Going from a 8 speed to a nine speed??

Jaymanspurt

Hello All!!
I am a complete beginner but have become crazed about road bikes!! I currently ride a specialized allez double. It currently runs on a 8 gear cassette at the rear and i was wondering could i put a 9 speed cassette on as most upgradeable parts ( i want to upgrade to mixed parts or dura ace and ultegra sl) tend to fit a 9 speed. hope this all makes sense and i look forward to your reply's.

desweller

There shouldn't be a problem fitting the cassette to the wheel, but you will need to change your right hand shifter to a 9-speed Shimano compatible item.

nicklouse

and change the chain to a 9spd one.

Jaymanspurt

thank you. i take that it would be the same if i were to use a 10 speed as well? I have a lot to learn.

desweller

Yes. Shifter and chain.

What are you planning to use the bike for?

EDIT: If the rear mech is very old then the cage might be a bit too wide to get good shifts, but I have no experience of using older mechs with 10-sp kit.

Jaymanspurt

to start with some long rides on flat and hilly roads then hopefully i would like to enter some comps at my local cycling club. caught the bug big time much to my wifes dismay.

satanas

You will definitely need to change the cassette, chain and RH shifter.

The chainrings should be fine. The rear mech should be fine too, although it's possible you may get slightly better shifting by changing the jockey wheels to suit the narrower spacing.

If you want 10 speed eventually, don't bother with 9 speed - go straight to 10 or you'll need to do it all twice.

Jaymanspurt

would i have to change the front derailleur as well to cope with the new cassette?

nicklouse

no need. it has nothing to do with the cassette just the chain width which is thinner so may need a bit more trimming.

the rear mech will be fine as the cogs are the same.

Jaymanspurt

sweet. Thanks for your help. much appreciated.

satanas

FWIW, I've used old Ritchey 8 speed chainrings and didn't have any shifting problems.As long as the adjustment isn't totally out the front derailleur and chainrings should work fine provided you're not going to shift viciously under massive load.

NB: I only made the comment about the rear mech as it's been suggested that switching the jockey wheels needs to be done with Campag mechs when changing number of rear cogs. While the 8 and 9 speed cogs themselves are the same thickness, the spacing and chain width are not, and if you switch to 10 speed the cogs are thinner and the chain is slightly thinner again. Some small differences may not be noticeable individually, but they might add up if you change everything. Having said that, I expect you'll only need to swap the shifter, chain and cassette - things are a lot more compatible than one might believe from looking at Shimano compatibility charts.

Jaymanspurt

I will probably use all shimanos parts any way as i do not no enough about sram etc so hopefully it shouldn't be to complicated. Thanks for your help with this satanas because as a beginner it can do your brains in with all the info you need to know.

pbt150

As some of my other posts have shown, I'm spreading the good word for SRAM, it's really, really good, even the bottom end Rival/Apex.

You can get some pretty good deals on parts, and if you don't need a chainset you can get the rest of the parts for around £350. If you're upgrading, now is the time to see the light!