Mountain Bike Drivetrain Reviews
BOX Components Box 3 Prime 9 Drivetrain
Drivetrains have been turned up well past eleven now, and the race to put the most gears on a bike has probably subsided. Perhaps 12 is enough? Well, Box thinks 12 is more than enough and are encouraging us to think a little differently with a 'less is more' philosophy. The Box Prime 9 range aims to convince us the...
SRAM MTB XO1 Eagle AXS Upgrade Kit
Although electronic shifting has been around for a while, SRAMs AXS is the first wireless transmission to hit the mountain bike market. Shimano's Di2 may offer electrics with cables, but SRAM has ditched any form of cables for wireless magic. Available as an entire groupset, as separate components, or as an upgrade kit there are multiple ways to get into...
SRAM MTB NX Eagle Drivetrain
It feels like only yesterday that the Eagle first landed amidst cries of derision that nobody needed 12 gears and that 50t cassettes were ridiculous. At the time the price was pretty ridiculous too, perhaps similar to the latest release of AXS, but over a pretty short period of time, the Eagle has landed at progressively lower price points. The...
BOX Components Box 2 Drivetrain
The man behind Box Components, Toby Henderson, became a racing legend on downhill bikes and BMX’s and is now well on track to legendary status in the world of bike components. Still a fairly small and fresh company, Box isn’t afraid to take on some formidable competition and are impressively confident that there is room for a third player in...
BOX Components PushPush Shifter and Box One Rear Mech
Choice. Choice can only be a good thing yeah? In the world of mountain bike drivetrains and derailleurs, we have a choice, just as long as it's one of two, and it starts with the letter S, but is that all? Surely we should be demanding more options for changing gears. It has been a long time coming, but Box...
SRAM MTB GX Eagle
Before Eagle even made its first squawk, there were rumours of its arrival. There was the talk of a 12-speed drivetrain with a huge range of gears, and a dinner plate sized cassette. For many, this was laughed off as a hoax, while others, already enjoying the freedom of a one-by drivetrain held on in hope. When the Eagle did...
KORE Components Stronghold Chainring
Ever since the mighty SRAM first introduced the narrow/wide chainring a few years ago, the idea has not just gained a few followers, but has taken a complete hold over the mountain bike industry to the point where many of us have resigned our front derailleurs to the scrap heap. Initial claims of completely eliminating dropped chains and therefore the...
Shimano Deore Double M545
Weight: 1130 Grams (complete with bottom bracket) The Deore range from Shimano has always provided excellent quality at a great price. Whilst the cranks lack the bold good looks of the SLX set they are by no means ugly! The bash guide is identical to the one on its bigger brother so the real difference here is the crank arms...
Gamut Dual Ring P30
Weight 160 Grams (complete) When you open up the box for the P30 bash ring and chain guide you’ll be surprised to find there isn’t much in it. Simplicity is something that Gamut have gone for here and it certainly shows. The bash ring is machined to save on weight rather than being a solid lump. The machining has been...
Shimano SLX Compact Front Derailleur
Weight: 160 Grams A specific front derailleur for double and bash set-ups, the perfect match for your SLX Double and Bash in fact. Of course you can just wind up the limit screw on a triple chainset derailleur, so you might ask what is the point of this? When you run a double set up you tend to use more...
Shimano SLX Double Crankset M665
Weight: 1010 Grams (complete with bottom bracket) The M665 Double Chainset is one of the most popular double and bash set-ups on the market. It offers excellent value considering the entire chainset including the BB bearings and cranks can be bought for less than some other brands sell a bash ring and a chain guide! Although not super light, the...