[thoffman]

I am looking to update my bike this fall. As I am looking, it seems that most of the new things out these days are designed for 10 speed cassettes.

I currently have an 8 speed cassette on my bike. Can I change that to a 10 speed cassette by meerly changing the cassette or do I have to change the hub or alter build of the wheel to put it on?

Thanks,
TRH

 

[hophead]

You could, but if you have indexed shifters, you'd have to replace those as well. You will also need a 10 speed chain which is narrower. You may also need to replace the chainrings.

You're probably better off sticking with the 8 speed stuff.

 

[thoffman]

Thanks! I just wanted to make sure it was in the realm of the possible without having to buy a new set of wheels, too.

What prompted my question is my rear STI shifter is slowly dying. It is loose, rattling and sometimes doesn't shift. If I have to replace it anyway, I'd like to replace it with something new rather than my usual MO of buying from Ebay. It may be pricey, but not half as pricey as buying a whole new bike. Plus, It'll give me something to do on a cold winter weekend.

I'm going to have to change chain and cassette (and probably chain rings) anyway... they've got a lot of miles on them.

 

[chh55]

Shimano is mostly upgradable from 8 to 10, in other words a 10sp cassette fits onto a cassette body which was originally from the 8 sp era. Lots of great info on just this subject at Sheldon Brown's (may he rest in peace) home page. I heartily recommend to all who haven't had the pleasure.

 

[thoffman]

I bit the bullet this spring and upgraded my bike from 8 sp Shimano 105 to new 10 sp Ultegra components. The difference is amazing! It shifts like a dream, I have a wider range of gearing options and my bike lost about 4 pounds. It turned out to be much cheaper than I expected once I sold all the old components on ebay. Who knew there was such a demand for used parts? I also added an Axis carbon fiber fork. I thought that this might be a waste of money but it actually makes a huge difference on some of these rough KS roads.

I could have purchased a new bike, but Ultegra equipped bikes run much more than the $600 I spent to upgrade my old one, and now it feels new.

Here is a picture of my "new" bike. Actually, you can't really tell that it is upgraded - except for the fork - but it is. Thanks to all those who offered advice in this and other threads.

 

[Industry_Hack]

Glad that worked out for you.

When it comes to bike porn, the money shot is almost always going to be the drivetrain side. Unless it's a mountain bike with a full-floater rear disc brake.

 

[rola643]

I bit the bullet this spring and upgraded my bike from 8 sp Shimano 105 to new 10 sp Ultegra components. The difference is amazing! It shifts like a dream, I have a wider range of gearing options and my bike lost about 4 pounds. It turned out to be much cheaper than I expected once I sold all the old components on ebay. Who knew there was such a demand for used parts? I also added an Axis carbon fiber fork. I thought that this might be a waste of money but it actually makes a huge difference on some of these rough KS roads.

I could have purchased a new bike, but Ultegra equipped bikes run much more than the $600 I spent to upgrade my old one, and now it feels new.

Here is a picture of my "new" bike. Actually, you can't really tell that it is upgraded - except for the fork - but it is. Thanks to all those who offered advice in this and other threads.

That's to cool ! That's a huge weight loss in a world where things are measured in grams !

 

[AceOfSpades]

Holy smackers! The dates threw me for a loop there. I had to look at the date (year) before I realized you didn't upgrade a day before posting the op.

I thought it was some "Back to the Future" type post!

 

[Industry_Hack]

The new Shimano Ultegra includes a flux capacitor.