Built my GT Zaskar to be more of a bikepacking bike. I really like it but the drivetrain needs renewing. Not only is it difficult to buy the exact same front crankset/chainrings new (the chain and 9 speed cassette seem pretty easy to buy) – it’s also 44T on the large chainring.
Pretty sure it’s a SLX FC-M660.
My first thoughts were getting a new square bottom bracket and fitting the Velo Orange or the Blue Lug x Suguino triple crankset but they are both 48T and wasn’t sure if that was a great idea… I know I need to move the derailleur up the frame a bit but maybe I’ve got 20mm before the bottle cage…
Then thought about just buying the chainrings if I can find them to create a new one and keep my hollowtech bottom bracket and slx pedal arms.
Any tips on this would be great + any other upgrades you think would be worthy both practical and aesthetic let me know as I’m getting it ready for a trip in May. Thanks!
by MrTeej
3 Comments
https://preview.redd.it/myb5fvi4dnhg1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=788c0b135625ecb5325465184d6673dfe8a8949e
Here’s my full bike currently. (With a more levelled saddle).
I don’t know how this bike model is supposed to be used, but if that’s a MTB, then there’s no point not just in 48T, but in 44T either, even thought this was a (silly) standard. You should go way lower to fully explore the potential.
The last summer I upgraded my 22T/32T/44T to 22/30/36 and could not be happier since that. I’d say that all other upgrades I did over the time (pedals, brakes, dropper, saddle, blablabla lots of them, – even thought my bike was a custom made from the very beginning) were less awesome than this transmission upgrade. So I highly recommend doing that, even though it’s not simple to implement as there are no ready made components for this (at least I didn’t find and had to do lots of metalworks to fit components from 1- or 2- chainring transmissions)
Personally I would ditch the triple ring setup. For bike packing you’re never going to be wanting to hit the speeds a 44t ring will give you, where bags are bouncing around like crazy. Bike packing is about enjoying the ride and taking in the trails. Take it slow.
The rings on your cranks should be 104bcd. This should give you a decent amount of options – especially for single speed conversion, and not cost the earth.
For me a single or double set up works best and I would just use your existing cranks with new rings for now. You may need some spacers to get a nicer chain line but it’s not rocket surgery it was what we all did 10/15 years ago. That way you don’t need to change your HT2 BB which is more user friendly (tapers can cause issues if cranks not torqued correctly).
I technically run a single 34t chainring with a wide range cassette on my bike packing bike. However, I left a “cheater” granny ring on just in case it looks like I might need a hand. I also made a little chain hook to keep my fingers clean. But no front mech keeps everything simpler and cleaner.