Ultegra rear cassette options

[Monkey Boy]

Howdy!
I'm running an Ultegra 10 speed compact (50/34 with 12-27 cassette) and plan to do some of the more serious Alps later in the year but may have to wimp out by altering the cassette. I dont want to run out of gears and seriously struggleso would like to have some options. I can't really see anything on the usual suspects websites that will allow me to run a bigger cassette....32 for example.

What are my options? Can I remove the 12 and purchase a single (e.g.)32 from somewhere....and where? Anyone else done this before?
Ta

 

[itisaboutthebike]

You don't say wthether you have a short or long rear mech. A 12-27 rear cassette with a short cage rear mech is about as big as you can go (Shimano quote biggest sprocket as 27 for a short cage rear mech).

If you look on Ebay IRD(equiv to Ultegra quality by the looks of them) do some 11-30 a0 speed cassettes(about $70) and also 11-28 but I doubt whether a short cage rear mech will go that far(may just stretch to the 28). You may need a long cage mech for the 11-30.

To be honest (tho depending on your fitness of course) 34 -27 will be ok for the Alps.

The oher option of course is to go triple.

 

[Smokin Joe]

You don't say wthether you have a short or long rear mech. A 12-27 rear cassette with a short cage rear mech is about as big as you can go (Shimano quote biggest sprocket as 27 for a short cage rear mech).

If you look on Ebay IRD(equiv to Ultegra quality by the looks of them) do some 11-30 a0 speed cassettes(about $70) and also 11-28 but I doubt whether a short cage rear mech will go that far(may just stretch to the 28). You may need a long cage mech for the 11-30.

To be honest (tho depending on your fitness of course) 34 -27 will be ok for the Alps.

The oher option of course is to go triple.

 

[Dave5N]

If 34-27 is too big a gear you'll be quicker walking anyway.

 

[fossyant]

Was going to say 34 x 27 should be fine......

 

[monnet]

Agreed 34x27 should be fine. If you want to ride lower but closer ratios then I think the lowest Ultegra casette available is a 16-27. The other option of course is triple, which I do as I like having a 52 and 39 at the front but for those big foreign climbs I like the security of the granny ring (and if a triple was good enough for Indurain in the mountains, then it's good enough for me).

 

[Monkey Boy]

Thanks y'all. Think I will take your advice and stick with wot I've got. I guess I'll only get stuck if I hit a whole bunch of 20%! I'm pretty sure I'll be fit enough.....I can do a 10TT in short 26 and have no worries with a 60-70 miler, considering I've not started any serious training yet.

 

[User482]

I run an ultegra 12-27T 9 speed on my Thorn, coupled with a 105 30/42/52 triple chainset. Seems to cover all eventualities - first gear spins at about 4.5 mph so still quicker than walking. The only time I found it a bit of a struggle was climbing up Dartmoor with loaded up panniers.

 

[andy_wrx]

I posted this on another forum recently, where the question was whether to use compact or triple for a visit to the Alps.

I went to France last year and did Ventoux, Bonette, etc - they're not the same as climbs in this country so you shouldn't be comparing the gearing you'd use on Hardknott.
These big Continental climbs are different to what we have in this country

My Winter bike is a triple but I never use the inner ring in Cheshire, just if I go to the Peak District and I hit Winnats at 1:4 or something.
My Summer bike has 36 x 27 compact on it and gets me round UK sportives, including up Winnats and Mow Cop, but I'll honk up out of the saddle.

I took the compact to France last year and felt decidedly overgeared - I wanted perhaps two lower gears to spin as I was just grinding in a seated position all the time and it was knackering doing it daily for a week.
The climbs weren't steep, 7 or 9%, but they went on forever, upto 10 or 15 miles for instance, and are built at a very steady regular grade.
They're not like our climbs where they have steep bits, flatter bits, steeper bits, flatter bits, you push on some bits and then recover, push again out of the saddle, recover seated, etc.
When it says 7-9% for 10 miles, it *really means 7% to 9% for 10 miles* and there aren't those flatter bits to recover on.

 

[fossyant]

I think you'll be out of the saddle on most climbs over here....... but in France, these mountains go on..and on...and on.... - a 7 mile climb here is usually varying gradients, but in france you need to be able to sit and ride them...

 

[heretic]

The cheap method used to be a deore series rear mech & 11-34 9 speed cassette, that may be possible if there's a Shiftmate to match your 10 speed levers.
Otherwise it's a long arm rear mech with triple front, triple c/set & B/B.Stronglight Impact is cheap & decent quality. My fun bike is 48/38/26 with an SRAM 11-26 cassette, that gets most places even in Derbyshire.