[Closed] Shimano cassettes, Deeper splines?

Probably best to seek advice from a bike mechanic or bike shop employee on that one.

I thought this article explained it well

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Tech/Cassette_How-To_-_Part_2_3257.html

Paul

WH-R601 were 10 speed only, the body is too short to fit a 9 speed cassette on.

Probably best to seek advice from a bike mechanic or bike shop employee on that one.

I see what you did there.....

Interesting article, thanks. That's pretty much what I as expecting but 2 people at Madison assure me a 9sp Ultegra cassette will fit (I don't think it will but I'd love to be proven wrong) so I've ordered one.
Update tomorrow when it arrives.....

One person at Madison who worked here when those wheels came out is advising you it won't fit.

Yup. I've just called them again. Cat. Pidgeons.

If the splines seem taller and have a step in them, the freehub will only fit Shimano 10 speed cassettes:

[img] [/img]

I assume it can be machined down to take normal cassettes...

9spd definitely won't fit. Not all 10spd cassettes will fit either. Tiagra / HG500 won't for a start.

Shimano's short lived solution to avoid cassettes 'digging in' to freehub bodies.

MisterP will know more than me, but I think it's only 7800 and 6500 hubs and wheel sets that used that spline pattern, then they reverted to shallower splines to allow reverse compatibility.

"9spd definitely won't fit. Not all 10spd cassettes will fit either. Tiagra / HG500 won't for a start."

So Shimano have made the cassette system less 'universal'?

Gotta love Shimano; 'oh look, we've created a completely new range of proprietary BCDs for our new chainsets, which are specific to each model, meaning they can't be interchanged with others/older models/3rd party rings'. One year later: 'oh look, we've created a completely new range of proprietary BCDs for our new chainsets, which are specific to each model, meaning they can't be interchanged with others/older models/3rd party rings'. Etc. And so on.

So Shimano have made the cassette system less 'universal'?

To be fair we're talking about a rather small number of hubs / wheelsets from quite a number of years ago. They came up with a solution to stop cassettes eating into freehub bodies without making them significantly heavier (as they would be if a steel freehub body was used) but it wasn't widely adopted so they gave up on it.

Shimano created so many really good developments in cycle mechanics; the freehub system, the UN series BBs, V-brakes, road STI shifters, SPD pedals to name but a few (ok most were refinements of existing designs, but Shimano popularised them). And most things were designed to be backwards compatible. Then along came Octalink BBs, and it all seemed to go a bit shit from there. Lots of supposed 'improvements', but increasing fragility of components, and questionable real-world benefits. Most Shimano stuff now seems to be more or less 'disposable', even at the top end. So much for sustainability.

(Sighs, and dreams of those halcyon days of 7-speed thumbshifters..)

So Shimano have made the cassette system less 'universal'?

Gotta love Shimano

No they brought out a new range of higher end cassettes which didn't tear up aluminium freehub bodies without adding weight, and would fit all their existing wheels, and all their competitors, as well as working perfectly with the matching wheels. Unfortunately no one else copied them so we're still stuck with alloy freehubs which get cut up, and ironically still come with a warning to only use XT/XTR/Ultegra/DA cassettes!

In fairness to Shimano the list of non backwards/forwards compatible shimano bits is pretty short, and almost exclusively dura ace. There was a specific DA octalink BB, these freehub splines, the first generation of Di2, and was there a pedal system in the 90's or was that Mavic?

Octalink was great, the BB's didn't bend like square tapered axles, an the bearings lasted almost as long because they weren't sealed units like ISIS, the bearings still ran on the axle/shell meaning they could be bigger.

And they still only make 24mm chainsets.

I see what you did there.....

Always a relief when someone does.

Update.
Madison were wrong. I suspected and you lot confirmed as much
Thanks.
Customer is quite happy as he can use these wheels (bought elsewhere) on another bike and I'm quite happy as he's buying a new pair of wheels for this bike from us. And every day's a school day, yeah?
All good. 🙂

MisterP will know more than me, but I think it's only 7800 and 6500 hubs and wheel sets that used that spline pattern, then they reverted to shallower splines to allow reverse compatibility.

7800 and 6600 series including R601. Back when I had a lot less grey hair.

"Madison were wrong."

Never! Really? 😆

I've actually been on the 'phone with a Madison employee, telling me something completely different to Shimano's own information I had up on the screen in front of me. I chose to use that information instead of the bollocks he was coming out with. Fortunately, Shimano's own info was correct. Lucky, eh?

"Octalink was great, the BB's didn't bend like square tapered axles"

Yes, because that was such a major problem with square taper. All those bent axles. Which is why you won't find a single square taper BB in track racing (they obviously wouldn't be able to cope with the extreme forces tack riders put through BBs). 😆

" and was there a pedal system in the 90's or was that Mavic?"

Dura Ace AX Dyna Drive:

[img] [/img]

You could buy adapters to fit standard pedals though.

I had one of those bodies machined down and it was fine.
Pedal threads must be one of the few things mostly left alone