I just ordered a Wahoo Kickr with the Zwift cog v2 during the Zwift sale. Price was too good to pass up especially having run my old Kickr for many years previously.
My current setup is an old Cannondale frame and a SRAM Rival 2x setup (52x36) and an 11sp cassette.
I am looking for a SRAM 1x crankset to install and was curious about the appropriate chainring size to use.
I take training pretty seriously and generally train all zones including sprints but sprinting is not a major part at all. I also like to climb.
I believe the Zwift Ride comes with a single 42t chainring but I am interested in any feedback about what others think and use. I want to get the best bang for my buck as possible and not compromise my training.
Wahoo publishes minimum recommended gear ratios for virtual shifting with their trainers. I would not go below their numbers and prefer to avoid being at the minimum.
I assume you’ll be above 34x14 but in any case you also have the option to install a third party single speed kit on the trainer with a 12t cog, or put a cassette on the trainer since the Zwift Cog is not required to use virtual shifting.
I use a Sram 42t 1X chain ring, PC-X1 chain and used this spacer kit with a 15t cog & lock ring from an a cassette that I wasn’t using. The spacer kit allows me to get a perfectly straight chain line and the setup is nearly silent.
This ratio works well for ERG workouts & regular rides.
I ordered the same package, due today, and I run 1x with a 40 tooth chainring. I read the recommended is 2.5 to 3.1 and the cog is supposed to be 14 tooth. 40:14 should be well within the recommended range.
Thanks, yea I am definitely leaning towards a 40t chainring. I don’t see a need to forego the cog v2 even if it’s a little on the noisy side. I workout in my basement, have no one else to bother and I usually crank some music
Do you think a single chainring setup will necessarily be more inline with a rear cog than having a double chainring? I don’t think that’s necessarily true, or at the very least, worth the 1mm or so of difference
Yes, exactly.. especially if you additionally have 2 chainrings to choose from. Sorry, I’m just not getting why you’re going to a 1x setup if the bike is relegated only to indoor trainer duty?
In my case I have a dedicated bike for Zwift. I had a Sram Red22 group on it and was never going to used outside. Once I tried virtual shifting, I knew that I’d never have the need to shift manually again. So I removed all of the Sram Red parts, added an old RD that I set up to be in the middle of the cog, some old shifters and the 1X chain ring. I wanted the setup to be as quiet a possible, and the Zwift Cog’s plastic amplifies the sound of the chain. The single cog with spacers is nearly silent, and the chainline is straight. The Sram X1 chain should last for years since it’ll never see the outside.
I had to find a gear ratio that was tall enough for my Kickr but that didn’t have too much flywheel effect (I don’t like that). Most of my Zwifting is workouts in ERG of climbing hills, high flywheel speed doesn’t feel right with that, although it does on fast, flat rides. The 2.8:1 that the 42/15 provides seems to work well. having two chainrings would offer more ratios.