My opinion: no

"is there really much benefit? "

The move to 10 sp was largely marketing. A bigger gain for many people would be with compact cranks.

Keep your 9 sp until it wears out and then replace with 10 sp.

I can't tell a difference...

Spot

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Taco cat spelled backwards is....taco cat.

I'm waiting for 11, when you all have ten, I'll have 11.

Anyone have the lyrics for "Sex farm woman"?

No - I have DA 10 on the road bike and Ultegra 10 on the tri bike. Only real benefit is front shifting (much better) for some reason with the new front deraileur. That is it. Stay with your 9.

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Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD

looks cool, shifts better maybe but I don't think it's worth it. Plus 10spd cassesttes are damn $$$ pricey. I have Ultegra 9 and DA 10, not much difference that I can tell. The 10spd does look a lot sexier though:)

First of all, don't by new rear derailleurs, the nines will shift ten, the only thing you need is shifters and chain.

To use the same gears with a tighter shift (9sp 12-25 v. 10sp 12-25) doesn't make that much sense to me. I'm doing the same, but I've purchased a Zero Components cassette with 11-25. So I've got exactly what I've been running (and being unhappy with for insufficient downhill speed) and added the 11 cog. They also make an 11-27 for hilly courses, which makes a lot of sense to me, because any hill that needs a 27 going up is going to benefit from an 11 coming down.

However, if you run the 11-27, you're likely to need a long cage (triple) derailleur. You will by specs, but you might get by. I know I'll need the long cage, because I'm running 56/39 up front and I'm having trouble with 12-25.

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Cousin Elwood - Team Over-the-hill Racing
Brought to you by the good folks at Metamucil and Geritol...

You are certain that the ultegra 9 will shift 10s? That is great cause I just got a tri bike with DA 10 and i have a road bike with ultegra 9. I train with a powertap and was thinking I was going to have to fork over a sh!t ton of money for new derailleurs or that I would have to change the cassettes back and forth on the powertap. You just saved me a bunch of money and hassle.

Ellwood is the Geico of Slowtwtich...

"You are certain that the ultegra 9 will shift 10s?"

The 10 speed gear cluster is actually narrower than the 9. The difference is in the increments between indexes, and that's controlled by the shifter. For bar ends, you could actually go to friction shifting and then all you need is the cassette and the chain.

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Cousin Elwood - Team Over-the-hill Racing
Brought to you by the good folks at Metamucil and Geritol...

I really liked when I jumped from 8-speed to 10-speed cassettes. I was using a 12-23 8-speed and went to a 12-25 10-speed. I really like having the 16-tooth back in the mix. Having the 14-17 cogs in the middle of the cluster really help keep the rpm steady. I hated the jump from 15 to 17. Plus, it was nice to have the 25 on back for those few really steep hills I run into. The whole conversion cost $100. I kept my old DA front, my really old Shimano 600 rear derailleur, and my old 8-speed bar end shifters. I bought a 10-speed cassette for $72 and about $30 for a narrower chain. If you have a 9-speed chain you may only need the new cassette.

I don't think all the other upgrades are going to make you any faster. Since you already have 9-speed then even adding one extra cog might not be worth it.

Chad

alright people, here is the voice of reason

NO


alright continue about how you can get in a lower gear at a higher friction coefficient,

how about we all ride 14 gear rears crossed and blame campy when the chain fails?

i love it... almost a consensus NO. how often does one thread get a relatively unanimous vote?

elwood's advice on rear derailleurs makes the upgrade a little more cost-effective, but as others point out, i don't think i'd get my money's worth for an extra 11, or for a 16, or for a 27.

i think i'm hanging on to the 9ers.

I thought Elwood was Tony Little...

You can do it, baby!

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I thought the most significant change was to the crank/BB interface? No more octolink. Supposed to be stiffer and less friction due to larger outboard bearings. I have 9speed on my tri bike and 10 on my new road bike and am not sure I can tell difference. Both work great. The new 10 does shift very crisply though...

Right - your current rear derailleur will work, but you will likely have to go to friction on the bar end levers. If you are using STI, it will still shift as well, but you would likely get some skipping in the center grear becuase of the narrower spacing.

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Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD