So despite searching forum posts and finding out NEARLY all the things i’d need to know, i’m still not sure.

So, 29er carbon MTB (on-one Lurcher) with rigid fork, is my current winter MTB/gravel bike.

I want to run drops on it, but DONT want to buy a road bike. Take this as red.

Currently ALL of the bikes i have are 10speed MTB shimano stuff.
To run brifters on the drops i think i need the following. Could anyone confirm, from experience, before i buy anything.

I’m gonna use cable discs on all the below options.

1:
105 10sp Road brifters – 10sp MTB cassette – ‘9 speed’ MTB rear mech.

2:
105 11sp Road brifters – 10sp MTB cassette – ’10 speed’ MTB rear mech.

thanks in advance.

1: will definitely work.. My Amazon has been set up like that for 8 years.

@scotroutes
Thanks for that. Good to know.

……however, i really want no2: to be the option. Its cheaper to do it that way.

anyone had option2 working?

1. Fine
2. Not convinced.

There is probably one of these that’ll let you do whatever you want… http://www.jtekengineering.com/resources/shiftmate-compatibility/

I love shimano………..but I hate it too.

why not just make it all compatible? **** 😆

@Ton
i know eh! or at least make it clear.

…and maybe there’s a further option

3:
105 11sp Road brifters – 10sp MTB cassette – ‘whichever’ compatible rear mech?

i dont really want to run some kind of Derailleur attached widget if possible. To fiddly and prone to much getting in there.

2 I’m pretty sure shouldn’t work, but might do anyway (IIRC didn’t froome or Wiggins do something similar with an 11s cassette, and I think the pacing is close enough to work?)

If you want it to work perfectly, have a look at the j-tech site, they do cable pull converters for pretty much any combination so you could probably find one to work with what you have.

My advice would be second hand 10s 7800 bifters (the ones with external gear cables), 10s MTB mechs and cassettes, that way you get good shifting, with cheap cassettes, and clutched rear mech’s with better cable pull than the 9s ones so need less adjustment (put the shiftmate near the bifters not the mech, that way it pulls more cable through more of the system).

Shiftmate Compatibility Charts and Choices

I’m running 10spd 105 shifters on my arkrose with 10spd 11-36 casette and 9spd deore mtb mech.

Works, but you need an inline cable adjuster.

@thisisnotaspoon
you mean these?
Why are they different to other shimano ones then? other than the cable running out the side of the hods?

@core

you need an inline cable adjuster.

alhough ‘scotroutes’ seems to suggest not. Does this just vary from set-up to set-up? IE: the tolerances are close?

Why are they different to other shimano ones then? other than the cable running out the side of the hods?

1) They’re Dura Ace, so they were the best at the time, the equivalent Ultegra or 105 will be almost as good.
2) The bifters with external gear cables were far better than the later ones with the internal cables, shimano bodged it and just routed the cable round 90deg (the current 11s ones have sorted this so it’s only the inbetweeny ones that are a bit sticky).

alhough ‘scotroutes’ seems to suggest not. Does this just vary from set-up to set-up? IE: the tolerances are close?

The j-tech shiftmate adjust the cable pull ratio.

An inline adjuster is just to index them, mountain bikes typically have them at the shifter, road bikes have them in the mech, so road shifters plus MTB mech means there’s no way to adjust the cable tension. The ritchey ones plug into the gear cable exit on bifters with external cables so you can adjust the gear as you ride (another benefit of external gear cables).

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ritchey-cable-tension-barrel-adjusters/rp-prod39475

alhough ‘scotroutes’ seems to suggest not. Does this just vary from set-up to set-up? IE: the tolerances are close?
[/quote]
You’ll need an inline adjuster if your rear mech or brifter doesn’t have one. Once set-up there’s no need to be adjusting it on the go.

@thisisnotaspoon

An inline adjuster is just to index them,

Ah, i see. got it. thanks for clarifying.

are the 10 speed road and MTB cassettes not slightly different widths / spacing? I tried a 10 speed MTB cassette with my road setup a while ago and couldn’t get a reliable shift. Had no problems with SRAM 10 speed cassettes though.

current 1×10 setup is 105 10spd STI + 9spd XT mech and 10spd SRAM 11-32. Works really well.

+ 1 on adding an inline adjuster for tuning. I have a jagwire one in the section of cable running into the mech.

