Drive train upgrades

[Brandonhue]

I have a 2011 giant TCR advanced pro 1 I bought second had I’m currently thinking of upgrading for the current groupset to a new ultegra one I was wonder has anyone had any issues upgrading to a 11 speed groupset from a 10 or 9 speed

Ps when I bought the bike I the previous owner change the bike from a 10 speed to a 9 I currently have full ulgtega 9 speed components but I am running a dura ace crack and chain rings up front that should be with a 10 speed would I have to look into getting a new 11 speed specific crank and chain ring also I’m not sure if a 11 speed groupset will fit my bike frame any idea or advice?

[macca33]

11-speed groupset will work on any frame, your TCR is no exception.

You may also have to change wheelset to an 11-apeed compatible one, so factor that in as well.

Unless you are thrifty in your shopping and do the work yourself, it may be better to upgrade the entire bike... I've seen 2014+ TCRs with 11-speed groupsets offered for sale around the traps for anywhere from $1000+...

[Kronos]

You wont have to really get a new chain ring at the front if you've got one already for a 10 speed, it's just some minor tweaking, the spacing is actually wider on the 10 speed than the 11 speed chain ring, but in all my years I've never come across a problem in mixing a 10 speed chain ring with an 11 speed cassette.

What you will need however is:

A new cassette
A new rear derailleur
A new rear wheel/hub if yours isn't 11 speed compatible, or perhaps two if you really want to be funky and match your wheels.
A new set of shifters as the throw is different between 10 and 11 speed shifters.
A chain if you don't want your shifting experience to be noisy or crap.

If you are into second hand shopping I'd forsee $50 for an 11 speed rear deraileur and maybe $100-$200 on a new rear wheel that is Shimano/SRAM compatible, then you would add another $60 or so for a rear cassette and finally about $30 on a new 11speed chain and a set of Shimano 6800 shifters which will cost you about $200 or less second hand as the 6700 and earlier shifters have a different cable pull to the 6800 ones.

You could do the whole job for about $500-$600 if you can do it yourself, or if you're willing to learn how to do it yourself. You're not going to find a new bike frame with 11 speed groupset for $600.

Not all 11speed groupsets are equal, the difference between a Tiagra level bike and an Ultegra/Dura Ace level bike is substantial, maybe if you're a Sunday rider and don't know the difference between crapola and a good bike with a well tuned groupset you'll be happy with that. I'm not that however. Even if you pay for a mechanic to do it for you its still going to cost you less than $1000 and it will be a better bike.

The list price of a 2017 Giant TCR Advanced Pro 1 is $3500, you do the maths on that.

[10speedsemiracer]

11-speed groupset will work on any frame, your TCR is no exception.

You may also have to change wheelset to an 11-apeed compatible one, so factor that in as well.

Unless you are thrifty in your shopping and do the work yourself, it may be better to upgrade the entire bike... I've seen 2014+ TCRs with 11-speed groupsets offered for sale around the traps for anywhere from $1000+...

+1 for all of the above from Macca33.

Can be done easily, but not cheaply.

[Kronos]

It all depend you can spend $1000 on a new bike but I wouldn't even poke a stick at it if it had less than 105 components on it, and actually I would poke a stick at it if it didn't come with an Ultegra groupset. I don't settle for less than that these days. SRAM Rival or SRAM Red is also OK in my books as is Campy Record.

[Jmuzz]

Wiggle has special on kits (which is common) so you could do R8000 for not much more than older stuff.

Probably need a new rear wheel, cost depends on how good current wheel is and if you want equivilant.

Do weigh up the value of just selling the 2011 for whatever it can get and buying something a few years old which can already be 6800 which can be down at $1500. Though parts do wear out and brand new mech is brand new with warranty.

[Kronos]

If you can get the wiggle kit that was listed for $850 and install it yourself I'd go for that

http://www.this link is broken.au/ultegra-r8000- ... -groupset/

Bare in mind you will still need a new rear wheel.

[madmacca]

Merlin have a 6800 upgrade kit for $356 - plus 10% off Ultegra at the moment, so actually only $320. https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-ul ... 84985.html Add in cassette, chain and cables to that though.

So depending on whether your rear wheel is 11sp compatible, potentially an affordable upgrade.

[Duck!]

....the spacing is actually wider on the 10 speed than the 11 speed chain ring....

No it's not. First generation 10-sp, coming from the time when 39/53 rings were normal, and even 42/52 was still common, has comparitively narrow spacing, similar to that of 7, 8 & 9-sp. With the advent of compact chainrings and the greater difference in size between them, it was discovered that small ring cross-chaining generated a lot of noise and interference as the chain hooked on the pickup pins, so for second generation 10-sp. the ring spacing was widened. As an aside, it's generally necessary to use a 2nd-gen front derailleur with a 2nd-gen crank, as it has the extra swing necessary to cover the wider gap. 1st-gen 11-sp. has near enough to the same spacing as 2nd-gen 10-sp, but with the most recent advent of disc brakes and the wider hubs that go with them it has again become necessary to slightly increase the chainring spacing to accommodate the extra chain deflection.