Cycling gearheads question: where do you get your component upgrades?

[Neil K Walk]

imwjl, your comments have me thinking. The crank is covered for now and I'm thinking that the derailleur could handle the Microshift Advent 11-42t 9 speed cassette.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

imwjl, your comments have me thinking. The crank is covered for now and I'm thinking that the derailleur could handle the Microshift Advent 11-42t 9 speed cassette.

Maybe but I shied away from big 9 or 10 speed cassette to for sure know the old and new derailleur would handle it without buying a Wolf Tooth link.

When our Honzo had totally worn out drivetrain and a trashed wheel I watched for some bargains I don't think you'll find now with all the shortages and a 36t SLX cassette popped up. Then a Deore long cage. At off season and bargain hunting it made sense to me. If you're MTB and rail trail (pathway) riding something like that should work well. I kept my eyes open for a clutch type because I do ride rocky stuff and jump.

I don't know about the Microshift brand but some of the 3rd parts cassettes have good reputations.

One more tip on the ghost shifting is I'm one who espouses carrying a spare a spare derailleur hanger and swapping that could tell if yours is bent.

If you hook up with your local trail posse, IMBA chapter, club etc... you will probably have a pal with the Park alignment tool.

This might seem counterintuitive but I do not go for a super low granny gear on a mountain bike. Some power with speed saves you more than a granny gear. The granny gear depth is really just for a super long fire road type climb.

[Neil K Walk]

I purchased a PNW (forget the model name) dropper post with 125mm of travel and installed it the day before yesterday. It probably took longer than it should have but I like that my frame came with the access point for the internal wiring.

I bought it at REI along with the only lever they had in stock but the latter is not ideal (it's not a thumb actuated lever) but will do for now. It's so much easier to move about the bike and less disruptive because I don't have to stop and adjust the saddle height manually anymore.

[Dirk Hofman]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

I purchased a PNW (forget the model name) dropper post with 125mm of travel and installed it the day before yesterday. It probably took longer than it should have but I like that my frame came with the access point for the internal wiring.

I bought it at REI along with the only lever they had in stock but the latter is not ideal (it's not a thumb actuated lever) but will do for now. It's so much easier to move about the bike and less disruptive because I don't have to stop and adjust the saddle height manually anymore.

One of the best upgrades I ever made to my Evil Following was adding a Wolftooth dropper lever. The lever which came with the KS Lev dropper was slippery and when my hands/gloves got wet from sweat (every ride), my thumb would slip and I'd miss actuation at critical times. The Wolftooth solved everything. It is confusing which one to get, but a local shop can help.

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/remote

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Dirk Hofman

One of the best upgrades I ever made to my Evil Following was adding a Wolftooth dropper lever. The lever which came with the KS Lev dropper was slippery and when my hands/gloves got wet from sweat (every ride), my thumb would slip and I'd miss actuation at critical times. The Wolftooth solved everything. It is confusing which one to get, but a local shop can help.

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/remote

The whole Wolf Tooth catalog is really super along with Problem Solvers! That lever and the OneUp for $20 less are really good.

Wolf Tooth also has a good sister company that does the Otso bikes. Wolf Tooth should also be remembered for their chainrings that correct chain line issues without shims and spacers. It's different bikes and frame styles but I've gotten more life from Wolf Tooth than RaceFace chainrings to wonder if Wolf Tooth quality or their machining are steps above.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by Dirk Hofman

One of the best upgrades I ever made to my Evil Following was adding a Wolftooth dropper lever. The lever which came with the KS Lev dropper was slippery and when my hands/gloves got wet from sweat (every ride), my thumb would slip and I'd miss actuation at critical times. The Wolftooth solved everything. It is confusing which one to get, but a local shop can help.

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/remote

They're pricey too. $70 seems like a lot for something that has just one function.

BTW, what do they call that padding that you snake up into the tube to prevent cable rattling noise? It's the bane of many other Trek riders I see who post on YouTube.

[Dirk Hofman]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

They're pricey too. $70 seems like a lot for something that has just one function.

BTW, what do they call that padding that you snake up into the tube to prevent cable rattling noise? It's the bane of many other Trek riders I see who post on YouTube.

It's pricey. But to me, one of the best upgrades I made to my bike. You can spend a lot more than $70 on upgrades that make no real difference, and this one makes a big one. But you should use the trigger you have for a while and see if it bothers you, this is just an FYI if it becomes annoying. There may be cheaper ones out there as well.

No idea on the padding but there are some TREK owners here that may. My wife's e-bike and the kids' bikes are TREK, but they're either externally routed or never had the issue.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

They're pricey too. $70 seems like a lot for something that has just one function.

BTW, what do they call that padding that you snake up into the tube to prevent cable rattling noise? It's the bane of many other Trek riders I see who post on YouTube.

I share @Dirk love or bias for Wolf Tooth stuff but as said, the OneUp is a great lever for $20 less and there are others.

Internal cable routing can be a noise problem for a lot of bikes. I don't know about Trek padding but several Treks have a small molded piece of plastic that aids getting a zip tie over the cable housings.

For all Trek owners: The dealer only site has a tremendous library of diagrams with all the parts. There was a British site that used to display them and I think some are on the Fixya site but asking your dealer to look can usually find those diagrams and often newer revisions of parts when they solve a problem.