If this post seems rambling, I apologize- I'm doing a lot of pre=planning on my next bike(s)!

I currently have one road(ish) bike, a Kona Jake with a 3x8 Sora drivetrain. I've commuted on it for 2 years, ride roads on weekends with buddies, up canal paths, etc. I had planned to jump whole hog into CX last Fall (kind of a competition junkie, coming from a running/rugby/aussie rules background), but we ended up buying a new house and spent every weekend painting for 3+ months that wiped out my grand plans.

Now, the house is done, and I am turning towards racing next Fall. I'm also sick to death of the crappy components on my bike after about 7K miles- extremely clunky shifting and constant adjustments needed, mainly.

So here's my thoughts- get a new bike, either buy or build, something with a cx crankset, and either a 2x9 or 2x10 drivetrain, 105 or higher. Then, convert my current Jake to a 1x9 or 1x10 with a 42t up front, using a DT shifter mounted on a Kelly Takeoff. This will remain my commuter, around-town, and backup cx bike. The new one, something along the lines of a Kona JTS, would be my nice weather commuter, weekend rides, and race bike.

Most of the complete bikes I'd look at are 2x10, so if I ended up buying one of these, would you recommend using a 1x10 on my existing bike, to have wheel swapping capability, or is 1x9 just that much cheaper and more reliable in the long run? I have a spare wheelset, so being able to swap all 3 among both bikes with various tire choices might be helpful.

In a perfect world, I'd build up something like a Major Jake or Gunnar with a 2x9 brifter drivetrain, but I'm not sure if I will end up having the time or patience for a build versus buying a steal of a complete bike...

Any suggestions welcome, or please ignore if this is just something I need to hash out on my own.

Since you are building up another bike that will be a 10 spd, you might as well just by a 10 sp cassette for your old wheel set. Your derailleur should work for a 10 spd, although you could upgrade that. According to the chart it won't work, but I've used 8 spd derailleurs in friction mode before on a 10 spd cassette for a few days.
This should be all you really need to do. I don't think your 8 spd fd is compatible with any 10 spd stuff at least according to shimano, but maybe you could make it work with some effort, keep it as a spare at least.


shifter compatibility (http://bike.shimano.com/publish/content/cycle/sac/us/en/technical_service/compatibility_charts/road_compatibility.-MainContent-0002-DownloadFile.tmp/Rear%20drive%20road%20compatibility.pdf.pdf)

drive train front compatbility (http://bike.shimano.com/publish/content/cycle/sac/us/en/technical_service/compatibility_charts/road_compatibility.-MainContent-0001-DownloadFile.tmp/Front%20drive%20road%20compatibility.pdf.pdf)

So which bike goes on group road rides? That one should have a double with a wide range (i.e. 39/53 or 34/50).

Thanks both-
The Don- my current bike would be changed to a 1x9 or 10, so I'd be ditching the existing FD, and getting a new rear derailleur specific to the speeds I end up choosing.

Pretender- my road buddies are not that hardcore. I tend to be in better shape than them and think I could hang with 46t big ring. The gear inches of a 50x12 are pretty much the same as a 46x11 (~112). I can spin pretty well and I think beyond that, it's too seldom to occur to worry about.

If you're upgrading the whole drive train then it makes more sense to use 10 sp cassettes. But go with a 9 spd derailleur, they'll work w/ 10 spd and probably can be had for cheaper.

What he said.

I would just run a bar end shifter, or Paul Thumbie mount on the flats of the drop bar rather than the Take-off. The take off requires more hand positon changes and funny reaching when in the lower gears when you are on the hoods and not in the drops.

I would just run a bar end shifter, or Paul Thumbie mount on the flats of the drop bar rather than the Take-off. The take off requires more hand positon changes and funny reaching when in the lower gears when you are on the hoods and not in the drops.


Maybe I have bigger hands than some, but with my bar end shifter mounted on a kelly take off, I don't have to change my hand position to change gears. I can reach it fine on the hood, in the drops and also back where I used to have in line brake levers (I recently ditched them). I use 9 speed. I think that I have less shifting problems in the mud than with 10 speed, but that could just be in my head. I love my 1x 9 set up.

I don't think I would be able to shift gears in the drops with a Thumbie. I also think that shifting on the hoods would be require me to move my hand off the hood, but maybe not.

1x9, then you can take advantage of shimano mountain 9spd cassettes as on option for wider gears. All Shimano 9spd stuff is compatible, road or mtn.

i ran a 1x9 with a 48t up front and a mtn 12-32 rear cassette with 105 brifters controlling XTR rear der.

1x9, then you can take advantage of shimano mountain 9spd cassettes as on option for wider gears. All Shimano 9spd stuff is compatible, road or mtn.

i ran a 1x9 with a 48t up front and a mtn 12-32 rear cassette with 105 brifters controlling XTR rear der.
Normally I would say the sme thing, and in fact it was one of the reasons I was willing to go with Tiagra on my own bike (the cost was nice too). However I would reccomend to the OP that he/she do whatever the drivetrain on the new bike ends up being. If it's 9 speed on the new bike, great, but being able to swap wheelsets easily is very nice. The only exception is if the OP does not mind changing cassettes. Because you're right that in general 9 speed gives you greater flexibility with gearing.

Normally I would say the sme thing, and in fact it was one of the reasons I was willing to go with Tiagra on my own bike (the cost was nice too). However I would reccomend to the OP that he/she do whatever the drivetrain on the new bike ends up being. If it's 9 speed on the new bike, great, but being able to swap wheelsets easily is very nice. The only exception is if the OP does not mind changing cassettes. Because you're right that in general 9 speed gives you greater flexibility with gearing.


Thanks for all the replies. This is what I'm leaning towards- matching the current/upgrade bike to the new bike. If I buy a new bike complete, it'll probably be 10-speed, but if I end up piecing it together myself, I'm leaning towards 9-speed using NOS parts, if only to keep the cost and simplicity down a notch or two...

For me, this decision depends on the gear ratio tightness you would like to have. A tighter ratio of cog clusters calls for a 2x9/(10) with a 12-25T cassette. If you don't mind being spaced out between shifts, then I would go with a 1 by11-32T or 11-34T mountain cassette. This would give you great range with a single front ring.

Can you please tell me where to get a Kelly Take Off from?

ebay.com

I've had a wrench at my lbs (part owner) tell me that a 9sp derailer will work w/ a 10sp cassette, esp if you use the shifter in friction.

edit- nevermind didn't realize this was ancient when I saw it pop to the top of the list

I don't know if one can find them anymore. They used to pop up on Ebay direct from Kelly, but I didn't see any when I looked tonight. Sorry.