Mountain Biking - 9 speed crankset question

my crankset specs are 44/32/22 2002 Bontrager Sport will i be able to change my drive train to a 9 speed from an 8 without having to replace it?

i don't think there will be problems.. just replace the chain with narrower ones..

You will need a new cassette (duh!), shifters (duh again!) and a new chain. Your rear derailleur will work, as well as your front. I've used Race Face 8 speed chainrings as well as Shimano 8 speed Chainrings without a problem, but don't know for sure regarding yours. Chances are they'll be o.k.

Now, realize that it will work, but it won't work as well. The shifts will be slower (hardly noticible) and the front derailleur will have to be adjusted pretty well since the cage is wider.

The question is WHY go to 9-speed?

If I could find a box full of '98 vintage 8-speed parts, I'd run them forever!

L8R

well see i dont have a choice here. I hate my front derailer with a passion! and my rear one something is buggered up inside and needs to be replaced. So im going XT front and rear(2004) LX cassete and shifters and PC99 chain all from santa lol

You can use the 9 speed front and rear derailers and stay 8 speed. I have that on mine. No problems at all. The exact same setup. XT (9sp) der front and rear. LX (8sp) shifters / hubs/ cranks/ chain / casette.

The shifter determines how far the der moves.

Hey, if Santa is footing the bill.........do it all.

No, you can't use 8 speed chainrings with a 9 speed chain/cassette/derailler. 8 speed has wider teeth than a 9 speed does, and so if you use an 8 speed chainring with a 9 speed chain the chainrings will damage the chain. You might be able to get away with it, but if not you'll probably thrash your chainrings, chain, and possibly damage your cassette and derailler. Just a bad idea.

Check out Shimano's response to the same question in their faq's. It is question number 13. http://bike.shimano.com/services/faq.asp

Bah! I hate 9 speed cogs. More trouble than they're worth for my recreational riding needs.

They're like a mental patient. One little thing to disturb them (a bit of dirt or a bit of misalignment in the derailleur) and they go haywire.

9 speed sucks. I only ride it because I have to.

Really?They're still having problems with 9-speed?I thought all the bugs would be out by now.

It's not that there's problems with it that can even be solved.. as soon as mud, dirt, or normal riding factors get thrown into play you start skipping around and things just perform sloppy.. it's worse on Shimano systems than on SRAM from my experience.

Really?They're still having problems with 9-speed?I thought all the bugs would be out by now.

It's just that since you have 9 sprockets so close together, the tolerances and mechanics involved are inherently more complex. The more complex = more opportunity for things to go wrong.

As Jim said, the derailleur starts acting eccentric unless the derailleur is tuned just right and kept in pristine condition; hard to do in MTB.

Shifting problems are also the hardest problems to correct as I have found out recently. Besides, I rarely if ever use the extreme gears in my recreational trail riding -- it's a waste of them being there.

I fear for the days when Shimano thinks it will be a good idea introduce us to 10 speed. For those who think it won't happen; give it time.

I fear for the days when Shimano thinks it will be a good idea introduce us to 10 speed. For those who think it won't happen; give it time.


They are already working on it.