Need Tough Cassette For Trek Hardtail

[gto47]

Hi all. I have a 2007 Trek 4300 with the shimano alvio deraillur. I have beat up this bike pretty badly and after replacing the crank arms and pedals, I’ve found that my cassette is bent. The cassette creaks and there is quite a bit of play going on. The pedal feels tweaked and not straight while riding, and the crank arm also loosens itself on long rides.

I’ve seen cassette kits around for the alvio gearset, but i’m looking for something a bit more durable this time. The replacement kit costs about 8 bucks, and I don’t want to even think about how much it costs to produce this part. What are the options out there for these cassettes?

[GoldenGoose]

You [i:1mnnjw4c]bent [/i:1mnnjw4c]your [i:1mnnjw4c]cassette[/i:1mnnjw4c]? That’s a new one to me for sure. I’ve heard about bent derailleurs, cranksets, levers, and rims but a bent cassette must have been one heck of a crash involving the rear of the bike. To do that kind of damage, I’m wondering if you don’t have some serious wheel damage as well.

Anyways, almost any replacement 8 speed cassette will work with what you have. You might take a look at the Shimano Deore cassette as it’s the next step up the line in Shimano components. SRAM is also known for cassettes do the 830 or 850 would be among the models you’d probably be looking at. However, all of the ones mentioned are also made from steel like the Alivo.

On to the other problems in the front.

Not sure which type of bottom bracket you have on the bike but the square tapered style has always given me issues with coming loose and making creaking noises even when I use a torque wrench to ensure proper tightening. Sometimes the creaking can be fixed with plumbers tape but the loosening just got annoying over time so I switched styles.

The pedal issue sounds like it could be a bent axle but that should be easily figured out by looking at the pedal axle from the outside and spinning it to see if it wobbles.

Good luck.

[gto47]

Thanks for the response.

My problems are all definitely inside the bottom bracket. I think I said cassette when I must have meant cartridge. I definitely have the square design that you describe. So i guess I should start looking at a 10 point [i:3k86vcx3]cartridge[/i:3k86vcx3] and pair of crank arms. What are some good strong/lightweight models/brands to look at for those?

[Dustin Gaddis]

"gto47" wrote

Thanks for the response.

My problems are all definitely inside the bottom bracket. I think I said cassette when I must have meant cartridge. I definitely have the square design that you describe. So i guess I should start looking at a 10 point [i:1kvm0yw4]cartridge[/i:1kvm0yw4] and pair of crank arms. What are some good strong/lightweight models/brands to look at for those?

If you want something really stiff, get something with external bearings. HUGE improvement over square taper, I made the upgrade on my previous bike and it was well worth it.

Look into the Shimano SLX cranks. Decent weight, and very stiff from what I’ve heard. Supposedly affordable as well, but that means different things to different people. I don’t know how much they cost.

EDIT: $135 on sale at Jenson right now, not bad. There are cheaper options tho. http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/ … ks+Oe.aspx

[gto47]

The shimano m440 or "deore" crankset seem like they are more appropriate for this level of bike. On a trek 4300 there are other things what would probably break first. In the future I will probably replace the whole bike. Am I being foolishy cheap in my thinking?

[GoldenGoose]

I don’t think you should spend much money on the replacement unless you intend to take it with you to a new frame. Just find something that will meet your needs for cheap and leave it at that. You can replace the entire bike and get better components with the new ride for a WHOLE lot cheaper than it would cost to buy the parts individually.

[gto47]

I have decided to put as little money into this bike as possible. For now I will just buy a new square taper bottom bracket. It looks like I need a 73×122 set. All of the shimano cartridges i’ve looked at have plastic cups, which seem worse than what I already have. I think the part that came on he bike was some SRAM part thats no longer made.

I’ve been looking at these origin cartridges, but i’m unsure if they will fit the shimano setup. The cups look similar but i can’t be sure.

http://www.origin-8.com/product_detail. … M+BRACKETS

[GoldenGoose]

Tons of people make aftermarket square taper cartridges. As long as it’s the right size for your bottom bracket, it’ll work just fine. send them an email to be sure but I’d bet they are threaded the same as any normal square taper BB.

[gto47]

Ended up going with a UN54, but I had to first pick up the park tool universal crank puller and splined bottom bracket remover. The UN54 has a plastic sleeve but I have read good things about its durability. I pulled the Modus brand cartridge and the first problem I noticed was that the bearing cup had come loose on the nondrive arm. Upon further inspection I discovered that the Modus had a bearing problem. Although there wasn’t much play and whatever this thing uses as thrust bearing appeared to be ok, there were 4 resistance points per rotation on it. What a huge improvement over that creaky and loose cartridge. Hopefully the UN54 holds up with its plastic sleeve.

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