On my Kona Sutra LTD build, I was concerned about a lack of low end gear spread for the Tour Divide. Whilst pure grunt will usually get you up most things on an 11-42T cassette, I thought with the cumulative fatigue and long climbs on this 21 day bikepacking route, I might need something lower...
SRAM rate their SRAM Rival and Force 1X rear derailleurs as suitable for a maximum of a 42-tooth cassette—I was keen to see if the SunRace MX80 and MX8 cassette would work with the derailleurs and provide that sought-after lower gear possibility.
You may well not have heard of the SunRace brand, but you likely have heard of Sturmey Archer—the iconic hub gear brand with a long heritage of success and reliability. SunRace is an off-shoot of Sturmey Archer—so their products are designed and built with many years of bicycle drivetrain wisdom.
So, the main question...
Does the SunRace CS MX80 MX8 Cassette work with SRAM Force or Rival rear derailleurs?
Yes. Faultlessly.
The switch from the SRAM 11-42T road cassette to the SunRace cassette was a doddle—simply slide one off and the other on (do not forget you need an extra spacer with the SunRace cassette on the 11-speed road free-hub body, as it is an 11-speed MTB cassette).
A little tightening of the B-tension screw, and the chain shifts effortlessly through the gear spread on the wider ratio cassette. I did not even need to add extra links to the chain.
Out on the trails, the performance continued. The SunRace cassette delivered smooth and silent shifting, even in challenging wet and muddy conditions. The additional gearing spread of the wider ratio cassette was also very noticeable—providing a greater 'get out of jail' gear for those steeper or fatigued climbs.
The SunRace MX80 cassette uses stainless steel for all but the largest two sprockets, which are made from a lighter aluminium alloy. It has an all-in weight of 464 grams—which is 75 grams lighter than the stock SRAM PG-1130 11-42 cassette. The MX8 is a lower cost option, and uses stainless cogs for all but the largest sprocket—it has a weight of 485 grams (still less than the SRAM model).
I have yet to test the lifetime durability of the SunRace cassette, but the build quality is impressive, and I have no reason to believe that it will not last just as long as a SRAM 11-speed cassette.
To sum up, the SunRace MX80 (and MX8) cassette offers a very worthwhile upgrade for a gravel bike, bikepacking bike, mountain bike, or cyclocross bike running a 1X drivetrain. The upgrade provides a lower gear for those tough moments, and the cassette is fully compatible with SRAM Rival and Force rear derailleurs. This is a great tweak to most 1X gear set-ups.
>> Shop the SunRace MX8 11-46T Cassette here<<
SunRace provided Lifeinthesaddle.cc with a cassette for test and review