I have a bike that I made my commuter/errands bike with racks and bags, wide tires, fenders and lights and a frame pump. It is now around 10-11 lbs. heavier with nothing else in the bags or on the frame. I went from a 50/36 compact to a 48/34 and it makes a large difference in the gearing. I am nearing 67 yo and my knees/legs appreciate the difference, especially going uphill.

Forgot to mention I kept the 12/26 cassette on the wheel.

If you have the new version Shimano groupset like Ultegra 8000 SS they are able to handle an 11/30 per the spec, and can handle 11/32 but it's a stretch. You have to size the chain for either a very tight Big/Big or a little loose small / small combo. The safe way is to size for the small/small and just avoid that combo - it won't be disastrous if you accidentally go there, you can just shift up to the big ring if you see / hear the loose chain. Overly tight big / big puts a lot of strain on the drive-train and hanger so personally I would avoid it. With the newer versions and Di2, gear control can/will keep you out of the 11 and 12 tooth cogs when you are in the small ring so it's a non issue.

11/32 shifts fine, no issues - you just have wider spacing between a couple cogs.

Compare your current to proposed drivetrain
Just installing larger cassette cogs may annoy you with larger gaps.

I don't compare by %gaps, i compare by how many kph difference between each gear. that way i also account for smaller chainrings decreasing gear jumps (the % jump is always the same, but smaller chainring decreases the jump in kph).

I'll have to agree with you on this. I find that the smaller chainrings are fine for gravel/minimum maintenance roads, where descents are a bit slower. For road, 50/34 is fine, and even then, I often find myself really wanting to go 52/36.

FWIW, the standard in my region (with hills that are 1-2 miles, but regularly top 10%, and have some excursions over 15%) is 50/34 and 11 speed 11-32. 11-32 will give you that extra gear that will keep you from walking, which in turn, will allow you to build the strength and confidence to eventually quit using the 32.

I know from experience that 8 and 9 speed Shimano MTB derailleurs work perfectly with 9 and 10 speed Shimano road shifters. I have that set up on two of my wife's bikes and one of my own. I have a couple of different versions of Deore XT, but don't know the model numbers. They generally work fine up to 11-34t cassette with the "smallest" crank we've used so far being a 48,38,28. We also have a 50-39-30 and a 52-39-30. The chain wrap on all of these set ups is fine. I had to max out the "B" screw on all of them to accommodate the large sprocket and on one I had to replace the B screw with a longer screw.

But the shifting - to my standards - is excellent.

I believe newer 10 speed Shimano MTB derailleurs also work, I just haven't used one yet. I understand they do not come with an on-derailleur adjuster, which I use all the time. That isn't a big deal though. I'm pretty sure the long cage versions of them easily accommodate a 34 and above sprocket, so actually might be easier to adjust than the older 8 and 9 speed ones I've used.

The 8 and 9 speed Deore XT and XTR (IOW, fairly high end at the time) in good shape (not trashed) are readily available and not too expensive on EBay. The regular Deore and lower are available used and new for very inexpensive and I am sure they would work excellently.


Low gears are good and fie on anyone who disparages anyone for using whatever gears they like! I love my 30X34 on my gravel bike and my wife loves her 30X34 on her high end road bike and 28X34 on her gravel bike!

Thanks for the info, I priced out a Shimano Ultegra cassette, rear derailleur, new chain and labor at my LBS (Trek Store). The total package price was over $200. I like to support a LBS but the part(s) prices were a bit over the top. A few people here have posted that a 32 tooth cog will "work" with the Shimano short cage derailleur (which I have). I may try buying a 32 cassette, a chain whip and the mechanism to turn the cassette with a wrench and see if I can get away with a short cage and a 32 on the rear.

I agree regarding the 11/30 after doing some math and reading these comments. A few folks seem to believe that a 11/32 will work with a short cage derailleur. I may be inclinded to just try it and see. Right now I'm pricing out tools to do this myself e.g. bike stand, chain whip etc. The only thing I somewhat fear in changing a rear derailleur (if I have to) it looks like one has to replace the cable from the shifter to the derailleur.

In the long run, $200 isn't that much if the bike finally makes you happy. :thumb:

BTW, I've ridden with quite a few very strong randonneurs who use a compact crank and 11-32 or 11-34 cassette. There is absolutely no shame in it.

