Though still a chance that if I can visit the Larry's Cruzeum in Hilton Head I might change my mind and go for the V20c, at this point I plan to be buying an S40 frameset and building it up. Though I live in Texas where it is fairly flat, I do plan to do a bit of riding back where I used to live in Ohio where there are some significant hills so I wanted a wider range than the 1x in the "complete" option. As of now, on my tentative list is a SRAM Rival eTap groupset with a 48-35 chainring (crank length TBD), 10-36 12 speed cassette, and hydraulic disk breaks. A carbon wheel set (specifics TBD) with tubeless tires (size?). Not sure which seat and headrest. Undecided on accessories (bags, cages, etc). I thought it would be great to have a place on forum where people could post the builds they have done for an S40 and what influenced their choices. Please post either what you have built or your dream build based on experience so far.
S40 Build Options
- Thread starter LANdrew4
- Start date
I will be following your journey as I have been considering either a S40 or V20 for road riding. Currently riding a Q45 with the stock 42 chairing and a 10-50 12 speed cassette.
You should check out the V20v build by Ratz, it is a great source of information on options.
forum.cruzbike.com
You should check out the V20v build by Ratz, it is a great source of information on options.
V20c Build Diary 2023 edition.
Create a User account on the forum to see the hires version of the photos Ok the time has come to do it yet again. All the parts have rolled in minus two.. I am going to build a Qty 2 V20cs with detailed photo documentation over the next Month. Disclaimer: A new disclaimer this time; I don't...
forum.cruzbike.com
I will also follow along .I am looking at upgrading to a faster bike and considering S40 or V20c.Currently own a Q45 for one year had stock gearing had 11-42 cassette and 42T chainring ,great on flats not good on hills .Worked my way down to a 34T chaining with 11-42 cassette worked good .Biked the Southern Tier San Diego to St Augustine Fl last Feb and March nice and flat stayed out of the hill country went from Bracketville TX to San Antonio.No problems with that gearing .In Port Moody BC lots of hills and good climbing to get the body conditioned up .I put on shimano 11-51 cassette stayed with 11speed and a goat tooth on the derailer seems to work fine .That was my cheapest route to try out lower gearing without breaking the bank
Now I am considering the SRAM Eagle 10-52 ,12 speed but new wheels have to be purchased,shifter and goodies.
If you are going Touring self supported gearing is very important,especially when you are in hilly country carrying 30lbs of gear .Try and get your gearing down to 16 gearinches .But then you sacrifice speed
Now I am considering the SRAM Eagle 10-52 ,12 speed but new wheels have to be purchased,shifter and goodies.
If you are going Touring self supported gearing is very important,especially when you are in hilly country carrying 30lbs of gear .Try and get your gearing down to 16 gearinches .But then you sacrifice speed
Flying Dutchman
Active Member
@Bo6 Interestingly I'm 'halfway through' changing my Q45 to 12-speed and am interested in your experience. I initially went the Shimano route but then found a wheelset with XDR freehub so I thought great then I can go 10-50. But I found that the Shimano M8100 RD can't reach the smallest cog?!? Even if I completely loosen the stopper, it only goes as far as the 11th cog. And at the other end it also struggles to get to the biggest cog. So I am very interested in your setup - which RD do you have and how is it running?I will be following your journey as I have been considering either a S40 or V20 for road riding. Currently riding a Q45 with the stock 42 chairing and a 10-50 12 speed cassette.
You should check out the V20v build by Ratz, it is a great source of information on options.
V20c Build Diary 2023 edition.
Create a User account on the forum to see the hires version of the photos Ok the time has come to do it yet again. All the parts have rolled in minus two.. I am going to build a Qty 2 V20cs with detailed photo documentation over the next Month. Disclaimer: A new disclaimer this time; I don't...
Any other advice also welcome
Sorry for stealing this thread but I don't know how to make this into a separate thread.
I stayed with Scram and ended up with a GX 12 speed derailleur, NX 12 speed shifter, and a 10-50 cassette with the stock 42 tooth chain ring. It works very well as the 50 gets me up most hills and the 10 lets me get to ~50km/hr at a reasonable cadence.
I originally had borrowed the 11-50 cassette and the 12 speed NX shifter/derailleur off my mountain bike to get an idea of how it felt. The NX derailleur did not work well on the Q45 even though it worked well on the MTB so I upgraded to a GX shifter. I suspect the orientation was just different enough to cause poor to no shifting to the 50 ring.
I know that Shimano and Scram don't always work together and would stay with one brand. As you have a Scram cassette, I would be tempted to look for Scram GX derailleur and a Scram 12 speed mountain bike trigger shifter.
Flying Dutchman
Active Member
Thought I would post an update on my progress. Last Tuesday, I made it to HH to spend some time with Larry at the Cruzeum - it was WELL worth the trip - go if you have the opportunity! I had hoped that trip would completely resolve any debate I had between an S40 and a V20 - so much for that! The S40 was great and I am quite sure it is more suited to the rides I do most often. However, the V20c was a blast and I also tried it with a wedge stuck in so it was more like the S40 (can't do that the other way around and make an S40 into a V20). As I was driving back to the airport, I weighed the options an decided the almost $2000 difference (less if I quickly got the remaining red one or one of the few white ones left before the new colors, and new prices, come out at the end of the month - neither was a color I would have picked but the yellow are gone) was hard to justify for a bike that was fun but less suited to my normal rides. Then when I arrived in Atlanta for a layover, I had an email from Larry with a link to a pristine V20 (not V20c) for a great price. Now my plan is to get both the used V20 and a new S40 and ride both for a while until I decide which I want to keep (or keep both and sell one of my old recumbents to make room).
As for the S40:
- The standard headrest could not be adjusted so I was not looking out of the bottom of my glasses (progressive lenses) so I am getting the "Performance Adjustable Headrest" which worked great for me. (really nice to be able to try both with Larry).
- The standard seat fit fine so no issues there
- I am going to use the SRAM Rival eTap gearset with 48-35 "front" and 60mm cranks (may try to find shorter eventually) and 10-36 12x cassette in "back" and hydraulic disk brakes (160mm).
- I am also ordering a Ventisit pad and the new Cruzbike "Race Cage" which looks great and will handle my water bottles, storage, and mount for light and possibly radar.
- As for wheels, on Larry's suggestion, I am going to try a pair of Hunt 50mm carbon rims with tubeless tires.
I will post some pictures as I receive the two bikes and get them assembled into riding order and then maybe start a new post on my thoughts on riding each.
Thanks, Larry, Joe, Eli and others for all the great advice and counsel (and time).
LarryOz
Cruzeum Curator & Sigma Wrangler
Glad I could help Andrew - thanks again for visiting the Cruzeum!
