10 and 11 speed chainrings - compatible or not?

[phantasmagoriana]

I've currently got a 50/34 compact, but am thinking about changing the outer ring to a 46 as I reckon it would give me a better usable range of gears. However, 11-speed 46t rings seem to be fairly scarce, and pretty expensive - so I'm wondering whether I could get away with a 10-speed one instead.

Does anyone know whether mixing an 11-speed drivetrain with a 10-speed chainring is possible? I see some chainrings marked as 9/10 and others as 10/11, but I'm not too sure how different the chain widths are.

[Torslanda]

Apparently the difference between 10 & 11 speed chain width is 0.2mm.

I'd say go for it. Even if the chain is a little 'sticky' initially it will very soon wear in.

[Torslanda]

There's a small caveat attached. If you have (for example) a Shimano chainset the outer ring is dished to allow the chain to clear the outer ring in the higher gears on the inner IYSWIM. This is due to the outer cogs running so close to the dropout.

Stronglight & TA rings are flat and may catch. You may need to shim the outer ring or live with it.