Cyclocross 1 x 11 Shimano XTR/Sram Rival 22 Project

Norco VFR 3 frameset. Why? Because it's Canadian folks! No really bec it's got my preferred off road geometry: Fisher Genesis style!

71/73

22.75" effective top tube
16.5" chainstays
11.5" BB
And a nice slope to the top tube which happens to be flat at seatube for carrying.
Also disc ready with beefy dropouts too.

SO, onto the goodstuff: The 1x11 drivetrain.

Sram Rival 22 11 speed shifters + Sram X7 Type 2/2.1 = COMPATIBLE

+ Shimano XTR M9000 11-40 cassette? Currently without a barrel adjuster, all's well except it does not shift into the lowest 40t cog. The R.D. can go there but for some reason the whole system wont shift there BUT no barrel adjuster to increase tension to do so, so that may solve it.

Sram new Rival/Force 1 RDs w long cage obvsly better choice here now but I got the X7 for $50 so there, ha! In yo face Sram! 

STAY TUNED...

Wolf Tooth Drop Stop chainring on 130 bcd 5bolt crankset.

11 speed Ultegra chain

And oh yeah thats the new XTR M9000 11-40 Dyna Sys cassette with a carbon spider and titanium cogs sucka - fitting OK on any old 8-10 speed freehub! Shimano sooo rocks over Sram. This is one of the many reasons why.

Chain wrap looks sufficient

V-brakes + Road levers? Keep the normal V-brakes dont get shorter "road" V-brakes bec theyre less power, less clearance and more mush and get a Travel Agent! Worth the $35 retail. Now incl. barrel adjuster! Availble on ebay and Live to Play Sports/Norco.

UPDATE May 2015: Even with a barrel adjuster at tightest tension THIS SETUP ONLY WORKS 10 of 11 GEARS!

That is Sram Rival 11 speed shifter + Sram X7 Type 2 derailleur + CS-M9000 11-40 11 speed cassette. 

Thankfully Sram has just announced the ir new 11 speed high capacity riad r. derailleurs: Force 1 and Rival 1!  These would work perfectly here.  

Calm Before the (Spring) Storm.....

Norco "Red Cross" Special Paris-to-Ancaster Race Edition Cyclocross (CX) Bike
- 1 x 11 speed Shimano XTR Sram CX1 WolfTooth FSA SLK Drivetrain
- Carbon Tubulars
- Control Tech Carbon Drop Bars Made in USA
- Eggbeater Red P2A special edition pedals...
Etc.

700c Wheel and Rim Actual Weights - Mavic, Shimano etc.

These figures are from actual weigh ins off of a digital scale from new stock from an authorised Mavic and Shimano dealers  (Chain Reaction and Duke's Cycle both in Toronto, Canada):
2014:
RS 21 rear rim weight alone: 506g ! Heavy! But strong, solid and asymmetrical w a generous brake track.

2013:
Dura Ace 9000 C24 (WH-9000?) f/r: 620/840g

Ultegra 6700 Alloy f/r: 740/971g

RS80/C50 f/r: 835/1060g

Older Mavic Aksium Race Rear Rim, silver 20h eyeleted and heavily USED/worn: 493g

Ultimate 4-season Hybrid City Bike 2.0 - New Front/Rear Specific Mavic Wheels!

"Test everything; hold fast what is good."

1 Thessalonians 5:21

Got me a pair of Mavic wheels to replace my heavier Xero Lite and WTB Dual Duty/Shimano wheels!

Front wheel: Very fast/aerodynamic, light, solid with a maxtal sup alloy rim w UB control for excellent braking and yes, drop-dead wicked looks is the Mavic Cosmic Carbone SLR (approx. $400+ new. I found this gem for $230 used and topically damaged)! Over 120g lighter than previous Xero XSR-3's and wayyy more aero. I'm faster already!

Rear wheel: A good old reliable, fully n easily serviceable and parts replaceable, steel spoked, yet still very lightweight (860-875g) all black, all alloy and very cool lookin 2011 Mavic Ksyrium Elite.  130-200g lighter than previous WTB Dual Duty/Shimano Deore/14g spoked wheel ($200 used from Kijiji)

My face when riding it (priceless)!

Oh, also managed to finally salvage my first USE XCR carbon suspension Shokpost thanks to USE's $10 service kit. Now I have two, one for my road race bike the other for this one.

Good to have continuity:

Cyclocross Build. $450 Norco VFR 3 base.

This is after I bought my carbon road bike so all the best/lightest parts went to that.

BUT, alas It worked out for the best because now I'm stuck with nine speed which means I can switch between flat bar (for my gf)and drop bar (whn i ride cx) Because I have parts for both heheh. And I can still use my FSA carbon team issue triple cranks for tht perfect chainline w a 108 BB. :)

Shimano Hollowtech 2 Arms: Road vs. Mountain - Same but Different

"Test all things; hold fast to what is good" - 1Thessalonians 5:21

Non-drive or left crankarms are both basically interchangeable between road and mountain.
Differences in spindle wall thicknesses between say a 6600 triple and XTR are different. The XTR is thinner. I assume the Dura Ace is also equally thinner/lighter than the equivalent Ultegra.
But I also discovered that the XTR arm bows out more from the spindle to the pedal, therefore, the pedal is more outboard/farther from the longitudinal/fore-aft center line of the BB!
So, there I was thinkin I could slap a lighter XTR arm instead of the existing 105...I could but I'd lose significant pedaling clearance so I kept the 105 on bc it wasnt worth it...oh well, I guess I gotta get a Dura Ace arm then!

Mini V-brakes Suck.

Road levers and mini v-brakes are a very un-ideal setup:
- Very mushy feel
- Mediocre leverage/power due to shortened arms
- Pad-to-rim clearance has to be very close to acheive proper lever pull - meaning pad positioning has to be 100% perfectly flat and your rim 100% true or else there's a good chance it'll rub. Also, this means you rely on the barrel adjusters to release the brake to remove wheel which is no longer a "quick-release".

Better choice?
Normal V-brakes with the Travel Agent V-brake adapter = exact same crisp feel, power, modulation AND quick-release as a normal V-brake. A lil heavier and pricier though. The adapters cost $20 incl. shipping each on eBay. Year ago I couldnt find em thru any traditional suppliers, interestingly. But now that Norco/Live to Play has acquired Problem Solvers this may change.