rear cassette help for a noob

R34PER

i have just bought a new groupset for my bike and have just realised that my new rear cassette is a road version and not mtb... will it still fit or will i have to buy another its a SRAM PG-970 :shock: i thought i would check before i open the packaging as i could resell it as brand new otherwise. thanks. i also have a frame question... i want to build up a new bike for a bit of all round fun, does the frame really matter that much as long as it fits as i have seen some unbranded ones going quite cheap (hardtail) and i figure if i buy a cheaper frame i can spend a little more on wheels and components. any input would be great

nicklouse

there is no such thing as a road cassette. just close ratio and wide ratio.

if the fitting is the same then yes. but you may have other issues depending on what the rest of the stuff is.

R34PER

everything else should all work together... i hope :shock:

shimano 9 speed xt chainset
shimano 9 speed xt shifters
shimano 9 speed xtr chain
shimano 9 speed xt rear + front mech...
i bought this SRAM 9 speed cassette as the shop were out of the shimano one.
the SRAM is the powerglide II one with sizes 11-23T (the old name would have been R9)

so i could struggle with the ratio then?
am i right in thinking that its mainly the different gearing as the difference between the two. so i will only find out by fitting and trying really then?

(now noticed mtb buying guide for frame info for other question :oops: )

supersonic

I would say the gearing is too high for MTBing.

11-30 or 11-32 would be nore suitable.

R34PER

i suppose you are right... i have just been thinking about it and i wont really be gaining anything i will just have closer gears and less options. i may see how cheap i can pick up an xt cassette just to match it up with the rest of the groupset and sell this one to fund it :-)

i was originally going to put it all on my current bike (just a cheap ebay buy first bought for the work run) but i figure it will be a little bit like overkill now so i'm going to build myself a decent ride (its a slippery slope) for some light xc to start :P

supersonic

32 to 23 is a big step!

R34PER

i take far to long posting replies sorry...

also being pretty new to all this should i be looking in the buying a new MTB section for advice on parts/wheels/forks etc...

and thanks again for the help

supersonic

Yes for new parts, and here for tech questions ;-)

jayson

Some good advice here on kit but in my opinion u should buy the best frame u can first and foremost because this is the heart of the bike that everything else is bolted to and dictates how the bike rides more than any of the bits attached to it do.

There are some some ok cheap frames but for my money i would ALWAYS get the heart right then worry about the components for it cause these will eventually break anyways and are much cheaper to replace than a broken frame.