Do you like it? Which crank set, cassette, and gear ratio did you use?

Of the two bikes I commute regularly on, one is built around a Nashbar aluminum mtb frame (the unbranded gloss black one they've always got on their site) and Surly 1x1 fork. BB7 brakes, SKS P65 fenders, Mavic XC717 Disc rims laced to Shimano XT hubs with Continental Traffic 26x2.1" tires, Velo-Orange Milan bars and Brooks Swift saddle. The drivetrain is a Shimano LX M582 external bearing crankset with a 36t Salsa chainring and a Sram 11-28t cassette. LX shifter and SLX short-cage derailleur. MRP 1.x keeps the chain on up front. It's a great bike that can take a beating and require minimal maintenance. The gearing is fine for moderate-paced cruising in flatsville here in Houston.

The combination of the chainguide up front and the tighter sprung short-cage rear derailleur keeps everything tight, shifting quickly, and I've never worried about throwing a chain. I've used similar setups on my XC race bikes in the past.

Cool set-up....got any pics? i wish they made an MRP for internal bearing BB's

I think they do a seat tube mounted version now.



No pics of the bike, I'll have to take some.

Not a MTB but more like a hybrid. I run with 622-28mm tires and 39t up front and 12-23 at the back. The crankset was a double but I use the inner. Filed an old outer chainring down to use as chainguard. No chainguide, but no problems so far.

Just started using my SS 29er, recently converted to 1x9. Origin 8 Scout 29, 34t single ring up front, 11x32 cassette in back. Sram x7 shifter and med cage derailleur. N-Gear jump stop with a bash guard, no problems at all with chain.

It's still my mountain bike, I just use a different set of tires for my 16 mile commute. And I love it!

Used to have a 1x9. Ended up converting it to a 66 gear inch single speed (freewheel). This is on a commute with hills. Total travelling time is the same as when running gears. It all depends on how hard I choose to ride any given day. Chain derailments caused by the chain bouncing when going over train tracks is now a thing of the past. This is a problem unique to multispeed bikes which do not run a front derailleur.

There are many remedies to your problem....Did you try shortening the chain? Did you use a ramp-less chainring? short cage RD? bash guard? how about a Chain guide? It sounds like you didnt fine tune your 1x9 and wrote it off as an inherent problem with all 1X9's

I had a Trek 6500 something or other - when the front shock blew, replaced it with a steel fork from LBS parts bin. The fork slope and "travel" clearance was just about perfect. Put on 60 mm Schwalbe Big Apple tires. The cassette was 11-34 with an XT rear deraileur. Stock crankset was Deore, replaced the chainrings with a spare 39 t - also installed a chain watcher. Left the original trigger type shifter for the RD, removed the left shifter and FD hardware. With those large flotation tires - felt like you could ride over anything. Was great on broken pavement and dry dirt roads. Probably wasn't the fastest bike from a stop light, but comfortable. Rode it a couple of seasons - until it befell a bad fate. Currently have two bikes set up as a 1x9 - it is an under appreciated pragmatic set up for most riding.

I ride a 2009 Felt X City D. It's a 1x8 - 42/11-30, according to the specs on their site. I live in Columbus, Ohio where it is pretty flat, and I love it. One less thing to adjust/repair/replace/whatever.

Anybody care to suggest an ideal chainring size for flat to moderate hills of So. California? Im thinking 42....the answer to life the universe etc...

I've run 1x8 a few times.

My favorites lows were
42x25 on the road bike
44x28 on the MTB

Not MTB, but I commute on a 1x10 road bike. 48x12/26, never using the 26. That might be a little tall for a MTB depending on your area and fitness.

My previous cross bike had a double, but I never, not once, shifted to the small ring. so it was a 1x9 50x12/20something.

Thinking back, when I commuted on a MTB, I never shifted from the big ring, so whatever comes standard on a mountain triple was a good gear for me.

Where I live is pretty hilly - the 11-34 cassette, 60x559 Big Apple tires and 39 t chain ring works out to a gear inch range of 31 to 96. IMHO - this covers most of what is needed during a commute.

Thanks to all for sharing your MTB 1X8/1X9 gear ratios
Its nice to know others have similar views and ideas....i could not find much info for commuter 26" wheel 1x9's.... mostly just DH 1X9(Downhill MTBs)

I'm (re)building a 1x8 MTB commuter right now. A Raleigh M-50 with a mid-90's Cannondale Pepperoni Fork as the base. Deore LX rear derailleur. I'll be running 2.4" semi-slicks, FSA Gossamer drop bars with a friction bar end shifter (in case I ever want to go 1x7,9, or 10), in a 48x11-28. It will also be fitted with front and rear racks. Here's a picture of the previous version I built of this bike in college with free parts as a 1x7. Most parts in the picture, except the tires (26"x2.0"),tubes, brake levers, chainring and saddle, were picked up at a bike co-op closing its doors. Obviously it wasn't set up for comfort at the time, and I had the occasional chain drop. This time around I'll be running a chainguard and watcher to remedy that, and I might switch to a short cage derailleur if the need arises. I'm also going with a shorter stem and drops to lessen the reach.

I bought a mid-1990s rigid MTB. Really 'fugly' looking monster-of-a-bike . The FD didn't work when I bought it, so I removed it and just use the big ring up front (42T). The 42T ring is OK for commuting with a load, but if I wasn't regularly carrying stuff I'd probably jump up to a 48T, or change cranks to a 50/34 compact and add a new FD (the old-style MTB frame will work with a 50/34 road crank). Rear cassette is about 11-32, only use the smallest gears (11-13-16- 20 ?). Added some puncture-resistant 26 x 1.5 street tires, a rack in back & basket up front, and I put fenders on in winter - I'm a happy camper.

I run a 1x8 39 in front 12-34 in back (or close...i forget). I use a thumb friction shifter on the bar. the set up works great for me. No problems with dropping the chain from the chain ring. of course, my current commute is flat so I could easily do it single speed. also it is not a MTB.... it is a Nishiki, that look like an english 3 speed