It also makes it look pretty coming out of the box.

A simple Google search provides useful info.

Why ask here instead of conducting said simple Google search!? Care to share such "useful info"?

Because I didn't think of Google.

Summary:
hard chrome > nickel > zinc phosphate

Google for details.

That does explain the Shimano hierarchy.

Well I’m glad Google convinced you to spend more. That in itself was worth you starting this thread.

John

Perhaps you ought to judge the worth of your posts.

I suppose you didn’t find the plating specs used on the cassettes while you were Googling.

John

70sSanO
You ought to start by listing your contributions by quoting your posts and the contribution of each post to this thread.

Here is the bottom line. If you pay 20% more for some unknown type of chrome plating, then you should get 20% more durability. That means 3600 miles instead of 3000 miles.

I don’t think that will happen and I can’t recall any thread professing that type of additional durability associated with the type of coating/plating.

It is a fairly low quality disposable consumer product.

I bought a little used Shimano chrome plated cassette pretty cheap that had a pretty good amount of rust by the spacers when I opened it up. The history of was unknown to me, but I was surprised by it.

If you don’t like what I say, that’s fine. Just buy what you want.

John

I sure hope these numbers are hypothetical. 3600 miles is pretty lame for the life of any cassette unless you consistently ride in a slurry of mud and never lube your chain.

It was hypothetical, but probably not that far off for an inexpensive cassette. I honestly don’t know the differences in material properties of lower vs higher end offerings.

I’m guessing this thread will now spin off into cassette life where some will get less than 2000 miles and others more than 10,000 miles. Four to six is probably a better estimate.

And then it will morph to cassette longevity vs lube.

In a week, if it still on page 1, any semblance to the OP’s coating difference will be in the distant past.

John

Time to morph.

As far as wear is concerned, inexpensive cassettes don't wear out any faster than say a 105 or Ultegra cassette. However, Dura-Ace cassettes are known to have a short wear life because all the cogs are Ti for weight savings. So 2000-3000 miles is not unusual for a Dura-Ace cassette. Most other cassettes should last at least 10K miles. I have 12K miles on my current cassette.

Necroing this thread just to defend OP. 8 speed cassettes are not much about the aesthetics, as they are about reliability and performance. If Shimano offers more than one option there must be a reason why, because to them it wouldn't otherwise make sense to differentiate in two product lines. And since it's not about the speed either, it must be resistance against corrosion.

I'm someone that rides their bikes through the mud, the sand, the sea, the desert, the forest, the rain, whatever, and I don't always get the option to wash or lube the bike whenever I want. I cheaped out with the HG31, and it consumed on me in slightly less than a year and inbetween 4000 to 5000km. Whatever, it's cheap, but working on the bike for me is a pleasurable hobby, not a second job: so I went with the HG41 since it's a direct slot in upgrade, should be easier to clean due to the nickel plating, and should resist corrosion due to the elements better. And that's why it costs more.

The HG51 is probably even better, but doesn't come in the 34-11 config that I need.

Peace out and stop behaving like linux users.