Just picked up one of these 2nd hand; https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/2013.giant.defy.3.white.blue.black/11833/56804/#specifications

Looking to fit a wider range cassette (than the 12-27 fitted) – will the Sora rear mech handle a 11-32? Cant work out what type of mech it is.

Ta

It’s not the same but I fitted a 11-30 (AFAICR) 10 spd Ultegra cassette to replace a 12-27 105 (5600) cassette with 105 shifters and SC mech.
I just needed to adjust the b-screw to get it running.
Shimano had these as 27 max rear sprocket, but I think that was because 27 was the biggest rear they did at the time.
I’m not sure if a 32 would be pushing it slightly with a short cage mech though.

Ok, if need a new Sora rear mech to handle the bigger cassette what am I looking for? Would the ‘medium cage’ handle it?

Medium cage if you can’t get the B tension screw out far enough on the short cage dude. Or splash out for a tiagra for a couple of quid more!

I swapped my 11 28 cassette for an 11 32 and used the same short cage ultegra mech.
No issues at all.

34-32 … crikey !!!

anyhoo …. shimano say 28 max as that leaves a little leeway to
prevent mech damage. 30t definitly, 32t should work on an SS cage
although not recommended 🙂

I think a medium cage rear mech is the approved way forward, you might get a short cage rear mech to adjust up ok. Living in hilly Devon I thoroughly endorse a 34 – 32 combo. You don’t use it very often but when you get to a long 20% hill its worth its weight in gold.

A short cage mech will work OK with 11-32 if your frame offers enough clearance for the mech. Some people use a longer B-tension screw to gain a bit of clearance. I’m using a SRAM 11-32 cassette with a short cage Ultegra mech on my Kuota with no issues.

Sorry for the hijack but kind of on topic, I want an 32 tooth 10 speed cassette for my road bike. what options are out there. Do I stick an XT on or is there a road equivalent.

IMHO, having more gears at the low end is better than occasionally spinning-out on some downhill section. Nobody needs to HTFU. It just makes plain sense for a casual rider to have this kind of gearing.

I often train on a hill that has a section at about 18%. If I ride up it at 5W/Kg, then even in a 36-32 my cadence drops from my average 90rpm to about 70-75rpm. To keep my normal cadence, I would need to push over 6W/Kg. Looking at Coggan power profile charts, that’s the sort of 5 minute power that a Cat 1 would generally have.

I went medium cage Ultegra on the tripster, swapping between 11-28 and 11-32 cassettes on road and off road wheelsets. 11 speed, but I didn’t like the look of the short cage on 32, worth the few g’s of weight for the peace of mind.

Sorry for the hijack but kind of on topic, I want an 32 tooth 10 speed cassette for my road bike. what options are out there. Do I stick an XT on or is there a road equivalent.

XT would work, as will Shimano HG500, HG81, HG62

SRAM 1030, 1050, 1070 would also work

I’m going to be in a similar position when the wife buys a new bike, I assume that this is what the Lindarets Roadlink was made for?

I had an Ultegra 12-30t with short cage mech and it worked perfectly. I switched to an XT 11-32t cassette and, while it worked sort of OK on the bike stand, I wouldn’t have trusted it out on the road, so went for the medium cage mech and again it works perfectly.

Question: would I get away with an11-34t cassette with the Ultegra medium cage, as I live in hilly West Yorkshire and have serious knee problems. (Sorry, not trying to hijack your post, OP!)

I am using a 12-30 with a short cage Ultegra 6700 at present. It would probably stretch to a 32t but might be a bit much.

IIRC 105-5700 did include a 12-32 cassette option and med/long cages to accommodate bigger gear ranges (as well as triple chainsets), tiagra and Sora probably did too, otherwise why not just pick up a 9 speed MTB mech that will definitely work…

otherwise why not just pick up a 9 speed MTB mech that will definitely work..

This…

To answer the OP’s question: it’s got a paddle behind the brake lever, which makes it Sora 3500 rather than 3400 (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimano#Road_groupsets).

According to this it’s max sprocket size of 32, and total capacity of 37.

So you’re OK on sprocket size. 11-32 is using up 21 of the total capacity, so you’ve got 16 to play with at the front. In other words, as long as the difference in size between your front chainrings is 16 or less, you’re good to go. A typical compact is 50/34, which would be 16. That’s fine, but right on the upper limit, so important you get the chain length right.