Cassette Upgrade.. Recommendations

[Jordanf99]

Hello,

I have been riding a YT Capra AL Comp 2019 for around 6-7 months. Great bike but have had a few problems with the cassette, gears slipping which lead to a snapped chain. YT sent me a replacement around 3-4 months ago and after a ride this weekend starting to have the same problem in the higher gears with the chain slipping.

Contacted YT and looks like they will send me another replacement which means 3rd cassette in 6-7 months!!

I am considering swapping out the e13 TRS cassette completely for a XT cassette in hope this will save some of my problems so there becomes a complete XT drive chain. Cost $250 for cassette & driver body + cost for LBS to fit).

Looking for recommendations/help, has anyone done this before? and with what success? or is there something i am missing on the set up on the current e13 cassette

Thanks.

Jordan

[sangier]

On an old bike, I swapped on a sunrace cassette and had similar issues. I think keeping to the same  brand for the cassette and derailleur helps to avoid such issue.

[Matt Miller ✓ supporter]

Anecdotal, but I have heard of a lot of people having issues with e13 cassettes, especially after a few months. A different cassette could be the remedy.

[mtnryder ✓ supporter]

Jordan, nothing wrong with your plan but you can buy the tool for about $30 to remove and install cassettes. It’s so easy even *I* can do it without messing it up. Worst case scenario, watch a youtube video to see how it’s done. For $250, I assume you’re talking about the new 12 speed cassette and micro-spline driver needed. If not, the 11 speed cassette’s can be found for $80 and doesn’t use micro-spline. You could also use the same driver and a SRAM GX cassette to save some money.

 

 

 

[Bike Nerd]

In my experience, (I’ve been cycling for 40+ years as an adult and have owned about 20 different bikes.) mixing drivetrain components from different manufacturers frequently causes problems.  Keeping all the drivetrain components either all Sram or all Shimano is the safest bet.  If you keep the chain, cassette, rear derailleur, and shifter all from the same company you probably would not have this problem.  (Back in the old days of 2x and 3x drivetrains, off-brand cranksets and chainrings caused all sorts of problems.)

In addition, you could have a bent derailleur or derailleur hanger.  Have that checked, put on a new chain, and have the rear derailleur adjusted before you spend any money on new stuff.

Also, make sure the chain is not too long.  I had a bike that was slipping gears and I took it to the bike shop and they adjusted everything but couldn’t really find anything wrong.  But, it continued to slip.  So I removed 2 links of chain to see if that would help and never had problems with it again.   I had asked the mechanic if the chain was too long but he said it wasn’t and it did look right to me also but removing those 2 links saved the day.

If you do switch to all Shimano, consider using the more affordable SLX cassette to save money.  SLX cassettes are heavier than XT cassettes but they shift just as well.

[Sunspot]

Chain slip comes from a few things.

Chain length incorrect.

B bolt not properly adjusted

Limit screws over traveling.

Cable tension too loose/tight.

Old chain on a new cassette and/or vice versa.

All MUST be corrected to eliminate the issue. Also take note of the retail on an E13 cassette, they are absurd.

[Author]

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