Cassette Question

TrekDedicated said:

Hey everyone,

As I have become a much better cyclist over the past three years, I am wondering about my cassette.

I have been riding a 9 speed 12-25. However, I am wondering if I should move up to a 11-23? I've been racing for the past two and a half years and have become extremely serious about what I do on the bike.

So, I'm looking for some guidance here...

I would go for 12-23 if you're talking 9 speed.

This gives you 12,13,14,15,16,17,19,21,23
The 11-23 gives you 11,12,13,14,15,17,19,21,23

I'll bet you you will get alot more use out of your 16 tooth cog that you will out of the 11.

I also have 9 speed Shimano 105 & have recently changed from 12-23 to 12-21 because I wanted an 18 tooth cog.
12-21 12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,21

I get away with this as there are no big hills in my area & the smallest gear I use is 39/19. However, If I was going to an area with bigger hills I would probably need to swap back to 12-23

What I like is that I do most of my solo flat riding on either 17,18,19 cogs. So before if I'm on 19 & want to change up I get a grey area wher 19 is a bit too easy & 17 is a bit too hard.

with 11-23 9 speed you will really miss that 16 cog for a similar reason. It's not often that you would miss an 11 tooth cog.

TrekDedicated said:

Hey everyone,

As I have become a much better cyclist over the past three years, I am wondering about my cassette.

I have been riding a 9 speed 12-25. However, I am wondering if I should move up to a 11-23? I've been racing for the past two and a half years and have become extremely serious about what I do on the bike.

So, I'm looking for some guidance here...

I would say use your current usage to guide your choice. If you find yourself in the 53-12 and wanting a higher gear, then an 11 would be useful. If you never use the 25, then you don't need it and a 11-23 or 12-23 will be better.

John M said:

...If you find yourself in the 53-12 and wanting a higher gear, then an 11 would be useful. If you never use the 25, then you don't need it and a 11-23 or 12-23 will be better.

That's good advice. Unless you're running a compact crankset or have a lot of long fast mountain descents you won't have much use for an 11. You should already know if you need the 25.

a 53:12 is a 119 inch gear. That's already huge but a 53:11 is a 130 inch gear!

TrekDedicated said:

Hey everyone,

As I have become a much better cyclist over the past three years, I am wondering about my cassette.

I have been riding a 9 speed 12-25. However, I am wondering if I should move up to a 11-23? I've been racing for the past two and a half years and have become extremely serious about what I do on the bike.

So, I'm looking for some guidance here...

]

All the advice is great.
if you get frequently stuck in the 25 on a hill don't change to a lower cassette.
If you find the 53-12 too low, then go for an 11
If your cassette is worn, try something new and go for 12-23. I find having the 13, 14, 15 and 16t cogs very useful.