crankset 50/34
Miche 12-29 cassette
Campag record 11 speed chain

Its already running Campag Record Ti rear mech, an Ultegra compact front mech, TRP HyRd discs and an SP8 dyno hub!

Yes maybe it is a bit extreme for a touring spec but this year is a flat tour (North Sea Coast Holland/Germany) and I use those ratios currently for riding in the Peak District and hauling my shopping around Sheffield's hills! Is it really mad to go 11? I don't think so, the chain will be replaced long before wear is an issue and the other components - no real reason why the shifters or mechs shouldn't work and my experience of the Campy chains is all very positive. It might not seem right using such rarified stuff on a tourer but why should Nibali et al have all the fun?

[simonineaston]

and my Campy-equipped Moulton TSR is nearly ready, too!

[simonhill]

It's (probably) only madness if you are planning disappearing into the middle of nowhere for months on end. As you don't seem to be doing this I wouldn't worry.

One problem sometimes talked of is thinner chains being less robust. Dunno, discuss.

PS I worried a bit going from my super reliable 8 speed to 9 speed, but 6 long haul trips have shown it to be reliable. Not sure though if replacements would always be available in the middle of nowhere.

[dandru]

On my touring bike I sit on the 36 tooth middle ring most of the time and lately have been thinking about a compact double 40/28 with a 36 at the back, I rarely use the big ring on the triple. The hardware is expensive on 11 speed, great for MTB single rings, stay with 10 and go for a double.

[bryce]

11 speed chains are basically the same size as Shimano 10 speed chains, so it's unlikely they'd wear quicker. I'm running a 10 speed cassette and chain with 11 speed shifters and rear mech which shows the spacing is the same.

There will be a little more dish in the rear wheel. Do you break rear wheels? Are there 11 speed cassettes that have the right spacing for you? Both Campagnolo and Shimano have the same spacing so you can choose from both so long as the hub matches.

I'll probably upgrade my commuter to 11 speed but the 10 speed 12-30 works well for me. You could keep a 10 speed wheel for winter use, though it may require a thin washer to keep the chain out of the spokes.

[AdyJapp]

It's (probably) only madness if you are planning disappearing into the middle of nowhere for months on end. As you don't seem to be doing this I wouldn't worry.

One problem sometimes talked of is thinner chains being less robust. Dunno, discuss.

That was my thinking. Most (all) touring of any kind will be UK. Spares availability is good, and I always carry enough spares-wise to get me out of trouble. Chains. Most modern chains are pretty good. Rarely have issues with 10sp on my road bikes, so my thinking is to build 10s Campag hubs (11s cassette compatible, and either stick with 10s (lower cost Veloce triple) or jump to Athena 11s triple.

As you can see, I'm just talking myself into it...

[Audax67]

Nice thing about the 2x11 is that with climbing ahead you drop onto the smaller chain ring and then forget about the front mech for a while. No worries about moving to the granny at the right moment to avoid losing the chain.

Approaching one of our local lumps on Tuesday I forgot to move to the smaller ring and went up a 9%er on 50/34. Was quite chuffed at that, seeing but as what I'm a decrepit old bougre.

T'other thing: the bloke who sold me my 2x11 pointed out that the cassette took up more axle space than a 10-spd but the back wheel wasn't dished, it was narrower than a 3x10 wheel and symmetrical. To provide lateral stability they had staggered the spoke holes in the rims, so that a left spoke went into a rightwards-offset hole & vv. Result was a wheel at least as stable as a 3x10.

Dunno if they're all like that, though.

[scottg]

Interesting chain set for 11s, Sugino OX901, a Compact Plus.
A 110/74 double, so 48/34 or using the 74bcd, a 44/28 like the old Simplex Tourist rings.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
7 & 8 speed freewheels are becoming very common nowadays.

So miles from nowhere a 6 - 7 - 8 speed chain will be easy to come by and wont break the bank.

[pwa]

When I was a couple of decades younger I hauled my self and my touring bike, with 4 panniers and camping gear, over the Col de la Bonnette, the Stelvio Pass and other high passes on a 39t chainring with a sprocket of something like 32 teeth. Then triple chainsets arrived with their extra little ring for getting heavy loads up the hills. At last the kit matched the job in hand. The thought of having a smallest chainring bigger than 26t on a tourer makes me feel depressed. It would be like going back to the Dark Ages. When 11 speed includes the option of a chainring of 26teeth or less combined with a sprocket of 32 teeth or more I may be interested, providing I can be convinced that the chains are up to the job.

[22camels]

"The only preparation Roz needed was the removal of her three-speed derailleur gear, which I reckoned would be too sensitive to survive Asian roads." - Dervla Murphy, Full Tilt, 1965. Just in the middle of reading this classic and this thread amused me .