Next June another group of riders wil leave Astoria, racing each other on a self contained transcontinental race
to Yorktown VA.

Most not using a kit much different than above ..

Hi alan s,

I know that's what the website says.
This is ultimately your decision and all we can do is share our experiences which is what I tried to do.

I'm telling you that it will work with limitations that I outlined above. I've run this setup on three different bikes without issues for over a year. Mine first on a Fuji Tread and now on now on a Surly LHT when I changed frames. We're also running this same system on my spouses which is a Charge Plug 3. It run great on all three bikes.

Something to remember a mfg would never endorse this system because it expects the user to have more than two working brain cells and would never pass the liability attorneys. That doesn't mean it wont work.

Here are pictures of it installed on the Surly and Charge but like I said the decision is ultimately up to you.

Gadgets

fietsbob,

I'm not trying to start an argument but I was answering the quote you made above. I looked no one else made a reference to "adding links"

I just checked my chain is 120 links and Shimano's Ultegra 6800 11 speed only comes in 116 links so I ended up "adding" 4 links to my chain to make my system work the way that I outlined.

Gadgets

I have compact doubles and triples on various bikes. I avoided triples for years because I had heard they don't shift well, but that has not been my experience. I bought my first triple (Dura Ace) used for a great price and it has functioned flawlessly. The only problem with Shimano road triples, IMHO, is they don't offer very low gearing with a 30-tooth small ring. I also have a Shimano 105 triple as well as a Sugino. The Sugino is my preferred triple for touring because the gearing is actually designed for carrying loads, 50-34-26, or something similar.

Like I said I Got off that shopping Upgradeitis trend long ago

splicing you can Buy a rivet head making chain tool now Campag Rohloff and Park sell them

You stretch the hole pushing pins out so have to further enlarge the pin by spreading the end.

I add chain with my old stumpie winter bike small small 22-13 big big 48-32 omn a long chainstay frame

But I dont demand instantaneous shifting under a Load .. that is how people Break Chains.

That makes total sense, and thank you for taking the time to fully explain. I know manufacturers tend to be conservative, but exactly how much you can get away with is never clear (except until now). Sounds like the way you set up your drivetrain, one has to be careful not to crosschain, whereas with an MTB RD plus Shiftmate, there is the extra expense, and perhaps a better performing system, assuming the Shiftmate works. It's a tough call.

Right now, guess I'll try the MTB RD and Shiftmate route to see if it works, and if not, the GoatLink sounds like a viable alternative. (BTW, don't get too worked up by FB. We love him, but are often left scratching our heads.)

Cool,
I hope that it works out great for you.
I considered that route myself but it would have been a whole lot more than I was willing to spend because of the Di2 issue and having to buy another battery, junctions and cables. Which is why I went the goatlink route.

The Schlumpf is a whole different story and don't want to hi-jack the thread with it more than I already did.

Would love to hear how the shift mate works out when you get it setup.

Will keep your "FB" comment in mind.

Thanks
Gadget

Bulk chain spools come in 100 foot lengths recumbent sellers use that , sell by the Foot.

fietsbob,

Thanks for the tip.
Will have to keep it in mind when I'm due for replacements.

Gadgets

alan s,

I was think this morning. If you go the 50 front and 40 rear you might have the same issues with cross chaining that I do.

I could be totally off the mark but just wanted to share.

Road, mountain and even touring drive trains that I've seen both usually max out in low 80T range but we're talking about pushing the 90T range. Depending on the derailleur's take up capacity it might or might not become and issue. If the derailleur doesn't have enough take up you get chain sag. Just make sure to check large large and be sure your chain is long enough so don't damage your new derailleur.

Good luck
Gadget

Appreciate the advice. A new product from Lindarets/Wolf Tooth coming out in a couple weeks looks like a nice alternative to the Shiftmate. Not sure I want to be the first to test a new product, but it may be better because it is sealed and inserts into the RD rather than the cable stop. Tanpan ? wolftoothcomponents.com

I went ahead and ordered the Shimano M8000 XT rear derailleur and cassette in 11-40, along with a new chain. Taking a big leap of faith with the Wolftooth Tanpan for 11 speed. Probably won't see it until the end of March. Fingers crossed this will all work out. Adding in a new shifter cable and some housing, it comes in just shy of $200. That's $100 per gear, in my estimation. I'll post up some pictures and reviews when complete.

Here are a couple interesting reviews. Lindarets x Wolftooth Tanpan negotiates Shimano Road shifter & mountain rear derailleur marriage - Bikerumor

Lindarets & Wolf Tooth Announce Tanpan Shimano MTB Derailleur Adapter - Cyclocross Magazine - Cyclocross News, Races, Bikes, Photos, Videos

Parts arrived today. Just need the last crucial part. Should be here in a couple weeks.

