Our friendly and house-trained bike mechanic Al Vines is here to guide through the process of going 1x.

Tools you will need

  • Soft faced mallet
  • Cable cutters
  • Chainring bolt tool
  • Flat blade screwdriver
  • BB tool
  • Narrow wide chainring
  • Short chainring bolts
  • Chain tools
  • Allen keys
  • Torx keys
  • Torque wrench

>>> Best mountain bike cranks: single-ring

The key invention that holds the whole 1x system together is the narrow-wide chainring (sometimes called thick-thin chainring).

This new type of chainring is designed to really, really hold on to the chain, thus making dropped chains a thing of the past. No more front mech or chain device required.

For most people anyway, some really aggressive and rough riders combine a thick-thin ring with a compact retention device/guide as well.

>>> Best deals on 1×11 drivetrains available right now

After carrying out the surgery featured in this video your bike will be lighter, have less on it to go wrong and will be significantly quieter.