Upgrading old 7-speed hub

Hi all

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

I've thought about trying to spread the stays to accomodate a 130mm
axle but the idea of doing this on a 17 year old all aluminum frame is
less than appealing.

Thanks

Clayton

On Oct 10, 7:42*pm, Clayton wrote:
Hi all

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. *The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. *I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days.

9 speed cassettes are extremely common. Sram PG-950 for example.

Clayton wrote:
Hi all

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

I've thought about trying to spread the stays to accomodate a 130mm
axle but the idea of doing this on a 17 year old all aluminum frame is
less than appealing.

"9 speed equipment is getting difficult to find these days"

Really? Where? In Afghanistan? It's a competitive area with four major
spare parts suppliers duking it out for a race to the bottom in pricing.

IMHO a new seven chain and cassette is the cheapest and
most-bang-for-your-buck solution. Any 7-8-9 SIS changer will work fine
and seven shifters are ubiquitous. Your cable set may be all that's
needed anyway. Check that.

p.s. DON'T bend your aluminum frame.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

"Clayton" wrote in message
...
Hi all

....but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

Clayton

9-speed stuff is everywhere. So is 7-speed. You must have been talking to
a bike shop guy who wants to set you off on an irreversible and expensive
upgrade project. Do NOT try to spread the stays on an old fat-tubed
Cannondale.

My recommendation: replace the 7-speed cassette. Check Ebay - there are
dozens on sale at any point in time. Bike Nashbar will sell you a
surprisingly high quality one for about $20. As far as your derailleur, if
the pivots are loose, then it is likely time to swap it out for something
newer. Again, check online.

And for Gods sake: replace your cables, cable housings and your chain. 95%
of the shifting problems I see can be tracked down to these parts. I'm
always amazed as to the resistance folks have to replacing their totally
stretched-out and rusted chain. You do not have a personal relationship
with a chain, they are $15 throwaway consumables. I go through 4 a year. A
worn-out chain will chew through cassette cogs and chainring in as little as
a few hundred miles. And old chains shift like crap.

In article 59c6895e-e302-40d4-8ff1-
,
says...


Hi all

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

I've thought about trying to spread the stays to accomodate a 130mm
axle but the idea of doing this on a 17 year old all aluminum frame is
less than appealing.

Thanks

Clayton

I have a 1989 Cannondale 3.0 and it has 130mm spacing. I think
Cannondale discontinued 126 around 1965-1987.
If you're is indeed 126mm spreading the aluminum is not a good idea, as
you indicate.

Rick

Clayton wrote:

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. *The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. *I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. *Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

I've thought about trying to spread the stays to accomodate a 130mm
axle but the idea of doing this on a 17 year old all aluminum frame is
less than appealing.

Don't try to change the spacing on an old Cannondale. It's one of the
hardest frames to bend, and one of the most easily damaged if you do.
Don't try to cram 8, 9, or 10 speeds into a 126mm frame; those things
are already terrible from a dish standpoint, and narrowing them makes
them disproportionately worse.

There's still lots of nice 7 speed equipment around. Use it! Heed
Dave Mayer's advice and replace all the wear items in your
drivetrain. It will be as good as new, and as good as any new 8/9/10
speed system.

Chalo

On Oct 10, 9:34*pm, A Muzi wrote:
Clayton wrote:
Hi all

I have a 1992 cannondale road bike with 7 speed components and 126mm
axle. *The drivetrain components (notably the rear derailleur and
shifter) are starting to get a little bit squirrely and I'm thinking
about replacement. *I know (courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown's
website) that it is possible to run 8 sprockets of a 9 speed cassette
on a 7 speed freehub without any significant modification, but 9 speed
equipment is getting difficult to find these days. *Does anyone know
if running 9 of a 10 speed outfit will also work?

I've thought about trying to spread the stays to accomodate a 130mm
axle but the idea of doing this on a 17 year old all aluminum frame is
less than appealing.

"9 speed equipment is getting difficult to find these days"

Really? Where? In Afghanistan? It's a competitive area with four major
spare parts suppliers duking it out for a race to the bottom in pricing.

IMHO a new seven chain and cassette is the cheapest and
most-bang-for-your-buck solution. Any 7-8-9 SIS changer will work fine
and seven shifters are ubiquitous. Your cable set may be all that's
needed anyway. Check that.

No doubt--most people run a cassette with gears that they never use,
if you get a proper 7 speed cassette suited to your terrain with the
other fixes, you'll have a cheap and healthy new setup.

For example, I run a very run of the mill 8 speed cassette on my do-
all bike, a Shimano "Megarange 11-34".(Wooha!) Having the 11 on there
is sort of a joke. I *can* use it if I'm in the mood for some slow rpm
cruising with a tailwind coming back from Old Hickory on a long
downhill, but I don't need it.

At any rate, 7 is enough if ya got the right ones.

No one seems to have answered my question. I understand perfectly the
issues at hand here, I'm also very capable of finding 7 speed
cassettes as well as 8,9,and 10 speed cassettes. What I haven't been
able to find is a 9 speed "brifter", which is the main reason I want
to upgrade... other than ripoff prices for used parts on ebay... I
tried out a friend's bike with the shifter/brake lever combo, and I
want it. I'm not stupid enough to think that 10 speeds is better than
7, or any other such nonsense... and if I could find a 7 speed
"brifter", I'd buy it and be done with it. But that ain't gonna
happen (they did make an el-cheapo Tiagra 7-speed lever several years
ago, but it is not up to the quality of the rest of my bike and it's
not available anymore anyway).

If anyone knows about 9 of 10 sprockets fitting (or not) on a 7 speed
freehub, again, please enlighten. Or if you can lead me to a supplier
of 9 speed ultegra/105 shifter levers...

thanks!

On Oct 12, 9:14*pm, Clayton wrote:

7, or any other such nonsense... and if I could find a 7 speed
"brifter", I'd buy it and be done with it. *But that ain't gonna
happen (they did make an el-cheapo Tiagra 7-speed lever several years
ago, but it is not up to the quality of the rest of my bike and it's
not available anymore anyway).

It's not Utegra, but it's not Tiagra either...

http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-Sora-S.../dp/B000A7Q656

If anyone knows about 9 of 10 sprockets fitting (or not) on a 7 speed
freehub, again, please enlighten. *Or if you can lead me to a supplier
of 9 speed ultegra/105 shifter levers...

Sale ends today (10/13)...

http://www.speedgoat.com/product.asp...t=43&brand=226

A few years ago I upgraded my '92 C'dale touring bike to 9-spd with
brifters, and there's been no looking back. (But it has 135mm
dropouts so spacing wasn't a problem. The bike has 65k miles on it--
quite the work horse over the years.)

Good luck!

Jeff

On Oct 13, 11:04*am, mnbikecommuter wrote:
On Oct 12, 9:14*pm, Clayton wrote:

7, or any other such nonsense... and if I could find a 7 speed
"brifter", I'd buy it and be done with it. *But that ain't gonna
happen (they did make an el-cheapo Tiagra 7-speed lever several years
ago, but it is not up to the quality of the rest of my bike and it's
not available anymore anyway).

It's not Utegra, but it's not Tiagra either...

http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-Sora-S...ters/dp/B000A7...

A quick google search shows replacement 9spd Tiagra brifters available
for a pretty set price of $105 *per side*.