max power

hello fellas, just recently my 05 Allez Sport started failing me, the chain can't stay on the chainring, every now and then it will try to slip to the lower chainring, not very confidence inspiring when ascending hills

i've decided to do some hardware upgrades since the person i bought the bike from said it had about 1500 miles on it.

currently the main specs are

shifters: shimano tiagra STI
front derailleur: shimano tiagra 31.8mm clamp
rear derailleur: shimano 105 long cage (triple)
cassette: shimano tiagra 9 speed 12x25t
crank: specialized comp



i'm wondering what's the cheapest way i can go to get a double? i want to keep the component level somewhat decent (shimano 105 or SRAM rival). will i just needa new crankset/front+rear derailleur/cassette and chain?

can anyone recommend a parts package i should buy? can i keep my shifters? can i keep my brakes?


thanks in advance guys

brianappleby

you can definately keep your brakes, you can probably keep your shifters.

1500 miles isn't that much for a crankset. Is it a triple? If properly adjusted, you shouldn't have any shifting problems at all. You may want to replace your chain. But the rest of the equipment should be fine.

foresthill

If you want to switch to a double, all you'll need is a new crank and a new FD (and the new FD is maybe questionable.) 1500 miles is not enough to have created significant wear on any of those parts.

max power

i just recently replaced my chain because it looked pretty rusted (previous owner was a triathlete), i think it's my front derailleur that might need adjusting, there a couple of screws sticking out i think they are adjustment screws?


the reason i just want to get new hardware is because i'm new to bikes but am a real hands on kind of guy, i work on my own cars so i'd like to figure out how road bikes are put together and no better way than takin one apart and puttin new parts on.


i just wanted to get a rough idea of how much switching to a double might cost me

max power

is that all i need? so if i bought a shimano 105 crank and shimano 105 FD it would all bolt on? what about the rear derailleur? spec says its a "long cage triple" wouldnt i need a "short cage" derailleur for a double?

ridethecliche

Did you replace the cassette?

Are you cross chained when this happens?

voltman

All you "need" is a new crank. You may want to change the FD and RD.

While you're at it, move up to Ultegra.

max power

cassette is stock, this happens even when im in the middle chainring, and in the middle of the cassette



so "long cage triple" rear derailleur would work with a double chainring?
if you guys are telling me i dont need to replace my entire group to go double maybe i'll just buy dura ace parts and slowly upgrade over time!


reason i ask this is because my LBS told me that to go from a triple to a double i needed new shifters/crank/front and rear derailleurs/cassette and brakes. pretty much a new group

Psimet2001 

Find a new shop.

aloysius

Wait, wait, wait... You might need a new chain and cassete, but that's it, and that should only put you back $70 or so. You have a nice bike with some quality parts; I don't think a total overhaul is what's called for.

ridethecliche

I don't understand what's going on here.

You probably don't need to replace anything, other than the chainring and cassette at the most.

This jumping might happen if the chain is too long. I think something else is going on here...

Find a new shop and take it in, no need to go to buy anything new from the get go.

Wearing out a chainring in 1500 miles is insane...

AEO

Wow, I wouldn't want to go to that LBS, that's a lot of bogus.
At most you'll need the crank, BB and FD.
Least you'll need is the BB and crank.
I'm not sure what kind of BB your bike is using, but you'll want to use a BB for a double.
Tiagra 4500 or 4550 + ultegra BB 6600 cups can be had for $100 total or less online.
or you want new old stock, you can get 105 5500 octalink cranks and ultegra octalink BB for less than $90

The RD for triple "SG long" and double "SS short" only differ in chain slack take up capacity.

max power

this is great news guys! i think i'll start buying stuff tommorow!

is there any reason you think i dont need a new cassette and others think i might?

terrymorse 

No need to get a new cassette. A Shimano 9-speed cassette is the same as any other Shimano 9-speed cassette. On the other hand, if you want to switch to new 10-speed levers, you'll need a 10-speed cassette. But levers are expensive.

max power

ahhh sounds excellent! looks like i'll be ordering a new crank and bb tommorow!


i guess i'll be avoiding the bike shops from now on. both the performance bike and the mom n pop shop said the same thing about needing a new group


any reason i might need a new fd?

Pendergast

Would using a Third Eye(or Dog Fang) solve the problem? Not elegant but taking off the small ring and using a Third Eye(or Dog Fang) to keep the chain on the middle ring would be cheap. You could even leave the small ring on--you just wouldn't be able to use it. Might be worth a try for $9.

https://www.rei.com/product/9610812.htm
https://www.jensonusa.com/store/produ...ain+Guide.aspx

ridethecliche

Is there any way you can find out why the chain won't stay on the chainring? I can't for the life of me understand why this is happening unless something is worn and I kinda want to know haha.

superslomo

[rubs temples] Ouch. Again? [/rubs temples]

You can use a long cage triple. It just means you have an RD that can pick up more slack.

You don’t actually necessarily need to change anything.

Why in particular do you want a double?

Yes, those are adjustment screws, but I wouldn’t just dive in and start adjusting.

Tiagra is 9 speed. New groups are 10 speed, so you can’t really upgrade a piece at a time.

Why would you need different brakes to change gears?

Spend the $40 and get the bike tuned up, and the problem will disappear. Other than that, if you are just looking for validation on spending more money, just buy a whole new 10 speed group and throw it on… double/triple/whatever. Really, though, you may (at most) need a chainring, or a cassette and chain, and stick with the triple after getting the thing set-up properly.

voltman

The only things that need to match are the shifters and cassette.

Psimet2001 

...and chain if you're going to a narrower drivetrain.

idcruiserman

Cheapest way to go double? A million bucks. Time to watch Office Space again.

brianappleby

Go to www.parktool.com and read their tutorials. If you're good w/ your hands/mechanical stuff it should make good sense. I would suggest fixing your current situation first, then upgrading if you still want it.

You need to find out the difference between a braze-on and a clamp-on front derailluer, and what kind of bottom bracket you have (they require different tools to remove).

Sheldon Brown's website is also awesome, but has a lot of extra info about old parts that won't concern you.

Ray Dockrey

I have that exact same bike. Don't ride it anymore but I still have it. Put a couple thousand miles on it but I never could get comfortable on it. After going through a fitting it turned out to be to big for me. Anyway, the shifting is a little finicky to get right but once you do it will shift beautifully. Sounds to me it just needs adjusted or maybe some cables replaced. Somebody mentioned using a fang. It should already have one on it as mine does. It came from the factory that way.

CAAD5AL

If i'm reading your original post corerectly, i really think you just have a simple FD adjustment problem, or you put the wrong chain on when you replaced it (could just be the wrong length). If you're mechanically inclined as you said, i'd think you're minutes away from correcting it. Maybe check out Park Tools website to see if there's a tutorial on fd adjustments. Bikes are very simple to work on, really, and doinig your own wrenching is very rewarding.

Wiley J

At 1500 miles the only thing that should be worn out is possibly the chain. You can switch to a double if you want to, but the triple isn't why your chain is jumping off. Something is not adjusted correctly. Find a new shop or learn to do it yourself correctly.