If you've dabbled in gravel racing and riding, chances are you already know how important a large gear range and tidy setup is, and if you have yet to experience it first hand, we can assure you, that we covet simple drivetrains with few opportunities for failure, and as many gears as possible to get us up poorly-graded hills that make up the Crusher and Kanza. With that said, it took quite some time for component manufacturers to jump on the gravel bandwagon, but with the Kanza's starting line amplifying from sub-50 cyclists to over 3,000 in just twelve years, its a welcome sight to see Shimano launch its GRX gravel-specific groupset that finds the perfect balance between MTB and Road, with a sleek and streamlined drop-bar setup, and improved modulation and bump compliance to handle off-road conditions. Shimano's GRX RD-RX812 follows in the footsteps of Ultegra RX which was launched last year, which took queues from the Shadow mountain bike derailleur, adding in a clutch mechanism to reduce chain slap and dropped chains for a quieter and more secure ride both on and off-road. When in the on position, the clutch increases the spring force to provide crisp shifting and zero chain slap and is easily flipped off for wheel changes. What we find to be big news is that Shimano crafts the GRX RD-RX810 for both 1x and 2x setups, stepping outside of the 2x only comfort zone that the brand had held to, with this short-cage model being optimized for an 11 - 34t cassette. Following in the footsteps of the revamped Dura-Ace and Ultegra groups, this GRX derailleur gets its Shadow cage treatment placing it closer to the frame and under the cassette keeping it out of harm's way and less likely to take the brunt of a driveside crash. This also allows the derailleur to move in a much more linear path allowing for shorter throws with less effort. The RX812 model comes in one cage length, long, which accommodates an 11-42t cassette allowing for a wide range gear ratio when paired w...
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