I use a Deore LX rear with 105 9-speed brifter. Works fine. One thing to check is which way the derailer moves when the cable is pulled. My rear derailer works opposite of a standard road derailer. Therefore, to shift to the bigger cogs I now have to click the inside lever and to shift to the smaller cogs I use the full brake lever. I didn't plan for this, but for a CX race or when using the bike on mountain bike trails I actually prefer this shift pattern since I tend to want a quicker shift to the lower gearing. Only issue is switching back and forth between the CX bike and road bike; I'll sometimes shift the wrong way if I haven't been riding one of them in a while.