i'm pretty sure 9/10/11 is all fine on the same freehub. what we need to know is what you have on there now, the crankset and the frame (which we know) and it'll tell us what crank you need without getting a new BB.

if you get a whole new groupkit it'll come with the BB, so you just need to find out what the BB standard is in that bike.

you sure you don't want just to plop down $1,500 or so for a new gravel bike?

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Having just gone from 9spd to 11spd on my two bikes, I found that my 9spd American Classic 350 hub would not accept an 11spd cassette, so I can no longer use that wheel (unless I get a specially-made 11 spd cassette). That wheel is about 16 years old and otherwise in perfect condition.

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"Go yell at an M&M"

I don't think 11 works on a 8/9/10 speed free-hub. I believe the 11spd freehub is 1.8mm WIDER than the 8/9/10 spd freehubs. You need a 1mm spacer to install a 8/9/10 cassette on a 11spd free-hub.

I know that 8/9/10 will all work on the same freehub, though. I upgraded my 1995 C'dale SR900 from Ultegra-600 (8 speed) STI to SRAM Red 10speed Bar-ends, RD, chain, and cassette.

So, if you stay with 10spd, you can do it pretty cheaply. I bought my shifters, brake levers, and RD on ebay used for about $100 total.

what gravel bike do you recommend for $1500?

Following -- I'm doing the same with my 2005 Trek 2100, replacing the old triple crank and the 11/23 cassette. Debating crank length and how long it will take me to DIY. If someone were actually making a grownup road bike with 650 wheels, I would probably not have bothered.

it appears i'm wrong on the cassette compatibility. look at the diamondback haanjo comp. then let's all talk here on this thread about this bike (a number of slowtwitchers have bought it) and others that might be good alternatives.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Yes, I would do it. If you like the bike, a component upgrade is a sweet enhancement. I did an Ultegra upgrade on the very cheap with a mix of used parts.

The bottom bracket is based on the frame and crankset... it is more or less an adapter with bearings. Anyway, if you currently have old 105 and you are going to new 105 or Ultegra, the BB should be the same. I am pretty sure that 10 speed 105 uses the same Hollowtech II BB as the current gen Shimano stuff. If not, you just need to get a $20BB and Shimano BB tool. A BB exchange is like a 5 minute project.

I would get Ultegra. I had 105 on my old bike and upgraded that to Ultegra. I liked Ultegra a whole lot more. It seemed to shift quicker and more reliably (occasional chain drops on 105). And, Ultegra is a little lighter and better looking.

You probably need a new rear wheel. The hub body on 9/10 speed is slightly narrower than an 11 speed hub body. Given the age, you probably do not have a 11/10/9 speed compatible hub. However, you may be able to convert the old hub to 11 speed, but probably not.

looks interesting with the 1x and HED parts for that price. if i go on trails now i use my very inexpensive ($800) Redline alloy cross bike. Works fine, has a mix of rival and apex, only real negative is the canti brakes are not great, especially if the rims get wet. A better alternative for me than the haanjo, given that i ride mostly on roads but some of borderline quality, would be Canyon Endurace alloy - which is about $1500. I'd have to downsize on bikes with "endurance" geometry - so in the Canyon that would mean getting the small to put the stack about 565 and then get a 110 or 120 stem. I've given this option some serious thought, and usually end up with mental bike creep - .....if i am going to keep it 10 years or more why not get the carbon ultegra model for $2700? or the red one with the aero handlebars and better wheels for 4K. ....i don't currently have a disc brake bike, and having an inexpensive one to use in the wet would be nice; and most options would be tubeless ready - which is appealing even though i run lowish pressures and rarely flat.

with all of the inexpensive options i am not convinced i will get anything better for what I'll use it for than my upgraded caad 9. It would be a decent, if outdated, alloy frame, 105 or ultegra - with the gears i select, takes 28mm tires, reasonable geometry for me; and as it currently weighs 18.5 lbs with flo 30s i expect somewhere in the mid 17s.

i checked with the flo website and I'd need a new freehub to go to 11 speed.

