Another will this work question

[sjbraun]

I spent last summer riding my BMC Monstercross in central Oregon. The riding there is fantastic, but gravel riding involves some pretty serious climbs. They're not long, but man, are they steep. Going into this summer, I'm looking for some extra gears to get me up the steeper pitches (>20% per my Garmin.)
My current drive train is sort of a mutt build: SRAM Red 10 speed shifters, Shimano 46-36 cyclocross crank, a Shimano FD and a SRAM GX RD.
I'm thinking about switching the crank to a Shimano GRX 46-30 crank. If I do that, I have two questions-
1) Will the Red levers shift the Shimano FD?
2) Given that the Shimano crank adds 2.5mm to the chainline, do I need to use a compatible GRX FD?

Make that three questions-
My other option is to reconfigure the bike with a set of Jones bars and use Shimano 10 speed XT shifters and derailleurs. Am I correct in assuming the XT components are compatible with 10 GRX parts?

Thanks

[weiwentg]

Some people have discussed Q2 here (https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=241232&highlight=grx+crankset+front+derailleur), i.e. does the GRX crank work with a standard road FD. Some people say it does.

[dustyrider]

Can you run a 34 or 32 on the Shimano crank you already own? You might not need to get down to the 30 tooth.

[Ken Robb]

I like to have low gears. Both of my remaining bikes have triple cranks but I found I can have too much of a "good" thing. You can get gears that are too low for you to spin fast enough to stay balanced on the bike. My 30 ring with 34 cog was useless for me but then I am not much of a spinner so I know it would be a useful combo for riders who are. :)