9 speed shifters/cassettes upgrade for 8 speed Shimano 600 hub

I recently bought a Cannondale frame w/ most of the parts in a box. It has
Shimano 600 hubs (FH-6402 rear w/ an 8-speed cassette), cranks, rear
derailleur ( RD-6400), down tube shifters, and brakes along w/ a Suntour
4050 front derailleur. The only thing missing was brake levers. I would like
to convert to STI type shifters/brake levers w/o having to rebuild the rear
wheels with new hubs. Since I ride a 30 year old Raleigh International, I'm
not familiar w/ STI products.

My questions a

Can I buy 9 speed shifters and use them w/ the 8 speed cassette? Are they
really a 1 to 1 match?
Or, can I put a 9 speed cassette (using 8 cogs?) on this hub and use 9 speed
shifters
Or , do I have to use 8 speed shifters. If so, is the Sora brand a good mid
range or is there something better.

I want to set this bike up with larger cogs than the 12-21 it currently has
for hill climbing. I've been looking at some of the custom cassettes on the
Harris Cycling / Sheldon Brown.

I did read somewhere that I could put a 9 speed cassette, using 8 cogs on
this hub, and then use 9 speed shifters but I can't find the reference
again.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks

FS

FJS wrote:
It has Shimano 600 hubs (FH-6402 rear w/ an 8-speed cassette),

That's already HG (HyperGlide) I assume, where the cassette is
fastened by a lockring and not a screwed on small cog?


Can I buy 9 speed shifters and use them w/ the 8 speed cassette?
Are they really a 1 to 1 match?

No and yes. 9x pulls less cable thus moves the rear derailleur in
smaller steps than 8x. You can try to fasten the cable in a
different position, see http://sheldonbrown.com/dura-ace.html

But:

Or, can I put a 9 speed cassette (using 8 cogs?) on this hub and
use 9 speed shifters

If the hub is already HG you can simply put a 9x cassette on and use
9x shifters. It might not be possible to a smaller cog than a 12t
on, but that seems not to be an issue for you anyway...



--
MfG/Best regards
helmut springer

FJS wrote:
It has Shimano 600 hubs (FH-6402 rear w/ an 8-speed cassette),

That's already HG (HyperGlide) I assume, where the cassette is
fastened by a lockring and not a screwed on small cog?


Can I buy 9 speed shifters and use them w/ the 8 speed cassette?
Are they really a 1 to 1 match?

No and yes. 9x pulls less cable thus moves the rear derailleur in
smaller steps than 8x. You can try to fasten the cable in a
different position, see http://sheldonbrown.com/dura-ace.html

But:

Or, can I put a 9 speed cassette (using 8 cogs?) on this hub and
use 9 speed shifters

If the hub is already HG you can simply put a 9x cassette on and use
9x shifters. It might not be possible to a smaller cog than a 12t
on, but that seems not to be an issue for you anyway...



--
MfG/Best regards
helmut springer

On Sun, 3 Oct 2004 18:24:33 -0400, "FJS" wrote:



I did read somewhere that I could put a 9 speed cassette, using 8 cogs on
this hub, and then use 9 speed shifters but I can't find the reference
again.


I bet that what you are thinking of is putting 8 of 9 cogs on a *7*
speed freehub body. You already have an 8 speed cassette. A 9 speed
cassette will fit on there just fine.

Shimano makes a 12-27 cassette in both 8 and 9 speeds.

Your best bet for STI is probably 9 speeds. Unless you go to Campy-
very possible!! think about it!!- you will also need a new front
derailleur.

On Sun, 3 Oct 2004 18:24:33 -0400, "FJS" wrote:



I did read somewhere that I could put a 9 speed cassette, using 8 cogs on
this hub, and then use 9 speed shifters but I can't find the reference
again.


I bet that what you are thinking of is putting 8 of 9 cogs on a *7*
speed freehub body. You already have an 8 speed cassette. A 9 speed
cassette will fit on there just fine.

Shimano makes a 12-27 cassette in both 8 and 9 speeds.

Your best bet for STI is probably 9 speeds. Unless you go to Campy-
very possible!! think about it!!- you will also need a new front
derailleur.

Dan Daniel wrote:
On Sun, 3 Oct 2004 18:24:33 -0400, "FJS" wrote:



I did read somewhere that I could put a 9 speed cassette, using 8 cogs on
this hub, and then use 9 speed shifters but I can't find the reference
again.



