Jaz123

I bought a used Specialized Ruby Elite and noticed some clicking sounds in the gears so I brought it to a LBS and they said it was because the bike was a 9 speed bike but it had a 10 speed cassette. They changed the cassette to a 9 speed and that seemed to fix the problem.

However, later I looked at the specs for the bike and it supposedly is a 10 speed bike.

As far as I know, the previous owner did not change the original setup of the bike so any ideas as to what happened? Or must there be some customization for that to happen?

Bezalel

What shifters do you have? It's unlikely that the mechanic remembered the specs from 2009 but likely that he just changed the cassette to match whatever shifters you currently have.

hueyhoolihan

would it have been a more pleasant experience if the LBS said it was a 10-speed and sold you new 10-speed shifters?

Jaz123

According to the mechanic, I have a 9 speed shifter.

I'm glad they found a used 9-speed cassette and replaced it for me but I'm just curious as to why the shifters were different from the specs. Are bikes sometimes made differently from the specs?

Bezalel

Sometimes changes are made after the specs are published or a batch has different parts due to availability, but Specialized wouldn't do a batch in 9-speed for a 10-speed model.

jimc101

So what is the model number (not name) of the shifter, that will definitely ID how many speed you bike has.

tomacropod

How many clicks is usually easier than looking up the model number.

- joel

achoo

Be kinda funny if that shifter has 9 clicks...

Jaz123

It's a Shimano 105, ST5600.

alcjphil

When you buy any used bike, there could have been modifications done over the years. You can't just look at the original specifications and expect that the bike you are purchasing is all stock. The seller might have taken parts off an older bike and changed them when the bike was put up for sale. You could go back to the seller and ask to have the cost of the new cassette covered, but you also should have tested the bike before you bought it to make sure that it shifted properly

SkyDog75

ST-5600 shifters are 10-speed.

(Don't just take my word for it. Google it.)

jimc101

Time to fine a new mechanic who knows what they are talking about, mixing a 10 speed shifter & 9 speed cassette will result in sub-optimal performance.

alcjphil

I missed that. Something is strange about this

RoadGuy

It appears that the shifters may have been adjusted incorrectly resulting in your not being able to not all 10 gears properly, or maybe the travel limits are/were misadjusted on the derailleurs. Simply adjusting the shifter cable tension (or installing new cables since you don't know the history) and the derailleur travel limits should have fixed the problem. You need a better mechanic. It appears that he misdiagnosed the problem.

But, people swap parts on used bikes all the time for all sorts of reasons. A couple of scenarios might be: one or both of the 10-speed shifters might have failed, and the Owner or mechanic had a set the set of 9-speed shifters laying around (from a upgrade or leftover new stock), OR Seller swapped the 10 speed shifters or the entire 10-speed group with/onto a bike that had a 9-speed group.

It happens all the time. People brag or report this kind of swapping on BF all the time.

Look on eBay or on Craigslist, and you will see tons of bikes for sale with lower groups/less speeds than that originally came from Factory with. It's a Buyer Beware Deal. Did you test ride the bike before buying it? Buyers need to do their homework before going to look at bikes (even ones that are supposed to be new). What did the sell tell you about the number of speeds or the group? If you did not catch that, then you are probably out of the luck.

I hope you didn't give the 10-speed cassette away (or leave it with the mechanic for free). Put the 10-speed cassette back on the bike.

Jaz123

This is such a scary experience. I'm completely new to road biking and I already messed up. And I did leave it to the mechanic for free...but I think I can recover it.

Buyer beware indeed...

Cross Creek

Why would the OP want to sell his 10 spd cassette? He has a 10 spd spec'd bike that had the proper cassette (matching his shifters) when he brought it in for repair. What he needs is to go back to the shop and ask that they make his bike 10 spd functional. That may require replacement of the 10 spd cassette with a new one (and chain), depending on what the problem is, but certainly not a 9spd cassette. Am I missing something here?

alcjphil

Out of curiosity, where did you get the information that your shifters are the ST-5600 series? If it came from the original specs for the bike, there is no guarantee that the information is correct. Buying a bike is a learning experience. It is very unlikely that the bike shop would have been able to get a 9 speed cassette to shift properly if you have 10 speed shifters.

RoadGuy

Immediately contact the mechanic and get your 10 speed cassette back.

While you're at it, tell him he made a mistake, and return the 9-speed cassette. You don't need it, and it won't do you any good, since you have 10-speed shifters (you did see the 5600 marking on the shifters themselves, RIGHT?). Derailleurs are often used with shifters that are from different groups (I have 9-speed derailleurs with 8-speed shifters and a 8-speed cassette on a bike right now). Just remember that in many/most cases the shifters will determine how many gears you can shift on the bike (subject to the travel limits built into the derailleurs), not the cassette or derailleurs.

You should also get the mechanic/shop to fix the problem correctly, or give the money for the labor back, as they did not earn it.

Jaz123

I pulled aside the rubber cover of the shifters (the hood I think). It was on the outer side of the shifters. I'm not exactly sure what happened so I trusted that the mechanic. And I'm not blaming him for anything as it is my fault for not doing any research.

alcjphil

5500(9 speed) could easily be mistaken for 5600(10 speed) in the wrong light. A good picture of the shifters might clear things up

RoadGuy

The stamping are sometimes hard to read because they are so small.

I'd tell you to put the rear derailleur in 1st gear, then loosen the rear derailleur cable clamp, work the rear shifter, and count the number of clicks that the shifter makes (speeds equals number of clicks plus one). But you don't know how to readjust/set the cable back up after you do this (simple, but you don't know how at this point).

shelbyfv

Didn't you say it works now? Maybe there was a breakdown of communication. Could the mechanic have said you had a 9 speed cassette on a 10 speed bike?

RoadGuy

If the travel limits were set incorrectly, the rear derailleur might not be able to shift all ten gears, and the front derailleur might click in some gears. If the cable tension was off, it's possible that the derailleurs might not shift into all ten gears in the rear or hit both/all of the chainrings.

hueyhoolihan

start from ground zero.

1) count the cogs on the new cassette.

2) double check the shifter model number and look up the info on 9 vs 10 speed yourself.

3) assign blame...

shelbyfv

+1 some folks are getting pretty excited here!