CYC X1Pro Gen2 fitment question

Thinking of getting an X1 Pro Gen 2 motor for my 2003 Specialized Stumpy XC. They offer three chainwheel options (11/53, 11/63, 12/72) that have different small pedaling inner chainrings, 32t, 38t, and 42t. I am not going to be single tracking this so mostly for higher speed gravel and such. I am inclined to go with the middle option and I believe the 38t ring will clear the chainstay, but since they don't have a drawing to show the chainring/chainline position I am not sure. Anyone done an X1 on a similar bike? Any chainline issues?

edit: I found a drawing on the CYC site. I'd still appreciate any feedback from folks with similar bikes.

edit 2: my bike has 22/32/42t chainrings and, according to their drawing the CYC puts the pedaling ring about where my middle 32t sits, which should be a perfect chainline. So the 11/53 with 32t should work for sure... the 11/63 with 38t *might" work. No way the 12/72 with 42t would fit. That would hit the chainstay almost for sure.

raylo32 said:

Thinking of getting an X1 Pro Gen 2 motor for my 2003 Specialized Stumpy XC. They offer three chainwheel options (11/53, 11/63, 12/72) that have different small pedaling inner chainrings, 32t, 38t, and 42t. I am not going to be single tracking this so mostly for higher speed gravel and such. I am inclined to go with the middle option and I believe the 38t ring will clear the chainstay, but since they don't have a drawing to show the chainring/chainline position I am not sure. Anyone done an X1 on a similar bike? Any chainline issues?

edit: I found a drawing on the CYC site. I'd still appreciate any feedback from folks with similar bikes.

edit 2: my bike has 22/32/42t chainrings and, according to their drawing the CYC puts the pedaling ring about where my middle 32t sits, which should be a perfect chainline. So the 11/53 with 32t should work for sure... the 11/63 with 38t *might" work. No way the 12/72 with 42t would fit. That would hit the chainstay almost for sure.

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The 11/53 will be what you want if you don't want a couple pointless extremely slow and extremely torqued gears you will never use. Get that and then the biggest chainring you can fit. If 38t fits get that one. The chainrings are standard narrow wide bcd104 rings. So you can mix and match after the fact, they cost $7 on aliexpress.

The chainring will be the in the exact place or a bit more outwards compared to where it was before. You can put some washers under the chainring bcd104 standoffs to adjust it a little bit.

Sounds like a plan, Tommm. I am a "real" biker (road and MTB) and have worked on my bikes for many years so I have some chainrings around. We'll see what I can fit in there. Bigger will be better for not getting spun out on full CYC boost, but not so much if I get stuck out in some hills with a dead battery or busted motor. This Stumpy is 2x 9 speed vintage and has only a 12-32 cassette. But I guess I am not gonna worry too much about that. Of course I could swap the rear derailleur, shifter and cassette for a set of the newer 1 x drivetrain type for better bottom AND top ends with the bottom end pie plate gears reserved for unassisted pedaling. Hmmm...

BTW, I am planning to just use this with the existing 52v battery I got for my TSDZ2 bike (built on an old Canondale hard tail). That is a really good build, too, but not so fast or robust at handling heat. Also planning to just get the standard 52v 3000W controller for now... This stumpy should be serious fun.

Another BTW, I probably would have gone the usual BBSHD route with this one but I am not a fan of PAS only. I am hoping the X1 Pro torque sensing is at least as good as the TSDZ2, which I find satisfactory and very rideable.

Tommm said:

The 11/53 will be what you want if you don't want a couple pointless extremely slow and extremely torqued gears you will never use. Get that and then the biggest chainring you can fit. If 38t fits get that one. The chainrings are standard narrow wide bcd104 rings. So you can mix and match after the fact, they cost $7 on aliexpress.

The chainring will be the in the exact place or a bit more outwards compared to where it was before. You can put some washers under the chainring bcd104 standoffs to adjust it a little bit.

Click to expand...

I will be headed down the same road as you soon, my friend. Good luck and keep us updated

Same feeling on the tsdz2, actually it makes a great feeling "bike" that sometimes i literally grab instead of my regular bike and it just enhances the ride. I've been itching for something a little crazier though

I heard that!! The downside is that this is my only pedal mountain bike and I will need to get another. But the 70/90mm Stumpy is really obsolete for riding technical single track anyway.

