Upgrading to 11 spd. Recommendations?
I'm currently riding SRAM Red groupset. Everything but the crank and bb are 2007. Replaced the crankset and bb in 2011. The components still "sing". Everything shifts beautifully. I just want to upgrade to 11 spd.
I'm looking for recommendations for new drivetrain. I assume I don't HAVE to change out the brakes. But will have to change out the front and rear derailleur, crankset, bottom bracket, rear cassette and shifters. Is this correct? What do you think of SRAM Force 22? Is there another crankset you would recommend? Can you have Force 22 front and rear derailleurs and another brand crank? Ceramic bb worth the money? I don't want to spend a ton. Still working on the "engine". Not ready to be spending thousands of dollars for those last few watts.
By the way, the main reason upgrading to 11 spd is I want to buy a road bike. And I want to be able to interchange my wheel with PT between my tri and road bike.
Comments
Ceramic BB is a waste of money. It saves a few grams but costs 6x as much.
I would think you could re-use the crank spider and if your BB is fine just leave it. Then just get 11-speed chain rings to go on your existing crank, 11-speed chain, cassette, and then just your choice on the level of SRAM you want whether it's Rival, Force or Red. Get the rear derailleur, shifters, and depending on trim level you will either need the standard front derailleur or if you go with Red then you'll need the Yaw Red derailleur. If you are upgrading your BB then just make sure you get right type to go with your existing crank of GXP or BB30, you didn't mention what you have.
Some background on the 11 speed rings on 10 spee cranks:Ten-speed chainrings can be installed on an 11-speed crank, just as 11-speed chainrings can be installed on a 10-speed crank. The spiders are identical. However, all of our groups are designed to function as complete groups, so if a 10-speed crank is installed in an 11-speed group or vice versa, we strongly recommend changing to the appropriate chainrings. Ten- and 11-speed should not be mixed. Our 22 groups actually have the chainrings slightly farther apart than our 10-speed groups, in order to ensure that all cogs can be safely reached in the small ring, and the chain and front derailleur are specifically designed to work with that gap. Running a 10-speed chain on 11-speed rings or an 11-speed chain on 10-speed rings could cause chain jams or derailments.
So yes, purchase the power meter of your choice, knowing that it will still be usable when you go 11-speed, but make sure you have 10-speed rings on it when you run it with a 10-speed group.
—Dan Lee
Public relations specialist, road and cyclocross, SRAM/Zipp/Quarq
To change cassette, you need a chain whip, a crescent wrench and the little cassette key. The 10 speed config will have a little washer. When in the 11sd config, no washer. Change over time is 2 minutes or less. I would say faster and easier than changing a flat bike tire.
I think issue is that he has an 11sd TT bike and 10p roadie with a single Powertap wheel. That's why I suggested two cassettes and potentially a new free hub body.