Check this out for a short cage, you may here different opinions but for me and a 1X chain ring with alternated teeth it works well. You could also try the 105 without it and a 32 sometimes it works depending on hanger on bike with adjuster all the way in.\

\https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/...on/products/roadlink

As mentioned above, you can use a hanger extension to expand the capability of a road rear derailleur, but I'm just not sure how well it works.


As far as what gearing you should probably shoot for, most CX bikes come with a 46/36 crankset and a 11-28 cassette. So that means 36/28 is the easiest gear and it's a very similar but slightly easier ratio than 42/32. In most CX races, you're going very hard and it's very punchy...so you don't really need a gear to "spin" in. Most times when it gets steep you just get out of the saddle and put down more watts rather than look for a bail out gear. You're probably going to want to keep at least a 42t up front if you're going to run 1x as you'll want to keep the top end of 42x11. Again, it's pretty close to the 46x11 top end that most CX bikes come with. CX usually has at least a few fast sections where 36x11 won't quite be enough gear.

So for CX racing, if you're going 1x...I would recommend 42 up front and a 11/32 in the rear. I currently have a medium cage 5800 RD on my CX bike, but I'm not running it 1x. I wanted a to run the 11x32 for more adventure type rides where spinning in 36x32 is a much better option than 36x28. So you should factor that in too. Is this bike just for CX racing, or do you plan to do some gravel riding with steep climbing where a bail out gear would be nice. 42x32 is slightly harder than 34/26 for perspective to common road gearing.

I don't have personal experience, so take this with a grain of salt. But some people have gotten the 11-32 to work (barely) with the SS derailleur and a 2x crankset. And Shimano's MB rear derailleurs are all rated to take a bigger cassette when used in conjunction with a 1x crankset than a 2x, so it's not crazy to think that there's a little more headroom for a 32 tooth cog on an 105 SS derailleur with a 1x setup than a 2x. I'd be inclined to try it.

Worst case scenario, you have to drop $20 on the Wolf Tooth Roadlink referenced above. You'd still be all-in for less than you'd be with a new chainwheel.

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11-32 fits on my Shimano Di2 10 spd standard RD.

Same cassette WILL NOT fit on SRAM standard RD. Entirely different dimensions. Fits nice with the WiFli RD which is a mid-cage.

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Thanks for the info. I'm aiming more towards CX racing for this bike. I've been racing CX on a Redline for the last 2 seasons and can use that bike for gravel events, rail trail rides etc...I "think" I could be good with the 42/32. I was reading those gear ratio charts but wasn't tracking 100% on them.

And any solid recommendations for an 11 speed chain to work good with the Sram XSYNC front ring and shimano cassette? I was looking at KMC and a Shimano. Any opinions on one or the other?

Thanks

Both are fine.

Yes, that will work fine. For true cyclocross racing, there's no much reason to go above a 38 unless you're creeping into Cat 2 territory or racing really fast courses. A 38 front 28 rear is a fairly low gear. A 34 or 36 could work. I think you'll be fine running an 11-32 with your short cage RD as long as you're going 1x.

Two of my cx wheelsets have an 11-32 cassette and they are working great with a short cage 105 5800 without a Roadlink. That's on a Raleigh RXC and each frame is different. The b screw isn't anywhere near maxed out and I once got it to work (maxed b screw) with an 11-36 cassette, but the shifting was better when using a Roadlink. I run a Roadlink and 11-40 cassette (and different, longer chain) instead of that 11-36 for gravel.

The 42 x 11-32 range is pretty good for cyclocross. Anything lower than 42x32 you will probably be running instead. Truthfully, I think you will rarely (if ever) hit the 42x11 in an actual cyclocross race. A 38 front ring with your 11-28 cassette is a very standard cyclocross gearing for 1x. Like anything, test it out in the stand and go through all of your gears before testing it on the race course.

Thanks and this bike is also a Raleigh RX 2.0. I believe if I get a 105 11-32 cassette it's actually cheaper than swapping the 42 tooth ring for a 38 tooth. Thanks for the reply and yes I'm gonna test it all out after the build.