Upgrading 7 Speed Shimano 105 to 9 Speed Ultegra

[Joe]

I own an early 1990s road bike with Shimano 105 (7 speed)
components. I'd like to upgrade some of the components
(lighter wheels, 9 speeds). What components will I need to
fully upgrade the bike to 9 speed Ultegra specs? Is it even
possible to upgrade a 7 speed to 9 speed specs?

Thanks in advance--

 

[Qui Si Parla Ca]

chicago-<< What components will I need to fully upgrade the
bike to 9 speed Ultegra specs? Is it even possible to
upgrade a 7 speed to 9 speed specs? >><BR><BR>

If the frameset is stell, you may have to have the rear end
spaced to 130mm, Then a new rear hub that can accpet 9s
cogs, right shifter and rear der...rear der cuz I recommend
Campagnolo Centaur or Veloce, Rear hub, shifter set, rear
der...10s as well.

I would stay away from ultegra,. it is going to go thru a
major change in 2005(late 2004 actually) and a lot of
ultegra is going to become obsolete, then scarce..Ultegra is
pretty scarce right now.

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali
costruite eccezionalmente bene"

 

[Zog The Undenia]

Joe wrote:

> I own an early 1990s road bike with Shimano 105 (7 speed)
> components. I'd like to upgrade some of the components
> (lighter wheels, 9 speeds). What components will I need to
> fully upgrade the bike to 9 speed Ultegra specs? Is it
> even possible to upgrade a 7 speed to 9 speed specs?

Easy enough if the frame is steel. Get the rear end
stretched from 126mm to 130mm by a framebuilder or do it
yourself (the latter won't leave the dropouts perfectly
vertical, but you'd be pushed to notice).

You'll need a new rear wheel build with a 9 speed hub and a
9 speed cassette, and new shifters. The cheapest are Dura-
Ace downtube levers, which are really rather nice if you're
used to shifting this way. Or you can go the STI route like
all the boy racers.

I changed the crankset and BB but you shouldn't really need
to. The old front mech is just fine. I also changed the
rear mech because the old one was getting on in years, but
the 7 speed mech should be OK; the sideways movement for a
given amount of cable pull is the same for all recent
Shimano mechs.

 

[Paul Kopit]

On Mon, 17 May 2004 18:19:50 +0100, Zog The Undeniable
<[email protected]> wrote:

>You'll need a new rear wheel build with a 9 speed hub and a
>9 speed cassette, and new shifters.

You only need a 8/9sp hub body. If you space your hub for
128 mm, you won't need a new axel or to widen the frame. If
you'd like, you can keep your 7sp hub body and put 8 of 9
cogs from a 9sp cassette on.

You'll need a 9sp chain. I'd recommend barends before
downtube shifters.