UKC

How much difference would I notice between a 11-25 and a 11-28 cassette? I live in among quite a lot of hills, so I think I might need something quite helpful at the bottom end.

In reply to tony:
On an 11-28 the penultimate sprocket is probably a 25, so it's like having an extra gear, the pay-off being the bigger gaps.

I'm currently using an MTB as a road/touring bike and really appreciate having the low gears - my lowest ratio being 22 (front) to 36 (back). OK I wouldn't use that on the road, but came close on Winnats Pass at the weekend.

Admittedly I like to remain seated and spin a high cadence, but I do seem to be able to cope better with the really steep hils than my mates on road bikes. So my intention when I get around to getting a road bike is to have as big a cassette as I can

In reply to tony: I guess you're on Shimano with those ratios-- Unless you're really in to racing I'd ditch the 11t. I use a 13-29 on my Campag setup, but friends have recently bought bikes with 10 speed 12-30 Shimano cassettes as it's pretty hilly where they live in France. Just check that your derailleur cage will handle a wider range, and that your chain is long enough.

My summer bike has a 50=34 compact with the 13-29 cassette, or a 12-23 on my TT wheels. The rear mech has a medium cage and can handle a 16t difference

My winter hack has a 50-36 on the front and a 9 speed 14-28 cassette on the rear as the derrailleur only has a short cage and can handle a 14t tooth difference on front and rear.

As I've got older, my gearing has got lower. Back in the day I'd happily ride up virtually anything with a 52x46 and a 6 speed 13-26 freewheel.

In reply to Lord of Starkness:

Thanks for all that - very helpful. Yes, I'm on Shimano, and I've never got onto the 11t. Then again, I've only had the bike a few weeks.

Can I mix 105 and Ultegra or Tiagra? I've got 105 at the moment, so that seems to restrict the options somewhat.

In reply to tony: I assume your're running 10 speed gearing. The only real differences between Tiagra, 105 and Ultegra cassettes will be quality of materials, weight and price. Gear shifting and indexing should not be an issue - though I don't know about mixing shifters and mechanisms across the Shimano range.

In reply to tony:

From an older thread talking about whether to go for a compact or a 11-28 cassette:

To give you an idea of how worth it the options are:

Lowest Ratio at the moment is 39/25 = 1.56
With a 12-27 it would be 39/27 = 1.44 = 7.6% less force required
With a 11-28 it would be 39/28 = 1.39 = 10.8% Less force
With a compact (34T) and your existing 12-25 block it would be 34/25 = 1.36 = 12.8% less force required

11-28s ride ok, there's no massive gaps until you get to the softie end, and then it's quite welcome

In reply to Lord of Starkness:

Once again, many thanks and once again, your assumptions are right. Looks like a 12-30 might be the option. Off to my local bike shop ...

In reply to balmybaldwin:

Many thanks. I'm not sure I'm ever going to get onto the 11t, so I reckon if I'm going to make a change, I may as well make life as easy as possible at the lower end.

This is one of the things I love about this place - people willing to give up their time and knowledge without any thought as to what's in it for them.

In reply to tony:

One thing I found with the cassette that came on my bike (a 12-32 for a cyclo-cross set-up) was that it became rather difficult to ride efficiently when I started group riding in a club. Everyone else was spinning conventional 12-25 or 12-27 casettes, and so I was missing a few close ratios in the mid range; wouldn't appear to be a major concern in theory, but out on the road I found I was often either too slow or too fast cadence for comfortable riding at the speed of the group. Changing to a 12-25 cassette meant I was in sync with the others and so easier to get the right balance of road and leg speed.

Because my bike has a triple chainring, a 12-25 cassette is fine for anything; got me over Hardknott!

Nick