Converting from 2x9 - MTB

[NvidiaDan]

Anyone good with drivetrain here?

Really wanting to ditch the 2x9 set up that came on my Trance 4 for a single ring up front.

Would I be able to just buy myself a narrow wide chain ring and take some links out of the chain or would that make the bike unusable on the climbs?

Really wanted to avoid the expense of converting to 1x10 or 11 but It's all getting a bit confusing

 

[Saytan]

You can just bolt on a narrow wide ring but the ratios may not be ideal. What rings/cassette have you got at the mo?

 

[touch]

Often, a 10 or 11 speed setup wont have a wider range of ratios than a 9 speed, it just has more in between the top and bottom gears.

Get yourself the narrow-wide ring first (and a new chain - it'll save any excess wear on the new ring from running an old chain on it) and fit it with the cassette you already have. Then you can see if you need to change cassettes or move to 10/11speed if you need more gears.