Changing Cassette

stevemac

Hi, want to change cassette on my 2010 trek 1.1 to make it easier climb. I'm a complete newbie at this so trying to figure out if I'll need to change anything else other than the cassette.

Bike is Trek 1.1.
From that review "The components are mainly Shimano 2300 and Bontrager. Levers and both mechs are Shimano, with Bonty in charge of handlebar and tape, stem, seatpost and tyres. The chainset is FSA’s compact Tempo, a 50/34T setup paired with a Sun Race 12-25 cassette. The resulting 37-113in range might be a little narrow for some."

So I want to go from a 12-25 to a 11-30 or 11-32. This is what I'm going to order Lock ring.
Chain Whip
New Cassette

Now I don't know what effect it will have on derailers or chain. Will i need to change either of them or can I avoid that. there is a 11-28 option in the cassette there as well. Would that be a better option?

My aim to make to easier to climb. new to cycling this year and finding the hills hard, but getting to the top is the bit I enjoy. Anyway, any advice appreciated.

velo.2010

That bike really does need a triple. Thats a hefty ask, 12-25 in a compact for a beginner. If you do switch to a 12-30 or 12-32 you'll need a new chain and a longer cage rear derailleur.

If you go for the 28 option then you should only need a new chain. Having said I haven't used anything bigger than a 25 and I know that different brands will have different tolerances for bigger sprockets/longer cages etc.

cycletheroad

stevemac wrote: »

Hi, want to change cassette on my 2010 trek 1.1 to make it easier climb. I'm a complete newbie at this so trying to figure out if I'll need to change anything else other than the cassette.

Bike is Trek 1.1.
From that review "The components are mainly Shimano 2300 and Bontrager. Levers and both mechs are Shimano, with Bonty in charge of handlebar and tape, stem, seatpost and tyres. The chainset is FSA’s compact Tempo, a 50/34T setup paired with a Sun Race 12-25 cassette. The resulting 37-113in range might be a little narrow for some."

So I want to go from a 12-25 to a 11-30 or 11-32. This is what I'm going to order Lock ring.
Chain Whip
New Cassette

Now I don't know what effect it will have on derailers or chain. Will i need to change either of them or can I avoid that. there is a 11-28 option in the cassette there as well. Would that be a better option?

My aim to make to easier to climb. new to cycling this year and finding the hills hard, but getting to the top is the bit I enjoy. Anyway, any advice appreciated.

Are you approaching climbing in the right mode.....for me..i always spin in a low gear and not fight the climb as opposed to someone trying to push a big gear climbing...get into a rhythm more or less.

I would have thought with a compact chainset on the front, it would give you sufficient gearing for climbing.

If you change the cassette, you'll have to replace the chain as well because your gears will only slip with a new cassette against an old chain.

stevemac

I try to spin in a low gear alright. But still feel the pressure. I'm carrying a bit of weight so until i can get rid of some of it I'd like to change the cassette.

This cycle was my aim this year. And I did it but found it very tough. And next year want to repeat it from my own house which will add 40km to the cycle. And I want to do a different route that is tougher. So want to get the easier gears to help.

Would a medium cage work?
Can't find any 8sp long cage derailleurs. Only this medium cage one.

Or if I went to the 11-28 option from the first post could I avoid all the hassle with the derailleurs?

Dubba

stevemac wrote: »

I try to spin in a low gear alright. But still feel the pressure. I'm carrying a bit of weight so until i can get rid of some of it I'd like to change the cassette.

This cycle was my aim this year. And I did it but found it very tough. And next year want to repeat it from my own house which will add 40km to the cycle. And I want to do a different route that is tougher. So want to get the easier gears to help.

Would a medium cage work?
Can't find any 8sp long cage derailleurs. Only this medium cage one.

Or if I went to the 11-28 option from the first post could I avoid all the hassle with the derailleurs?

This is what I did and has helped me a great deal with the hills.
No need to change the derailleur or chain but I left it to my LBS to do the fitting. He did for me it in 10min with just a few adjustments to the rear derailleur.

Paul Kiernan

Be careful! The 2300 Rear Mech only comes in one size and is only specified up to a 26 tooth cog at back. A 28 might work but a 32 is probably asking for trouble.

You'll almost certainly need a longer chain - see how much slack, if any, is left when it's on the large front ring and the 25 back cog and guess would it still work if the chain was 3 links shorter! If you're very, very, careful and never switch into the 28 while still on the big front ring you might be OK but invariably you'll forget someday and could damage something!

cdaly_

stevemac wrote: »

Can't find any 8sp long cage derailleurs.

You don't specifically need an 8sp derailleur, a 9sp will work fine also. The only difference might be a narrower cage but I don't think there's a problem.

Tonyandthewhale

2300 derailleur should be alright with a 28 tooth cassette. I had a 2200 derailleur with a 32 tooth on the tourer for a while and it worked fine. 9 speed derailleur will also work fine with an 8 speed cassette. You can use a mountain bike derailleur too if you want.

victorcarrera

Do you not have a long reach rear mech already as compact set up usually ship with it? You don't need to buy and 11 lockring, it will come with the new cassette. You can ignore Shimano's guidelines for gear combinations as many non standard setups work fine. If you go for 30 or larger you should adjust the "B" tension adjuster to keep the guide pulley from touching the bigger cogs and you will almost certainly need a longer chain or add a few links to the one you have. 25 to 28 is a big jump so you might find it enough and you might get away without doing anything else.

NeedMoreGears

I changed from a 11-27 to an 11-30. I had to replace the chain at the time anyway. The derailleur worked fine for me with some adjustment to the tension.

10% improvement in gearing was great! So even going up to 27 would be a big help. It's a fairly straightforward job. IIRC I bought a chain whip and the tool to undo the lockring from chainreaction. The cassette came with a locking.

Good luck with the job - the hills are much more fun when you can actually get up them*


* I'm sure you get up them anyway but I need the bit of extra gearing to prevent heart attacks/hernia etc

Holyboy

The rear mech would have a recommended largest rear sprocket capacity of 27 teeth(if memory serves me right) but you would get away with 28 teeth no problem, the chain (if it is the correct length, that is in the small/small rings as close to the rear mech cage as possible but not touching) would be fine with the extra teeth but I would suggest changing it any way, I'm not a fan of old chains with new cassettes and vice versa.

stevemac

Ok, got the 11-28 cassette and installed on the bike. Had to fiddle about with the rear derailler and the cable and got it sorted on the small front cog. Not working on big cog. Just need to get the bigger chain and that should be ok I hope.

http://techdocs.shimano.com/media/techdocs/content/cycle/SI/2300/SI_5XA0A_001/SI-5XA0A-001-ENG_v1_m56577569830673817.pdf

triggermortis

That's some climb at the end of the ride. No wonder you want easier gearing!

stevemac

yeah thats the cut in Laois. Thats probable the easier way to go up it. My next aim is to do it again, but starting from my own house, which will add 60km to the cycle. And it do it from the other side, which is the same climb but in a shorter distance and literally no breaks at all in it.

stevemac

sorted. Got a 9 speed chain. Didn't have a clue about the sizing before i went into the shop. Had to take out 6 links and got it working. Now to get out and use it.

Just waiting on chain reaction cycles to get my thermal leggings and gloves to me.