Depends what gearing you want. Some of the wider range 11 speed cassettes fit on an 8/9/10 speed hub by "cantilevering" the biggest cog beyond the edge of the freehub. The Shimano 11 speed, 11-34T HG700 and HG800 cassettes will fit on an 8/9/10 speed hub, and are within the recommended specs for the "GS" versions of the R7000 and R8000 series 105 and Ultegra rear derailleurs.

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"They're made of latex, not nitroglycerin"

If your current wheel is a mavic, it will accomodate the 11s cassette (this is true even for pre 11s era's mavics). otherwise it is still possible to file the freehub body by 1.8mm to accomodate 11 cogs.
10s shimano bottom brackets should work fine with 11s shimano cranksets; not sure about cross compatibility with FSA's. by the way, after 12 years, a new BB would not be a bad idea

I actually went through a similar thing recently. Wanted to upgrade my commuter (old KHS Turbo) to a newer groupset. Long story short, during the course of updating it to a 5800 105, i came across a fantastic deal on my local CL for about what i had spent on parts alone and although i finished the conversion, found myself not riding the thing. My 0.2

I did this recently on my commuting bike although I ended up 'upgrading' from a 10 year old Tiagra to the last generation of 10spd 105 (which is still like 5 years old). If I were to do it again I would go with modern 105 and the new shimano 11spd cassette that fits on 10spd wheels. Being able to route the cable under the bar tape is a big plus if you have smaller hands because it makes the hoods much more comfortable. Shimano has also refined a number of details on the groupsets over the years which makes basic maintenance easier.

In terms of the work required to make these changes nothing is complex. Your CAAD 9 will have a threaded standard bottom bracket which makes life easier. Dialing in new gears can be a time consuming process but its all trial and error without any real risk of damaging expensive parts.

What is the bike worth today, and post upgrade? It usually takes me ~3 hours to do a groupset upgrade, though it can go longer -


first advice - buy a new bottom bracket, regardless - it's 20 bucks and takes ONE specialized tool -- a bbt-9 https://www.parktool.com/...6%20Bottom%20Bracket

BUT, your new BB (if shimano) should come with an adapter "ring" as well

i STRONGLY recommend a good quality cable cutter - this will make your life tons easier, as well as an "awl" ...

assuming you are also going to do a cable housing replacement..

If you are going to do this, three important tools -
bbt9, cable cutter, awl - the rest is various allen keys -- btw, more modern brakes usually have a little set screw that allows you to move the pads for clearance - nice thing to know

if you go 10speed, the fd5700 is a joy to use if you go 11, the NEWEST 105/ultegra FD and RD are great -

mid cage works for x-32 easily, don't need long cage

replace the chain

i could go on and on and on - but works calls --

$600 bucks, you might could find a 105 CF frame bike your size for that .. just saying

You would need to go to a pretty good quality CF frame bike for it to be an upgrade on a CAAD9 frame.

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I am going to guess that you have old narrow rims as well. Wider rims and possibly tubeless compatibility are nice options to have, especially with 28s. Honestly I would look at getting something that is less of a complete upgrade. These projects tend to nickel and dime you big time.

A friend got a Fuji gravel bike with mechanical discs, 105, and decent wheels for 1000$ at Performance. It is basically a cross bike, so you would have something for racing CX as well. Get a pair of slicks for commuting. Much more utility than a rebuild. Similar price. Fewer hassles.

thank you to everyone for the advice. just placed my order with PBK - $363 for the full 5800 groupset. Will see how the adventure goes. i have plenty of time at the moment as my previous employer and i just parted ways. If nothing else i hope i will become more self-sufficient with my cycling repairs.

I'll probably migrate both my Flo 30s to this bike once i have changed the groupset. That is a pretty wide tubeless ready rim - definitely wider than the shimano wheel i currently run on the front. As i mentioned already i am using 28mm tires now and the place where they are tightest is the front and from a depth perspective - presumably something which would be helped by wider rims. We'll see.

i don't venture onto real gravel that much and use my $800 cross bike with 33mm slicks or 35mm treaded whenever i go off road. if i decide to do this more I'll get some larger tires or go tubeless to make things more comfortable.

So l am curious, what do you use the awl for?

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When I cut the cable jackets, to open the hole for the cable... GCN turned me on to that