Manbeer said:

I've been itching for something a little crazier though

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Oh, one other thing... Years ago I upgraded the v-brakes on this bike with Shimano XT hydros (180mm f/160mm r). Absolutely fantastic brakes that will come in handy for this project.

People building cyc, finally there are affordable STEEL bcd104 narrow wide chainrings avaliable. None of that $130 brand name idiocy. Cyc includes alu rings and 95% of rings on market are alu.

https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002381543933.html
$10 a pop.

There are plenty of affordable aluminum rings out there, too. No need for a heavy and super strong steel pedaling ring. Turns out I didn't have a 38t around so I ordered this in blue, round, 38t, $13. Free shipping and next day delivery, too.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SMKZ1TC?ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details&th=1&psc=1

Tommm said:

People building cyc, finally there are affordable STEEL bcd104 narrow wide chainrings avaliable. None of that $130 brand name idiocy. Cyc includes alu rings and 95% of rings on market are alu.

https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002381543933.html
$10 a pop.

Click to expand...

raylo32 said:

There are plenty of affordable aluminum rings out there, too. No need for a heavy and super strong steel pedaling ring. Turns out I didn't have a 38t around so I ordered this in blue, round, 38t, $13. Free shipping and next day delivery, too.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SMKZ1TC?ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details&th=1&psc=1

Tommm said:

People building cyc, finally there are affordable STEEL bcd104 narrow wide chainrings avaliable. None of that $130 brand name idiocy. Cyc includes alu rings and 95% of rings on market are alu.

https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002381543933.html
$10 a pop.

Click to expand...

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Yea the deckas is one of the bog standard ones, I have them on all my bikes (the steel ones haven't arrived yet but a friend uses them).

Alu is fine but you have to remember 2 things.

1, The cyc will put more more torque on the ring than a bbshd or you foot can do.
2, The cassette is steel, the chain is steel and any worn cog will start working the chain harder causing it to stretch sooner and wearing out the rear cog sooner. So in the
best case they are all slow wearing and wear togeather.

So for cyc stealth, it wouldn't matter, for pro, it is a more ideal solution.

Yup, drivetrain wear will definitely be an issue with all that power. My 9-speed cassette is also alu (and ti?), Shimano XTR or XT flavor. My current drivetrain is pretty old so it might not last very long after the convert... maybe switch to all steel after that, although I haven't ever seen a steel 9-speed or higher cassette, but then I have never looked for one either. Might have to go backwards to 7- or 8-speed for that... but then that would disallow the other convert to a wider range 1x cassette, derailleur and shifter.


Yea the deckas is one of the bog standard ones, I have them on all my bikes (the steel ones haven't arrived yet but a friend uses them).

Alu is fine but you have to remember 2 things.

1, The cyc will put more more torque on the ring than a bbshd or you foot can do.
2, The cassette is steel, the chain is steel and any worn cog will start working the chain harder causing it to stretch sooner and wearing out the rear cog sooner. So in the
best case they are all slow wearing and wear togeather.

So for cyc stealth, it wouldn't matter, for pro, it is a more ideal solution.
[/quote]

I found a Shimano Alivio (HG400) steel 9-speed cassette and will also get that AliExpress steel ring. I may just install this stuff from the get go instead of breaking all the ALU. Plenty of time to procure and decide... the CYC kit will take a couple weeks to arrive. With the gears being steel the weak link will, of course, be the chain. Are there any compatible but stronger e-bike specific chains available?

raylo32 said:

Yup, drivetrain wear will definitely be an issue with all that power. My 9-speed cassette is also alu (and ti?), Shimano XTR or XT flavor. My current drivetrain is pretty old so it might not last very long after the convert... maybe switch to all steel after that, although I haven't ever seen a steel 9-speed or higher cassette, but then I have never looked for one either. Might have to go backwards to 7- or 8-speed for that... but then that would disallow the other convert to a wider range 1x cassette, derailleur and shifter.

Click to expand...

For all steel cassette
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002029607778.html

The 46t and 50t have a red alu carrier to keep the weight down (good thing), they are also available in black if you search "9 speed 46t". But for the cyc it is geared low enough 42t should suffice.

My current XTR derailleur doesn't have the capacity for a 40t+ cassette. So I got a 11-34t Alivio steel cassette for $28. We'll see how this does before going to a new 1x type derailleur with the extra capacity. That should be fine under motor power but maybe not so much for my legs if the motor breaks in the hills. But, LOL, even with a decent donor bike I am already into project and mission creep!

Tommm said:

raylo32 said:

Yup, drivetrain wear will definitely be an issue with all that power. My 9-speed cassette is also alu (and ti?), Shimano XTR or XT flavor. My current drivetrain is pretty old so it might not last very long after the convert... maybe switch to all steel after that, although I haven't ever seen a steel 9-speed or higher cassette, but then I have never looked for one either. Might have to go backwards to 7- or 8-speed for that... but then that would disallow the other convert to a wider range 1x cassette, derailleur and shifter.

Click to expand...

For all steel cassette
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002029607778.html

The 46t and 50t have a red alu carrier to keep the weight down (good thing), they are also available in black if you search "9 speed 46t". But for the cyc it is geared low enough 42t should suffice.

Click to expand...

raylo32 said:

My current XTR derailleur doesn't have the capacity for a 40t+ cassette. So I got a 11-34t Alivio steel cassette for $28. We'll see how this does before going to a new 1x type derailleur with the extra capacity. That should be fine under motor power but maybe not so much for my legs if the motor breaks in the hills. But, LOL, even with a decent donor bike I am already into project and mission creep!

Tommm said:

raylo32 said:

Yup, drivetrain wear will definitely be an issue with all that power. My 9-speed cassette is also alu (and ti?), Shimano XTR or XT flavor. My current drivetrain is pretty old so it might not last very long after the convert... maybe switch to all steel after that, although I haven't ever seen a steel 9-speed or higher cassette, but then I have never looked for one either. Might have to go backwards to 7- or 8-speed for that... but then that would disallow the other convert to a wider range 1x cassette, derailleur and shifter.

Click to expand...

For all steel cassette
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005002029607778.html

The 46t and 50t have a red alu carrier to keep the weight down (good thing), they are also available in black if you search "9 speed 46t". But for the cyc it is geared low enough 42t should suffice.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

You can usually get an extra 2 or 4 tooth capacity out of these derailleurs

Yes, but even 40t is probably >4t over capacity. Remember, this derailleur was from a whole different generation. I haven't tried to look it up but being race oriented XTR kit from 2003 it might just be 34t. So going 40 plus, even if it would work, will leave a sloppy slack chain in higher gears.


You can usually get an extra 2 or 4 tooth capacity out of these derailleurs
[/quote]

Well, I looked up my rear derailleur and the max cog is the issue, not capacity.... that's really what I was talking about above. Total capacity really isn't an issue since this will essentially be a 1x drivetrain. 34t is the limit for big cog size which is what came on my bike. Might get away with a couple teeth bigger but not gonna fool with that. Depending on how this all works out I may swap the rear derailleur (and shifter if necessary) to fit a cassette with a larger big cog if I deem it necessary or desirable... mostly as a bail out dead battery pedaling gear.

Meanwhile the bike is awaiting the motor. I have removed the bottom bracket and front derailleur. All I really need to do beyond installing the motor is to set about 3 rivnuts under the down tube to attach the shark battery mount since the battery won't fit in inside the triangle. I also have a velcro strap to tie it down with once installed.

Got my kit yesterday and finished the build... well, 90%... this morning. I did not get the brake sensors installed yet, I haven't figured out a good way to mount them on my Shimano XT hydro brake levers. There isn't a lot of room to work with and the levers have very little travel. Any suggestions? Perhaps I should just forget about the one on the right due to shifter interference and go with one on the left... which will still be tricky to set up.

But I unplugged them and went for a ride anyway. Holy cow, batman. The bike really moves. My X1 Pro Gen 2 has the new standard small controller and I am happy to say everything works just fine right out of the box. I have made zero changes in the settings or ap so far... I'll get into that this weekend. But throttle works fine, torque sensor works fine. My only very small complaint is that the torque sensor has a tiny bit of a delay to engage initially or after you stop pedaling to shift or whatever. Probably a safety feature to keep the bike from moving with pressure on the pedal whilst stopped. Anyway, I'll be posting to the other thread to learn and share experiences and settings.

I have found a workable position for the sensors... whether they will stay on or not remains to be seen. Probably have to epoxy them on and/or 3D print something to make a better mounting geometry.