Wide-ratio cassettes are pretty common in the randonneuring crowd. The pace starts to drop off a bit as the rides get longer so big gears aren't that important for most people.

I rode a a compact crank with a 12-29 11 speed cassette for a hilly 300k on Saturday. I'm going back to my triple for the next one. The range was fine, but I don't like the the compensating rear shifts every time you change rings on a compact, which I guess would be less with a wider cassette.

Michele puts together really nice rides, with hilarious names to boot. She's one of the riders I thought of in my previous post. :thumb:

My thinking with the OP is that if a few lower gears can help keep him on the bike and with the group as opposed to walking, that would be a win for now. You're right that a triple can do the job without causing wider steps between gears, but that's an equipment change above and beyond what he's been debating so far.

Or just get 105 R7000. A lot cheaper than Ultegra and works perfectly fine. Im sure better that squeezing every last drop from a short cage DR. 32 vs 34 cassette is a matter of what part of the gear range you use the most. Id go for the 34 if I had the choice.

http://www.gear-calculator.com/?GR=D...30,34&UF2=2135

I think she told me she's putting 12-36 on her new bike. She went with sram specifically because the rd's can handle big cassettes.

I am sure this won't be very popular, but I wonder if the 11-tooth is really needed. (At least at my age, I realize I can't spin an 11 any more.) If the 11 isn't needed there is the option for a 12-32. Looks like the exact same gearing as the 11-28 minus the 11 with the 32 added onto it.

Personally, I would consider if I really want to max out the rear derailleur with a 32-tooth cog. I would consider changing the rear derailleur and going 12-34 (or 11-34 if the 11 tooth is really used)

Would a Wolf Tooth Roadlink allow him to keep his current RD and bump up to a bigger cassette? I've never used one but I've seen them mentioned here on the forum a few times.

Who makes a 12/36 and the 12/32??

I have an 11/36 with a Shimano GS 8050 cage Di2, works fine.

Okay, good point as I did not check on availability, as I was going off of Sheldon's tables that you can find here:
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/k9.shtml

Assuming a 9-speed (12 - 36)
https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-hg400-9-speed-mtb-cassette-48272.html?utm_source=googlebase&utm_medium=shopping&utm_term=MTB+Cassettes&ucpo=37967&gclid=EAIaIQo bChMIvpiy_dyJ4gIVCFgNCh2Rog1uEAQYASABEgLd_vD_BwE

https://www.jensonusa.com/Shimano-CS-HG400-9-Speed-Cassette-12-36T?pt_source=googleads&pt_medium=cpc&pt_campaign=shopping_us&pt_keyword=&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIvpiy_dyJ 4gIVCFgNCh2Rog1uEAQYAyABEgJYFfD_BwE

Was able to find one source for a 12 -32:
http://www.interlocracing.com/casset...broad-cassette

Has the OP said how many speeds this is?

Shimano''s new gravel bike groupset looks promising. The 48/31 crankset would allow the top speed freaks to still hit insane speeds while still climbing about anything. Might go for that myself when my 46/30 rings wear out.

Generic speaking..
 

2 ub types Campag & Shimano-Sram .. Miche makes Campag type .

lots want a slice of the market replacing the other 2..

Some things to think about....

11/28 - Ends on a 21, 23, 25, 28
11/30 - Ends on a 21, 24, 27, 30

So you will be in slightly harder gears on the 11/30 until you bail out to the 30. If you are looking for easier gears to pedal up in get the 32 or 34 (if indeed your derailleur supports it)

If you are training to get stronger. Go with the 11/30. You can bail to the 30 but pushing the 24 and 27 to get there will help build a little more strength

As others have said, the 11/30 wont make much difference in gearing.

You will need to add some chain links as well when you switch to the bigger (lower) gears in the back.

-Sean

PS - To save some dollars, you should be able to just replace the cage for about 20-30$ instead of the entire deraileur. Also a 105 cassette is cheaper and you wont notice a difference.

I was unaware that you could simply change the cage. I was looking at my wife's bike that has a 11/34 cassette with an Ultegra long cage derailleur and it's easy to see that the only difference is the cage holding the jockey wheels but I did not notice that this part is removable. I have to look into the "just the cage" option. Thanks.

While you're paying for that cage, think to yourself that the entire derailleur is only five to ten bucks more.

This is true....