Hey Alan, just wanted to let you know that I got the Lindarets Roadink and was able to utilize 11-40 rear along with 50-34 front.
After adjusting the rear derailleur a little bit, I'm able to access 34 (front)-40(rear), as well as all of the other gears. The only problem is I can't get to 40 (rear) and 50 (front) if I'm on the 50 (front), but that's probably a gear I'll never need or use. Otherwise, shifting is good and clean and will allow me to hit some steeper trails.

That's impressive. Cross-chaining is never a good idea, so no big deal that you can't run it 50-40. Any downside to running it the way you have it? Does the RD take up all the slack in the chain in smaller gear combos?

Yeap, just wanted to show it could do 50-40, but I should never be there
The RD does take up all the slack, except at 34-11, but again, that's cross-chaining as well. Even then, it barely rubs. I bought a 118 link chain and removed 1 link already. I could try to remove another to get rid of the slack. Maybe a project for another sunny day.

Years ago, someone made a device that allowed a 2X shifter, to shift a 3X crank.

It fit inline the cable housing and had a little lever on it. With the lever in one of the two positions the shifter would shift the outer and middle chainrings. In the other, the middle and inner chainrings.

I had one, it totally worked, but for the life of me I can't recall the name of it.

Found it. It was called the Erickson Gizmo.

What a great idea. Simple and effective.

I am really enjoying this thread as all my road bikes are equipped with compact cranks now. Nice to know there are options.

What Shimano really needs to do is make a Dynasys, 11 speed, hydraulic, triple, road integrated shifter set.

People are having to resort to 11-40, 11-42, and soon 11-46 cassettes, plus a gadget, to get ultra low gears with a compact road crank.

I run 9 speed, 50/39/30 crank, and 12-26 cassette. I like the nice, tight cassette and the 50 to 39 shift is a much better transition than 50 to 34. If I needed lower gears I could simply slap on a MTB cassette and/or a MTB crank.

PS The Erickson Gizmo is extinct, no longer available.

or change out your 30 to a 26, thats what I did to get down to a certain amount, I too really like a tighter cassette, 12-27 9 speed, but it does depend on if your triple bcd can take smaller than 30. Some of them cant, they changed cranksets like the Tiagra one when it went to 10 speed and the bcd changed to 130/90 I think, so cant go smaller than the 30 on the 50/39/30

but of course, a mtn crank works too.

interesting gizmo though.

On a century ride, I saw some bikers on the side of the road standing around. I stopped to see if they needed help. One guy said both of his derailleurs broke at the same time. I obviously had to see this so I got of my bike to look.

Everything looked fine but the chain looked pretty tight. I said, lets try to shift it, the owner said can't because it is busted. I tried to turn the crank, nothing would move and that is when I saw the problem, his chain was on the big chainring, biggest sprocket and his chain was a couple links too short and was bound up really tight. I told one of the people to take the rear wheel off, shift the chain to a smaller sprocket, etc. They did that, got it back together, the rear derailleur appeared to work ok and was not bent.

I told him he was very lucky he did not damage anything. And I told him to stop at the bike shop that sold that to him on the way home to demand they add a link.

My point is, be very careful if you are riding with a combination where the chain is too short.

On my derailleur touring bike I can't use my smallest chainring and my smallest two sprockets on my cassette, the cage won't take up all the slack. But those gears are so cross chained I would never use them anyway. But I would rather have two unusable gears than have a chain that is a link too short.

I have never seen an Erickson Gizmo or even heard of them. Neat. Thanks for posting, you can learn something every day.

This is what I use on my rando bike. Brifter for rear derailleur, friction front.

I agree that closer spacing is much nicer. 11-40 spacing is decent throughout the range. 11-42 starts spreading out a bit more at the lower end. Then there is the OneUp 45T cog, replacing the 17 and 19 cogs with an 18 on an 11-40 cassette, but the resulting steps in the crucial 15-20 mph range are unacceptable to me.

45T Sprocket +18T XT/XTR [Shimano 1x11] - OneUp Components US

Perhaps Shimano's 11-46 cassette would provide better spacing in the mid-range, but I don't have the need to go to a 46. Last check, the 11-46 is not yet available.

First Look: Shimano 11-46T Cassette | BIKE Magazine

Alan s. Is your road bicycle geometry suitable to handle lower speeds?

Yes. I've ridden it from 0 (trackstanding) to 50 mph, without any issues whatsoever.