# 11-40 cassette on road bike



## stevepeter833 (Dec 22, 2012)

Hi all,

Is it possible to put 11-40 cassette on road bike? I read in some articles saying that older groupset eg. 9 or 10 speed Dura-Ace or SRAM shifters can work with its MTB rear derailleur counterparts.

I like going to the mountain and currently run 11-32. I can go to 11-36 using the IRD Component's cassette and the RoadLink from Wolftooth. But if possible I want to go even lower to 11-40.

Thanks for the help.


Cheers,
Steve


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## DaveT (Feb 12, 2004)

I can't answer your question directly but you have two issues to deal with. First you gave to find a rear derailleur/Wolfstooth combo that can handle a 40t cog and simultaneously find the rear der that will work with the shifters you now have or will want to use.


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## smokva (Jul 21, 2004)

Campagnolo 11 speed 2009-2015 Ultra/Power-Shift will work with Shimano MTB 9 speed rear derraileur on 9 speed cassete.
So if you are on Campagnolo old 11sp and Shimano freehub you could use old 9speed MTB cassette 36T and an old long cage MTB derailleur.
I know there were 36T cassettes, I dont remember for 40T. Long cage MTB derailleur will maybe give you enough chain to pull it. Jut DON'T ever shift into big-big


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## Blue CheeseHead (Jul 14, 2008)

Derailleur hanger length plays into this as well. I have tried Ultegra GS and 9 speed XT derailleurs on Specialized Roubaix frames (2006-2010) with no luck going to even a 32T 10 speed cassette. Same setup worked fine on Trek Madones.

40T is really pushing it. If it got to the hill that required that, I might opt for cleat covers.


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## MMsRepBike (Apr 1, 2014)

I live in the mountains and most everyone runs a 32 or 28. The real studs run standard cranks but most are on compact. 40t is not something I've seen, it's outside the range of what I've seen on a road bike around here. 36t yes, but not 40 or 42.


What I do see though all the time and what are on a large percentage of road bikes around here are triple cranks. A triple up front and an 11-32 in the back should do you without all the crazy custom setup stuff.


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## Lelandjt (Sep 11, 2008)

I had a road bike with Ultegra Di2 using the GS derailleur and Roadlink, 34/50 rings, and XT 11-40t cassette. Every gear combination works just fine. Shifting in every gear feels just like normal. It's an absurdly low gear for road riding. You can walk uphill faster but I guess some people want it so I was asked to make and test it. Wolftooth said it would only maintain chain tension in the small/small with a 14t chainring difference but it seemed fine in the 16t combo I tested.


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## AvantDale (Dec 26, 2008)

If you're running a SRAM 10sp setup, you can try an 11-40 Praxis or Sunrace cassette and a 10 sp SRAM Type 2 mountain clutch derailleur. I'm pretty sure the pull ratio on SRAM road and mountain are the same. Not sure about Shimano.


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## Keoki (Feb 13, 2012)

You must be climbing 60% grade hills..... Insane!


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## Lelandjt (Sep 11, 2008)

Here it is in 1st gear:


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## ROAD&DIRT (Mar 27, 2009)

Wow, that's crazy looking


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## Lelandjt (Sep 11, 2008)

Yes, crazy riding as well cuz you're balancing at 3.5mph on a tandem. I was happy to finish testing and put Dura-ace 39/53, 11-28 back on but customers have bought our tandems with 34/50, 11-36 and said it wasn't low enough so this is satisfying a demand. These are people who's last bike was 9 speed 30/39/53, 11-34. While that's gonna mostly be tandem riders, if you have a heavily loaded touring bike this might be the first double ring drivetrain that interests you.

Now if you wanna talk REALLY low gears we've sold about a dozen XTR/Dura-ace Di2 30/42/52, 11-40 equipped bikes. I tested that as well and it shifts perfectly (we modify the front derailleur mount) but 1st gear is 2.5mph. Good for waiting for my parents to catch up during the climb back from the Ouzo factory on Lesvos, while working on our track stands.


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## EddNog (May 20, 2016)

stevepeter833 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Is it possible to put 11-40 cassette on road bike? I read in some articles saying that older groupset eg. 9 or 10 speed Dura-Ace or SRAM shifters can work with its MTB rear derailleur counterparts.
> 
> ...


I can definitely vouch for SRAM shifters (Force 10-speed) with a SRAM MTB RD (GX 2x10 long cage) to use an 11-40. You need a LOT of chain, I gave my LBS two Shimano 10-speed MTB chains to link up:


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## 4Crawler (Jul 13, 2011)

I just installed an 11-42 cassette on my CX bike, 9sp MTB mechs and a WolfTooth RoadLink adapter did the trick:









All worked fine once I figured out I could back the B-tension screw all the way out as it had been all the way in to run the 11-36 cassette that was there prior.


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