I have a 2006 (?) Trek 1000SL road bike that I use quite a bit. It has a Shimano drivetrain with a 52/42/30 triple crank and an 8-speed cassette. I assume the brake handle shifters are 8-speed as well because I have eight clicks in each direction. The RD, however, says “9 speed” on it. Here are some pictures (yes, the bike needs a cleaning):
I recently had a Hed Belgium rear wheel built with a Powertap G3 hub. It has a Campagnolo freehub, which matches the drivetrain on my tri bike. However, I would like to use the wheel on the road bike as well. Powertap doesn’t make an 8-speed freehub for the G3, so I will need to change something else. I like the bike, but I’m in it for just a few hundred dollars, and I don’t want to spend a lot of money on a completely new drivetrain just to run the Powertap wheel. I’ve had some initial thoughts on how to get the wheel and the bike compatible:
I could get the PT 9/10/11-speed freehub and a 9-speed cassette. If the RD is really 9-speed, then that should potentially work. However, I imagine I would need to change the shifters and possibly the chain.I could look for one of those Campy freehub/Shimano drivetrain rear cassettes in an 8-speed version.I could look for a used drivetrain - or even new - to upgrade the current set-up, but, again, I don’t really want to put that much money into this bike.Any thoughts, STers? Which of my ideas, if any, would be the best value option? Do you have any other ideas that might work?
One nice thing about the powertap freehubs, they just pop off, you can swap them in an instant.
I think 9/10 freehubs are compatible with 8 speed as well, just use the appropriate spacer. If that is correct just leave your 8 speed cassette on that freehub full time, and you can switch bikes in a second by just swapping freehubs with cassettes attached.
Shimano and SRAM cassettes in 8, 9, or 10 speed all have the exact same spline pattern and width. The difference is the spacing between the gears. The 11-speed cassettes get slightly wider, 1.8mm, and have a correspondingly wider freehub body. The 11-speed Shimano freehub can handle the older cassettes with the use of a spacer behind the cassette.
Campagnolo freehubs are compatible with Campy 9, 10, or 11 speed cassettes.
Shimano, SRAM, and Campy all have similar spacing between the gears for 11 speed cassettes. Cassettes with fewer gears are not cross-compatible.
You didn’t mention any specifics on your tri bike drivetrain beyond it being Campy.
One nice thing about the powertap freehubs, they just pop off, you can swap them in an instant.
I think 9/10 freehubs are compatible with 8 speed as well, just use the appropriate spacer. If that is correct just leave your 8 speed cassette on that freehub full time, and you can switch bikes in a second by just swapping freehubs with cassettes attached.
Shimano and SRAM cassettes in 8, 9, or 10 speed all have the exact same spline pattern and width. The difference is the spacing between the gears. The 11-speed cassettes get slightly wider, 1.8mm, and have a correspondingly wider freehub body. The 11-speed Shimano freehub can handle the older cassettes with the use of a spacer behind the cassette.
Campagnolo freehubs are compatible with Campy 9, 10, or 11 speed cassettes.
Shimano, SRAM, and Campy all have similar spacing between the gears for 11 speed cassettes. Cassettes with fewer gears are not cross-compatible.
You didn’t mention any specifics on your tri bike drivetrain beyond it being Campy.
Thanks. The Campy groupset on the tri bike is a 10-speed set. From what you and Jack are saying, I should be able to use an 8-speed Shimano cassette on a Shimano 9/10/11 compatible PT freehub and not have to change anything else.