Fazz wrote:
Hi Team,
Can you please tell me why the new updated shimano 9150 OSPW has 1 x smaller pulley closer to cassette and 1 x OSPW?
The reason I ask is since fitting my OSPW (1yr now), I've had compromised shifting.
I accepted this for a long time despite having different mechanics set up and even your very own mechanic at the recent IM TX CeramicSpeed tent.
Unfortunately, this was my worst experience having chain come off twice and rear derailleur hopping at different times throughout the race.
Such was my dissatisfaction from this experience that I have now removed the OSPW due to unreliability and lack of accurate shifting. Any mechanic seems to accept they are hard to set up correctly, and can easily result in less reliable shifting.
I'm guessing the newer design is modified to only have 1 x OSPW to try improve this issue?
Presumably any claimed benefits are therefore halved as a result?
Oh and if you're going to give me the reason that the smaller top pulley is due to fit restrictions on new design please don't bother. There really is minimal if any change in chain movement/fit in regards Rd and cassette etc so I fail to believe that rationale.
But if this is your only reason, please clarify and presumably the claimed improvements are halved to 1 watt?
Hi Fazz,
First let me start off by apologizing on your IMTX experience, as I take my job/passion very seriously, that is something I don’t like to hear and it really bums me out. Although I am always very confident in my work, I am also aware that mechanicals can happen at any time no matter what is done to help prevent them unfortunately, it is my job to help eliminate all variables that may lead to a mechanical and I apologize that you have encountered one during your race. While working event’s, I get a lot of bikes through my hands, ranging from simple adjustment’s/check overs to full upgrades. Every customer that comes through with their bike is encouraged to ride the bike and bring it back should there be any further adjustment’s/tweaks needed before the race. As myself and other mechanics will tell you, a bike can perform perfectly in the stand, however when it’s under load, things can change.
You should not have experienced poor shift performance with your OSPW for a year. Any mechanic who has struggled with setup should have contacted us. There should be no reason for why you have experienced poor shift performance for a year, if the system is installed: running the right chain length, B-limit adjustment, spring tension and hangar alignment. Note, our 9100 development was not influenced by the shifting performance of 17T/17T. The new 9100 system and its differences was what influenced our final design. I’m happy to explain that for you.
Like Shimano’s Shadow derailleurs for their mountain bike line, the new 9100 utilizes very similar approach angles, direct mount style and other similar design features. By changing the parallelogram/approach angle and adding the direct mount style, Shimano came up with a derailleur that yields crisper shifting through the full range of gears as well as the capacity to run a 30T cassette. However, another design change is the upper pulleys placement on the derailleur cage itself. On the new 9100, the pulley is in a neutral pivot state as to where the 9000 system, the pulley was offset a few millimeters. With the upper pulley being in a neutral state in direct line with the M-Pin, this helps with rigidity and “crispness” of shifting. Coming back to the parallelogram, we can, and have made a 9100 derailleur work with a 17t upper and lower pulley, but the performance we were after, and the consumer would be satisfied with, just wasn’t there as the B tension needed to be exaggerated a bit. When you start to exaggerate B tension gaps (distance between the upper pulley and largest cog) shifting can become a bit sluggish in the mid-range of the cassette. Also, when trying the 17t upper set up, cassette size became extremely limited, which is something we did not want. So, with the all that in mind, we opted for a 13t upper pulley that provided us the best all round system for the 9100 design/features. One addition is we have also designed the new 9100 system to be compatible with a 32t cassette should the user want to run that setup for hilly conditions. Aside from the 13t upper and 19t lower pulley, the overall cage has been fully redesigned in relation to stiffness and airflow.
I hope the above addresses your question, and again Fazz, I am sorry for the issues you had in TX. I encourage you to reach out to me via email so I can help rectify the issue, I can be reached at
Jey@ceramicspeed.com I look forward to hearing from you,
Jeff.
CeramicSpeed
Technical/R&D, Americas.