custom cassette question

"KBH" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:6A6ea.142961$L1.19574@sccrnsc02...

Quoted message said:

In the past I've made my own custom cassettes by swapping certain cogs in and out, but the
shifting is never quite as good as a stock shimano

cassette

Quoted message said:

because the ramps don't line up. Two thoughts just occured to me:

1) FToo bad Shimano had to make their cassettes idiot proof, with

sprockets

Quoted message said:

only going on in one orientation, so we can't manually line up the ramps

on

Quoted message said:

our custom cassettes.

2) Is there a safe way to alter either sprockets or the hub body so that

you

Quoted message said:

can orient the new sprocket so its ramps line up properly? My concern

with

Quoted message said:

this (say I filed the sprocket) would be that the sprocket wouldn't engage the hub body well
enough and could be stripped. But then again, Sheldon sold me some sprockets that appear to have
their inner edges cut so that they work with Shimano and Campy, or something like that - the inner
edges are very strangely shaped and don't make "full" engagement with the

splines

Quoted message said:

of the hub body, probably only half of them - and I've never had a problem with them (except that
they don't shift all that well).

Kyle

You only have to file one spline on the sprockets - the wider one by the index mark. Widening this
one should enable you to orient the sprockets in any position. IMHO it shouldn't make any difference
to the integrity of engagement on the hub.....

Shimano Hyperglide cogs have one wide tab which will fit only into the one wide space on the freehub
body and this is why the cogs go on only one way. You can file off half of this wide tab (or all of
it for that matter) and then you can put the cog on any way you like (even flipped over with the
ramps on the wrong side to do any good). Even if you file this wide tab off completely there will
still be seven or eight tabs to hold the cog which is plenty. Many freewheel cogs used to be held
with just 3 or 4 tabs.

Bob Taylor

"KBH" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:6A6ea.142961$L1.19574@sccrnsc02...

Quoted message said:

In the past I've made my own custom cassettes by swapping certain cogs in and out, but the
shifting is never quite as good as a stock shimano

cassette

Quoted message said:

because the ramps don't line up. Two thoughts just occured to me:

1) FToo bad Shimano had to make their cassettes idiot proof, with

sprockets

Quoted message said:

only going on in one orientation, so we can't manually line up the ramps

on

Quoted message said:

our custom cassettes.

2) Is there a safe way to alter either sprockets or the hub body so that

you

Quoted message said:

can orient the new sprocket so its ramps line up properly? My concern

with

Quoted message said:

this (say I filed the sprocket) would be that the sprocket wouldn't engage the hub body well
enough and could be stripped. But then again, Sheldon sold me some sprockets that appear to have
their inner edges cut so that they work with Shimano and Campy, or something like that - the inner
edges are very strangely shaped and don't make "full" engagement with the

splines

Quoted message said:

of the hub body, probably only half of them - and I've never had a problem with them (except that
they don't shift all that well).

If you trim the largest spline back to the size of the others you'll lose only one-ninth of the
contact area. In an all-steel system that won't make any practical difference. You'll essentially be
back to the UG system as far as cog orientation possibilities. I do not see any downside here.

To trim the spline we use a Nicholson carbide coated wire which fits in a hacksaw frame. Hold the
cassette horizontally in a vise and trim away the offending splines all in one pass.

--
Andrew Muzi yellowjersey.orgyellowjersey.orgOpen ↗ Open every day since 1 April 1971

"KBH" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<6A6ea.142961$L1.19574@sccrnsc02>...

Quoted message said:

In the past I've made my own custom cassettes by swapping certain cogs in and out, but the
shifting is never quite as good as a stock shimano cassette because the ramps don't line up.

The ramps mostly help when downshifting (i.e. going to a larger cog). So, especially for larger
jumps, try to use cogs that were mated together. For instance, if you want 21-26-34, try to use the
34 that came with a 25 or 26 (megarange) instead of one that came with a 30.

As others said, it is fairly easy to file one tooth, I did so some time ago, but for a totally
different reason. As I shift in friction mode -- more foulproof in Winter -- I found it works better
if cogs are reversed, so they work as unramped cogs (old fashioned style, I know).

Regards,

Michel Gagnon

Two thoughts just occured to me:

Quoted message said:

1) FToo bad Shimano had to make their cassettes idiot proof, with sprockets only going on in one
orientation, so we can't manually line up the ramps on our custom cassettes.

2) Is there a safe way to alter either sprockets or the hub body so that you can orient the new
sprocket so its ramps line up properly? My concern with this (say I filed the sprocket) would
be that the sprocket wouldn't engage the hub body well enough and could be stripped. But then
again, Sheldon sold me some sprockets that appear to have their inner edges cut so that they
work with Shimano and Campy, or something like that - the inner edges are very strangely shaped
and don't make "full" engagement with the splines of the hub body, probably only half of them -
and I've never had a problem with them (except that they don't shift all that well).

Kyle

KBH said:

1) FToo bad Shimano had to make their cassettes idiot proof, with sprockets only going on in one
orientation, so we can't manually line up the ramps on our custom cassettes.

I've had good luck in filing the allignment tab flat and then rotating the cog to the position you
want. Sometimes you cannot find the exact position. The allignment is more important on smaller cogs
than the larger ones.

harris cyclery/sheldon brown have a piece on custom cassettes