Originally Posted by
VegasJen
I find it interesting how much experience is here yet so few are interested in making this place a resource for newcomers to learn.
I too am a novice. With that said I think the need to know about the intricacies of Shimano components goes with one's personal needs.
For example, I was looking to add some climbing gears to my older 10 speed Ultegra 6600 group set equipped crit bike.
I wanted to switch to a 11-32 cassette but NOS medium or long cage DR's were not available and the used ones on ebay were beat up or just hard to find.
The solution? Went to my LBS and talked with the owner. He recommended a 46-30 GRX crankset and damn, it works flawlessly. The clamp style FDR was adjusted and I now have a good climbing bike with a 46/30 and 12-27 ratio.
Another thing. Shimano no longer makes a 12-27 10 speed cassette so I had to buy a SRAM cassette with the same ratio.
My point is, "the devil is in the details."
No one person has all this nailed down unless they are working on thousands of bikes because this is not in the Shimano manuals.