MTB Dirt Mountain Bike Forums forum - Topic - 9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 09, 2012 11:22pm

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I was just wondering if someone could answer my question. I'm wanting to change from my current 3x9 set up to a 2x10, however I was wondering if it is possible to do it in two stages as I lack the funds atm for all the parts.

Could I still run my same 3 chainrings(22, 33, 44) and front deraileure (XT) with an 11-36 10 speed cassett, deraileur and shifter if i was using a 10speed chain?

Would their be any major dramas in this temporary setup other than a bad chain line in some of the top and bottom gears?

any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Tim.

ozynigma

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 06:48am

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Yes you can.

A 10 spd chain can run on your 9 spd chain rings OK.

Chainline will be no worse with the 10 spd cassette as the width is the same, just the chain, sprockets and spacings are narrower.

tj_91

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 07:42am

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okay great, Thanks.

Drew

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 08:22am

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Don't forget to check if your existing hubs can take a 10 speed cassette, or you may head down a path of frustration - bit like pulling a thread on your jacket, it all starts to unravel...

tj_91

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 08:27am

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Oh really? but if their the same width how would it make any difference? I have XT wheels.... 09 i think

99_FGT

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 08:38am

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Not to mention your chain length - don't use your old chain as a guide as a 32-36 is going to be longer than what you are running at the moment. I am running 9 sp front rings onto 10 speed rear no problem though.

Al..

The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 12:57pm

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Is there any difference between a 9 and 10 speed rear derailleur? I'm thinking maybe the only diff is the width of the jockey wheels. The shifting indexing is controlled by the actual shifter on the bars so you could use a 9 speed derailleur on a 10 speed cassette and vice versa. Is this right?

onyx

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 01:52pm

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Quote: The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

Is there any difference between a 9 and 10 speed rear derailleur? I'm thinking maybe the only diff is the width of the jockey wheels. The shifting indexing is controlled by the actual shifter on the bars so you could use a 9 speed derailleur on a 10 speed cassette and vice versa. Is this right?

The specs seem to suggest that the rear deailluer has a maximum sprocket size i.e. 9-speed 34T and 10-speed 36T. Not sure if you can push that or not with the screw adjustment to fit.

The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 01:56pm

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Interesting, I wonder if the 'long cage' is a different length for 9 vs 10 spd.

ozynigma

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 05:08pm

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Quote: The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

Is there any difference between a 9 and 10 speed rear derailleur? I'm thinking maybe the only diff is the width of the jockey wheels. The shifting indexing is controlled by the actual shifter on the bars so you could use a 9 speed derailleur on a 10 speed cassette and vice versa. Is this right?

Of course you can't run a 9 spd chain in a 10 spd RD though

Quote: The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

Interesting, I wonder if the 'long cage' is a different length for 9 vs 10 spd.

Maybe but remember the cage length is to accommodate the total difference in teeth from small small to big big. Without doing the maths I don't think that is any worse for 10 spd vs 9 spd. In fact for 2 x 10 it would be better than 3 x 9.

tj_91

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 10, 2012 11:06pm

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hmmm, speaking of cage length, ideally i would want a medium cage for a 2x10 setup yea? how would a medium cage 10speed derailure go with a 3x9? this could cause some problems yeah?

ozynigma

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 11, 2012 06:00am

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Quote: tj_91

hmmm, speaking of cage length, ideally i would want a medium cage for a 2x10 setup yea? how would a medium cage 10speed derailure go with a 3x9? this could cause some problems yeah?

No problems on length at all, in fact I went to all medium cages some time ago as they are lighter and stiffer than long cage and should therefore give better shifting.

It will not take up all the slack from your granny ring to smaller rings on your cassette which is an undesirable combination anyway. So you cover all but about 4 or 5 gears on a 3 x 9 or 10 with a medium cage.

Just make sure you cut your chain as short as you can. I make sure mine can still cover big ring to biggest sprocket. As this is also an undesirable combination you can cut it a bit shorter as long as you don't try to force shifts onto those gear combinations.

tj_91

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 11, 2012 07:27am

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Okay, great.

Thanks Heaps for all the help guys. I spose the only question i have left which I'm struggling to find an answer for on the net is will my rear hub take a 10 speed cassette? its a Shimano XT WH-M775?

Thanks again.

Magilla_Guerrilla

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 11, 2012 01:29pm

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Quote: onyx

Quote: The rider formerly known as VT2 Ryda

Is there any difference between a 9 and 10 speed rear derailleur? I'm thinking maybe the only diff is the width of the jockey wheels. The shifting indexing is controlled by the actual shifter on the bars so you could use a 9 speed derailleur on a 10 speed cassette and vice versa. Is this right?

The specs seem to suggest that the rear deailluer has a maximum sprocket size i.e. 9-speed 34T and 10-speed 36T. Not sure if you can push that or not with the screw adjustment to fit.

I have a 11-36 cassette on my 9 speed drivetrain. The long cage X9 clears it fine (just).

Smythie

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9speed/10speed Compatibility ?

February 11, 2012 02:43pm

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SRAM dearailleur 9-10 no problem. Shimano dearailleur 9-10 wont work. I tried a 2yr old 9 speed XTR rear mech onto my new Dynasis 10 speed xt and it just wont work. The parrallelogram which controls the motion is different. You wont get the middle gears to shift correctly. The biggest and smallest will work but not in the middle of the cluster. IMO its a big FAIL from Shimano on this. They are just forcing you to buy new parts.

I olny know this through trial and error leading to great frustration and then it all became clear thanks to google. So I had to put the XT dynasis back on. Until I broke my chain enough times that I decided to completly strip the 10speed and put on my older XTR 9 speed. Which shifts a lot better anyway.