@core
What (presumably cable) disc calipers are you using?

[/url]a by Scud75, on Flickr[/img]

My Fargo is set up with 10 speed Ultegra shifters, XT double cranks, XT 9 speed rear mech and Tiagra front mech, works fine apart from front mech sometimes requires a bit of a “double push” on the shifter to get it to change up on to bigger ring

@scud
what calipers are you using on there? TRP Spyre?

for setup 2) you want a wolftooth (nee lindarets) tanpan, the 11s version.

I’ve happily been running 11 speed road shifters, 10s road mech (zee) and 10s xt cassette for maybe 18 months now. It takes a little bit longer to set up initially, you have to ‘lose’ a shifter click somewhere (I recommend after the largest sprocket- you risk being able to overshift but just be careful with the limit screws), and it’s a slightly more susceptible to dirty cables but on the whole has required no attention since setup despite getting covered in mud all last winter. I also have a 10s shifter, 10s mtb mech and 10s tanpan setup and that has been even better- best guess is because all the speeds match.

I’m planning on swapping out for an 11 speed mtb mech and cassette as and when this lot wear out.

are the 10 speed road and MTB cassettes not slightly different widths / spacing?

only by about 0.4mm in the top and bottom gears, not enough to affect shifting really.

for setup 2) you want a wolftooth (nee lindarets) tanpan, the 11s version.

I’ve happily been running 11 speed road shifters, 10s road mech (zee) and 10s xt cassette for maybe 18 months now. It takes a little bit longer to set up initially, you have to ‘lose’ a shifter click somewhere (I recommend after the largest sprocket- you risk being able to overshift but just be careful with the limit screws), and it’s a slightly more susceptible to dirty cables but on the whole has required no attention since setup despite getting covered in mud all last winter. I also have a 10s shifter, 10s mtb mech and 10s tanpan setup and that has been even better- best guess is because all the speeds match.

I’m planning on swapping out for an 11 speed mtb mech and cassette as and when this lot wear out.

I think you’ll find that if you simply put a 11s cassette in there it’ll work – it’s the setup I use on my CX bike and it’s never missed a gear! (assuming you are using an 11 speed tanpan)

So to clarify I run…
Ultegra 11 speed shifters
11 speed road-mtb cable pull converter
10 speed MTB XT mech
11 speed 11-36 Cassette.

@swanny…
thanks for that.

so, let’s see: you’re running this (i presume you meant MTB mech (zee))?
11 speed road shifters, 10s mech (zee) and 10s xt cassette . – by using the Tanpan thingy?

SO i could presume that a set of 11sp hydro brifters would also work with the above too?

I think you’ll find that if you simply put a 11s cassette in there it’ll work – it’s the setup I use on my CX bike and it’s never missed a gear! (assuming you are using an 11 speed tanpan)

So to clarify I run…
Ultegra 11 speed shifters
11 speed road-mtb cable pull converter
10 speed MTB XT mech
11 speed 11-36 Cassette.

I had wondered, so good to know, cheers. I’m quite happy with the spacing but wouldn’t mind a little more range at either end (1x) so if I was going to add the weight of 11s I’d be looking to make it a 10-42. I could probably make the 10s work but if it’s anything like the mtb I’d need to buy a rad cage or similar, by which time I might as well buy the mech.

Also, it’s a mtb hub, so 11s road cassette isn’t an option anyway!

11sp hydro brifters would also work with the above too

Yes. Mine are RS685. Pretty much the reason I went up to 11. Before that I had 10s 105 shifters and mech handling a 1x 11-36 10s cassette.

@scud
what calipers are you using on there? TRP Spyre?

Yep. They are pretty good, but not in the league of RS685’s which i have on road bike, but a lot cheaper!

Also, it’s a mtb hub, so 11s road cassette isn’t an option anyway!

Nope, not unless you do some tweaks to the cassette (remove the back ~2mm from the carrier so it sits deeper, I still have plenty of room to the spokes

Again certainly option 1 will work.

There may also be answers with Shimano’s new Ultegra R8000 groupo. 11/34 11 speed cassette that fits onto a 9/10 speed freehub for example. Maybe the derailleur will work with the 105 11 speed shifter that it sounds like you already own?

Steady!!!

@lardman

Avid BB7 Road

There are road and mountain versions of the BB7 calipers, with different cams/pull ratios to suit each type of lever.