[Closed] 32T to 30T on a 1 x ,will it make much difference?

It's not a massive difference, if you're strong enough for the 32, but it is a massive difference if you're not quite. Basically it's a question of is it just the difference in ratios or does it push into the difference in capability.

But put it another way I went down to 30t on mine and never regretted losing the little bit of top

If you have a triple crank you could run a 28 on the inner position. If it's a two-piece crank the chainline will probably be too far off for the top gears, but if it's a three piece you could fit a longer BB axle.

2/32 = 6.25%

To put that in context, if 1st and 2nd gear on your cassette are 36 and 32, then 1st is 4/32 = 12.5% easier than 2nd.  So it's like having exactly half an extra gear at the bottom of your cassette.

It does make a difference - on my old bike I had 32/42 as my lowest gear and in my current one I have 30/42.

Both bikes have the same wheel size but the old one was at least a couple of lbs lighter. I’m climbing better on the new one on most stuff (especially the steep stuff) despite it also being significantly slacker and longer travel.

Just gives you a slightly spinnier gear when you need it basically.

While the clever people are here...

I have 34 front 36 back.

If I go 32 on the front what virtual size will the 36 be?

It'll help. As above, you could even go for a 28t. I put a Works Components 28t oval on the granny tabs of my Codeine (1x10) for going to hilly places, and it was excellent.

Don't forget that if you're keen to go to something smaller than a 30, but you want to maintain decent chainline across the gear range, you could always fit a small ring in the granny position, keep your 32*, and install some sort of device to swap between them on the fly 😉

* ok, not if it's a narrow-wide

About 38 Zippy

How much easier will it be to climb going from a 32T to a 30T up front with 12-36 out back , 9 speed ?

I have the same setup with a 9sp 11-36 and a 30T makes a noticeable difference. It feels like 1/2 a gear lower at the back if that makes sense. Climbs involve more spinning and less grinding. The only downside is the overall range is quite narrow, and there's a lot of gear changing even on mildly undulating terrain

I ran a 28T on the granny position of an SLX triple crankset on my old Smuggler without any problems. I put a Hope bash ring (with shorter crank bolts) where the middle ring would go, mainly for cosmetic reasons. I find that I rarely miss the bigger gear but there is always something steeper that I think I might get up if I just had a slightly lower gear. I'm currently running a GX eagle (10-50) setup with a 32T chainring on a 29er and am already thinking about swapping that for a 30T.

I think Northwind hit the million dollar question in the 1st post.

It's not <span style="text-decoration: underline;">much</span> difference but if it's <span style="text-decoration: underline;">the</span> critical difference it will be ...err... critical?

I ended up doing the opposite on my HT XC bike.... I originally had 2x.. then 12-40 with a 32.... then 11-36 with the 30 and I'm now on 11-32 on the 32T.... (It's x10 but that's a bit irrelevant except explaining the journey)

Not all of these were totally "planned"... it was a case of using something on a different bike so that bit became free and the XC bike gets ridden less.  The loss of the 40T expander was more to do with the hubs and the expander ... but I'd got used to pedalling up and not using it (it's a very light bike)... then I wanted to 30T on a different bike so I replaced that ...

The 30T is now on my 10sp steel aggressive HT with 26" wheels.... which must weigh over twice the weight... (I'd be scared to weigh it) ... with a 11-36 on the back... and here it seemed to just hit the spot.  It seems to be just enough to get me up the hill I kept pushing up... (which to be fair is known as the F-ing Big Hill) whereas the "loss" on the XC bike doesn't really get noticed

Makes a difference. I feel like its about an extra gear, give or take. I'm running a 28t oval on an 11-42 cassette down from the stock 30t round whilst my fitness recovers. Haven't lost any top end off road. Will probably go up to 30t oval in a couple months so I don't get too lazy on the climbs.

It's makes a difference to me on tech climbs, rock crawling and when you've got dead man's legs at the end of a long day.

Hi, no, I tried this & it won't change your life. I have 1x10 with 11-42 out back, & it's a bit easier than 11-36 (which's what I had before I upgraded to 10sp) but again the difference isn't night & day. What **really** changed things for me was going 28t up front. Suddenly all hills were doable. Not easy, & as I ride an old-skool 26er hard tail it's always tricky controlling the front wheel, but doable.

No problem mounting the ring. The 28t ring simply replaces the inner ring spider (check the BCD, I think different manfacturers might use different BCDs for the inner ring; Superstars/Absolute Black/One Up etc. will have the size you need anyway). That leaves the arms that would hold the middle & big rings naked, which's ugly & probably dangerous. I solved that problem by putting on a bash, which looks neat & protects my calves from the spider arms. Sorted!

One other idea, my single front ring is an oval from Absolute Black & while again it's not night & day, it **does** make pedalling a bit easier & smoother, which helps going uphill. I find I don't "pedal square" quite as soon.