I bet that what you are thinking of is putting 8 of 9 cogs on a *7*
speed freehub body. You already have an 8 speed cassette. A 9 speed
cassette will fit on there just fine.

Shimano makes a 12-27 cassette in both 8 and 9 speeds.

Your best bet for STI is probably 9 speeds. Unless you go to Campy-
very possible!! think about it!!- you will also need a new front
derailleur.

Seems the 12-27 is extremely expensive right now, but if you have hills,
it's worth it. For my money, after just experiencing STI failure, I'd
go with Campy levers, if you shop around, you can get centaur for around
$150. The Jtek works well with rest of shimano components. As for
replacing the front derailleur, I didn't know you had to do that.
I'm still running an 8spd 105 FD on my daughters bike, and it shifts
fine. RD is Ultegra along with the brifters.



--
Mark Wolfe Lakeside, ca http://www.wolfenet.org
gpg fingerprint = 42B6 EFEB 5414 AA18 01B7 64AC EF46 F7E6 82F6 8C71
$_=$!++until/z/;($n,$a,$c,$e,$o,$z)=(split)[-1]=~/(.)..(.)..(.)(.).(.)(.)/;
do{print $a}while$a=$$a;BEGIN{die "No, not for you" unless $^O=~/nux/;}

Dan Daniel wrote:
On Sun, 3 Oct 2004 18:24:33 -0400, "FJS" wrote:



I did read somewhere that I could put a 9 speed cassette, using 8 cogs on
this hub, and then use 9 speed shifters but I can't find the reference
again.



I bet that what you are thinking of is putting 8 of 9 cogs on a *7*
speed freehub body. You already have an 8 speed cassette. A 9 speed
cassette will fit on there just fine.

Shimano makes a 12-27 cassette in both 8 and 9 speeds.

Your best bet for STI is probably 9 speeds. Unless you go to Campy-
very possible!! think about it!!- you will also need a new front
derailleur.

Seems the 12-27 is extremely expensive right now, but if you have hills,
it's worth it. For my money, after just experiencing STI failure, I'd
go with Campy levers, if you shop around, you can get centaur for around
$150. The Jtek works well with rest of shimano components. As for
replacing the front derailleur, I didn't know you had to do that.
I'm still running an 8spd 105 FD on my daughters bike, and it shifts
fine. RD is Ultegra along with the brifters.



--
Mark Wolfe Lakeside, ca http://www.wolfenet.org
gpg fingerprint = 42B6 EFEB 5414 AA18 01B7 64AC EF46 F7E6 82F6 8C71
$_=$!++until/z/;($n,$a,$c,$e,$o,$z)=(split)[-1]=~/(.)..(.)..(.)(.).(.)(.)/;
do{print $a}while$a=$$a;BEGIN{die "No, not for you" unless $^O=~/nux/;}

On Sun, 03 Oct 2004 17:10:49 -0700, Mark Wolfe
wrote:
...As for
replacing the front derailleur, I didn't know you had to do that.
I'm still running an 8spd 105 FD on my daughters bike, and it shifts
fine. RD is Ultegra along with the brifters.

The OP said that he had a Suntour front derailleur. I am not
absolutely certain, but I doubt that it would index to Shimano STI,
which *is* indexed on front, unlike Campy.

On Sun, 03 Oct 2004 17:10:49 -0700, Mark Wolfe
wrote:
...As for
replacing the front derailleur, I didn't know you had to do that.
I'm still running an 8spd 105 FD on my daughters bike, and it shifts
fine. RD is Ultegra along with the brifters.

The OP said that he had a Suntour front derailleur. I am not
absolutely certain, but I doubt that it would index to Shimano STI,
which *is* indexed on front, unlike Campy.

I plan on buying a new front derailuer anyways. The rear Shimano 600 looks
in pretty good shape but the front was missing some screws. Thanks



"Dan Daniel" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 03 Oct 2004 17:10:49 -0700, Mark Wolfe
wrote:
...As for
replacing the front derailleur, I didn't know you had to do that.
I'm still running an 8spd 105 FD on my daughters bike, and it shifts
fine. RD is Ultegra along with the brifters.

The OP said that he had a Suntour front derailleur. I am not
absolutely certain, but I doubt that it would index to Shimano STI,
which *is* indexed on front, unlike Campy.