How to change a casette?

[Triskeliongirl]

OK girls. Any wrenches out there want to tell me what tools I need to buy to change a casette, and how hard it is to do? I have a wheel I bought from Emily on this board (thanks Emily, she is beautiful !) that came with a shimano 105 13-23 casette on it and I want to replace it with an ultegra 12-27 casette. The current wheel on my touring bike has an 11-34 XT casette with an XT rear derailleur, so the bike is already tuned to run with the 11-34 casette. Will I expect to have to adjust the derailleur much when I put on the 12-27? In the future how easy will it be to swap these 2 wheels back and forth? It seems since they are both 9 spd, and the cogs on the 12-27 are within the range of the 11-34 that it should swap easily and not require adjustment. Does what I wanna do make sense. I know the 12-27 will work most of the time, but if I need to carry a heavy load I want to be able to use the 11-34, or if I want to ride it on the trainer without wearing out the nicer tires I may want to swap it.

[Veronica]

You'll want to have a chain for each cassettte.

Tools: you'll need to have a chain whip and a "cassette socket tool" to take the retaining nut off. I don't know what it's real name is.

V.

[Triskeliongirl]

Why do I need a different chain for each casette? The chain on there now is pretty new. I have read that chains and casettes wear together, but if you change the chain before it is too stretched why do you need a separate chain. Doesn't it weaken the chain to take it off and replace the pin?

[velogirl]

I disagree that you need a chain for each cassette. If you change your chain frequently (I recommend every 1,500-2,000 miles), your cassette won't conform to any stretched chain patterns.

I swap wheels on my various bikes all the time. I have race wheels, training wheels, disk wheels, cyclocross wheels. And most of them have been on all my bikes. It's a piece of cake and you shouldn't have to adjust your rear derailleur if you're using cassettes from the same mfg (Shimano or Campy) and the same speed (8, 9, 10). I've even run a Shimano 9 on a Campy 10 and it worked just fine.

To swap the cassette, you need a crescent wrench, a chain whip, and a cassette tool (it's a little round thing that you place on the lock-ring). Make sure you get the correct cassette tool for your component group (campy or shimano). I use the same chain whip for Campy or Shimano, 9 or 10 -- doesn't seem to make a difference (although someone hardcore might disagree).

Swapping cassettes is challenging at first, but once you remember which way to place the chain whip, it's a piece of cake!

[susan.wells]

Check the Park Tool Site > Cassette and Freewheel Removal

[DebW]

Then there was the cassette that Newfsmith had which someone had tightened too tight. It took a bench vise, a lockring tool, a chainwhip, and a 24 inch piece of pipe to get it off. For a lockring tool, the kind with the center post are nice because sometimes your quick release skewer isn't long enough to hold the tool onto the wheel. Also note that putting the chainwhip on a larger cog gives you more leverage.

[Mags...]

[QUOTE=velogirlI use the same chain whip for Campy or Shimano, 9 or 10 -- doesn't seem to make a difference (although someone hardcore might disagree).[/QUOTE]

is the chain whip tool necessary, or is there some other tool or combination of tools that can be used instead?

[DebW]

is the chain whip tool necessary, or is there some other tool or combination of tools that can be used instead?

There is also Pedro cog wrench which can be used instead of a chain whip:
http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

But it only works on 11 or 12 tooth outer cogs. A chain whip is more versatile since it fits any size cog in any position. If you have to buy a tool, get a chain whip. Or you could make your own from a piece of metal bar and some old chain.