I got a killer deal on this used 2023 Norco Search XR A suspension but I do not have the legs to work with the stock 40t chainring matched to a Shimano 11-42t cassette. I love the simplicity of a 1x drivetrain, and wanted to maximize my gearing range with as little new parts as possible and at a relatively affordable price. If you have a bike that came stock with a GRX 1×11 system and an HG freehub, this setup is probably a great fit for you. This increases your range to 463% without changing your levers, derailleur, or using a tanpan. If you use your bike a lot, you’re probably due for a new chain anyways. Now I can handle much steeper grades and still don’t spin out until above 30mph.
I saw a quite a few people using the Sunrace 11-50t cassette with this setup, but the Shimano cassette is cheaper and has *slightly* more range! Either way you are basically bolting a steel dinner plate to your hub, so this is probably not a setup for weight weenies. The Goat Link is also cheaper than replacing the derailleur cage with the long cage from a MTB derailleur, and those cage parts are hard to come by right now.
The stock chain that came on the bike was unsurprisingly way too short for the new 51t cog, so I replaced it with a new one (support your local bike shops!). You might not need a new one if you are coming from a 46t cassette and/or also swapping to a smaller chainring, YMMV. All I had to do was slap on the new cassette, adjust the three limit screws and make a slight indexing adjustment and I was good to go. Shifting feels smooth and crisp just as I would expect from Shimano, and the bike has no problem getting up onto the largest cog. I have put about 100 miles onto it and it is working perfectly.
Hopefully someone in a similar boat sees this and it’s the inspiration they need to do the same!
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I got a killer deal on this used 2023 Norco Search XR A suspension but I do not have the legs to work with the stock 40t chainring matched to a Shimano 11-42t cassette. I love the simplicity of a 1x drivetrain, and wanted to maximize my gearing range with as little new parts as possible and at a relatively affordable price. If you have a bike that came stock with a GRX 1×11 system and an HG freehub, this setup is probably a great fit for you. This increases your range to 463% without changing your levers, derailleur, or using a tanpan. If you use your bike a lot, you’re probably due for a new chain anyways. Now I can handle much steeper grades and still don’t spin out until above 30mph.
**The Setup:**
* $0 – Stock Shimano GRX RD-RX812 1×11 rear derailleur (no modified cage)
* $30 – [Wolf Tooth Goat Link 11](https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/goatlink-11)
* $80-100 – [Shimano Deore CS-M5100-11 11-51t Cassette](https://bike.shimano.com/en-US/product/component/deore-m5100/CS-M5100-11.html)
* $0-40 – Shimano 11 speed chain with more links than your stock chain
I saw a quite a few people using the Sunrace 11-50t cassette with this setup, but the Shimano cassette is cheaper and has *slightly* more range! Either way you are basically bolting a steel dinner plate to your hub, so this is probably not a setup for weight weenies. The Goat Link is also cheaper than replacing the derailleur cage with the long cage from a MTB derailleur, and those cage parts are hard to come by right now.
The stock chain that came on the bike was unsurprisingly way too short for the new 51t cog, so I replaced it with a new one (support your local bike shops!). You might not need a new one if you are coming from a 46t cassette and/or also swapping to a smaller chainring, YMMV. All I had to do was slap on the new cassette, adjust the three limit screws and make a slight indexing adjustment and I was good to go. Shifting feels smooth and crisp just as I would expect from Shimano, and the bike has no problem getting up onto the largest cog. I have put about 100 miles onto it and it is working perfectly.
Hopefully someone in a similar boat sees this and it’s the inspiration they need to do the same!