Mountain Biking - Need new rear gears, should I do it myself?

A few teeth on my rear gears are bent and I need to get it replaced. I was wondering how hard this will be. The bike shop quoted me at $60 installed. I also need a new chain so thats even more. Anyway I was thinking I could save some money doing this my self. One more question so I don't have to start a new thread. There is no "clicking" sound coming from the rear when pedaling backwards or just coasting. Is that normal or should I replace that also?

Piece of cake. You'll need some tools, one to remove the nut thing that holds the gears on and one to hold the gears (a chain whip, looks like a piece of chain with a handle, although I use an old chain and it works). Most bike shops will be able to sell you the tools.

All you do is remove the nut thing with the special tools, slide the old gears off, slide the new gears on, tighten the nut thing and you're done. Once you have the tools you can then remove and clean your rear cassette any time you wish.

I believe some rear hubs simply click less than others, probably no big deal.

Ok, cool. Thanks for the quick reply. Any suggestions a good gear set?

What kind of bike do you have?

What kind of bike do you have?

Not sure of the year, but its a Specialized Hardrock Comp Disc.

How many gears are in the back?

Ok, cool. Thanks for the quick reply. Any suggestions a good gear set?

What do you have now? 8sp, 9sp, etc? Brand? What shifters do you have? I have SRAM 9sp cassettes on both my bikes (road and mountain. I don't know if they're "the best" or not but they've never let me down. You'll probably want to keep the same gear count that you have now.

As for the bike shop's $60 price, that includes parts, right? Some rear cassettes can cost that much retail (some cost less), there may not be a lot of labor dollars to save doing it yourself, and it'll cost you more to buy a good cassette plus the tools. But then you'll have the tools to be able to do it yourself next time.

8 gears in the back.

A quick sampling:

http://www.jensonusa.com/store/sub/128-Cassettes+And+Freewheels.aspx?s=1532

If you have Shimano XT then $60 looks like parts cost. There are cheaper cassettes but you may or may not want to "cheapen" your bike with cheaper parts than what you have today.

This might be worth considering (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile_combo.cfm?SKU=13231&estore_ID=&subcategory_ID=5130&CFID=84727140&CFTOKEN=48397596).

An XT 8-speed cassette (11-30) and Shimano chain for $55.

Piece of cake. You'll need some tools, one to remove the nut thing that holds the gears on and one to hold the gears (a chain whip, looks like a piece of chain with a handle, although I use an old chain and it works). Most bike shops will be able to sell you the tools.

All you do is remove the nut thing with the special tools, slide the old gears off, slide the new gears on, tighten the nut thing and you're done. Once you have the tools you can then remove and clean your rear cassette any time you wish.

I believe some rear hubs simply click less than others, probably no big deal.

Pure gold.

Its a "nut thing"..

$20 for a cassette, $20 for a chain whip, $10 for a lockring tool, $20 for a chain. That's $70 but in my opinion basic tools are worth the money, and learning to do it yourself is very rewarding (and easy). Make sure you have a wrench to turn the lockring tool. The Park chain whip has a wrench that fits on one end, but you'll be using that to hold the cassette still.

This might be worth considering (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile_combo.cfm?SKU=13231&estore_ID=&subcategory_ID=5130&CFID=84727140&CFTOKEN=48397596).

An XT 8-speed cassette (11-30) and Shimano chain for $55.

Excellent deal if you like 11-30.

Seems like the sub-$15 Forte cassette would be more appropriate for the bike it's going on...

Nobody has mentioned that the OP will probably need a chain tool to shorten and/or install the new chain...

Thanks guys..umm Id rather buy a cheaper cassette. I am planning on buying a cassette, chain, chain tool, and the cassette remover/installer tool. What do I need to know about the teeth? Like a post above mentioned 11-30..what does that mean?

It's how many teeth the sprockets have...smallest one has 11, largest has 30... You'll probably want to get one that has the same number as your current cassette.

nashbar has an 8 speed cassette for 5 bucks .. they work great I use one on my 8 speed .. I believe it's a sun race ..

yup buy this one, and a lockring wrench .... thread closed

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=600087&subcategory=60001109&brand=&sku=20640&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=Shop%20by%20Subcat%3A%20Freewheels

nashbar has an 8 speed cassette for 5 bucks .. they work great I use one on my 8 speed .. I believe it's a sun race ..

yup buy this one, and a lockring wrench .... thread closed

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=600087&subcategory=60001109&brand=&sku=20640&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=Shop%20by%20Subcat%3A%20Freewheels

Nice deal thanks.