The Greatest Cycling Innovation You've Never Heard Of | Shimano Hyperglide

The Greatest Cycling Innovation You've Never Heard Of | Shimano Hyperglide

Shimano have rolled out a ton of innovations in bike tech over the years, most of which are pretty obvious to see – electronic shifting is a world away form mechanical, as was indexed shifting when Shimano introduced it with their SIS system. But one invention that changed the game has gone largely under the radar: Shimano Hyperglide changed the way shifting worked forever across the bike industry, Ollie is here to explain why!

In association with Shimano: https://www.shimano.com/

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50 Comments

  1. A Mighty Sailing Man on May 1, 2023 at 7:29 am

    "Never heard of?" Young whippersnappers. I heard of it when it first appeared. Heck, some of us even had to be adventurous back in the day, building our own 8-speed Hyperglide cassettes for off-road. Since Shimano only sold 7-speed XT, you had to roll your own by cobbling together large cogs from a 7-speed off-road cluster, smaller road cogs and 8-speed road spacers, and this being Hyperglide, you had to make sure you got cassettes that had the ramps in the right positions. You kids don’t know how easy you have it with your off-the-shelf 12-speed cassettes.



  2. Bob Johnson on May 1, 2023 at 7:31 am

    I miss the old free wheels with a audible clunk. It took skill. Now anyone can shift like a pro. Oh well I just picked up a Benotto pro tour 800 with about 20 miles on it after 40 years. It was stored outside and has the most wonderful patina which I’m preserving with a good clean and a wax. It’s for my daughter and I’ll make a great city bike putting 700x35c and New tubes and chain. Should make a wonderful commuter gravel bike. I enjoy your channel very much.



  3. dev droid on May 1, 2023 at 7:34 am

    If you spin the cassette, you can see the teeth waver from side to side. This is what Ollie is talking about when he refers to the "ramps" of the sprocket. Each tooth on the sprocket is slightly different in shape and lateral profile.



  4. El Marko on May 1, 2023 at 7:36 am

    Hyperglide also has great compatibility across the years. Any 6, 7 , or 8 sprocket cassette is compatible width-wise with any other of the same count. 9 and up get a little weird. I purchased a bike with an 11-21, not enough ratio for hills for my liking. I purchased two E-bay HG 8 speed cassettes, an 11-28 and a 11-32. Everything is compatible and the spline hub accepted everything I gave it. I got the gearing I need, and the shifting is pretty quiet and fast.



  5. rickyboi! 2.0 on May 1, 2023 at 7:36 am

    that is a very cool bike



  6. michigan b.a.s.s. on May 1, 2023 at 7:38 am

    No wonder i couldn’t find any welds on it its injection molded how insane is that😂



  7. Roy Harkins on May 1, 2023 at 7:42 am

    Back on my bike, yrs have passed since my last ride, and I was amazed at how things have changed since the sixties , the cassettes are things of beauty, so much so I took one to bed along with head torch to really look at it, the gilf thought I was bonkers , ..



  8. FuReDo OsakaJoe on May 1, 2023 at 7:42 am

    When u rent a bicycle to explore the rice paddies or whatver while trekking around China or other places the most common gears are commonly so worn they slip but I digress. All the Cassettes I’ve bought from Shimano and SRAM have been hyper-glide.

    I wish the last gear ring of the cassette had a few tabs after the last gear or circular wire stop or something. When adjusting the derailleur offset and in and out stops I have to set the stop so when shifting into the biggest gear that it resists the cable some so probably causes more stretching. Even with stops and offset set correctly if shifting 2 or more gears at a time and or bumping over something while turning and shifting down it can knock the chain past the last gear so if u don’t have a protecto disc the chain can go into the spokes. But why not have the proecto thing be part of the last gear? A few tabs would probably do the job. Every shift down the chain pushes against the next lower gear except for the very last so shifting off the last gear is much easier than any other shift so stops have to be set so you can barely shift into the last gear.

    Shimano, SRAM or all the people who make front forks should also realize that the front is the best place for a cargo rack. You can bungee you grocery bag, or whatever, so it is pushing against the handle bars. A side bag can hang of the front rocket with it’s lower bungee thingy going over the quick release axle so u get pannier bag holder for free. When I got biking into the hills I like to take a few beers and or coffee drinks so at the maximum height or after the hard bit is done I can enjoy something while watching the sun set or stars coming out. Springy forks tend to not have an easy spot to mount the front rack. Tour de France riders never seem to be carrying a few beers with them which looks odd to me.



  9. Skyline Maurice on May 1, 2023 at 7:42 am

    That yellow frame (😱, ouch fugly) must have been failed attempt at creating a tyrannosaurus Rex! 😱!



  10. Hank Hankerson on May 1, 2023 at 7:43 am

    I actually remember having g the discussion with people back in the day that their cassettes weren’t worn out like he described in the video. What a throwback.



  11. thodkats on May 1, 2023 at 7:44 am

    Capitalism : breeds innovation
    The innovation :



  12. John Suarez on May 1, 2023 at 7:48 am

    Holy crap you got a coke sponsorship nice one



  13. madyogi on May 1, 2023 at 7:49 am

    For entire movie I admired that beautiful yellow frame, not the sprockets… XD Cool!



  14. Віктор Мельник Уманський on May 1, 2023 at 7:49 am

    "Нихуя не понял, но очень интересно" 😐 🙂



  15. nzo_ on May 1, 2023 at 7:50 am

    Dayum! 80s and to this day, hyperglide cassettes are still being used! And someone also made the bearings of it sealed cartridge instead of caged or loose bearing.



  16. Kusheen The Cat on May 1, 2023 at 7:50 am

    Kusheen was here…



  17. keith wukmir on May 1, 2023 at 7:51 am

    Love Shimano and Japanese components. Still have 1980 Dura Ace equipped SR 12 speed w sew ups and galvanized spokes lol (patina colored).
    Need to rotate sprocket. Lent to brother for 4 years..



  18. Tee Thai on May 1, 2023 at 7:51 am

    Intro took me back



  19. David Nicholson on May 1, 2023 at 7:53 am

    Here’s a dirty secret: supposedly incompatible 11sp Hyperglide cassettes work better with 11sp Campagnolo than Campagnolo’s own cassettes. I have a bike with 2018 11sp Super Record running on a Dura Ace cassette and it works better than the Record cassette I had on there previously.



  20. hornet224 on May 1, 2023 at 7:55 am

    I have a new road bike with a Shimano 105, a new gravel bike with GRX810, and a old hard tail MB with a SRAM Duo Drive. The later is the better drive train hands-down! Shifts faster, smoother, requires little maintenance, almost bullet proof and I can change gears while stopped. Plus the hand grip shifter is super convenient to use. SRAM – Please bring it back.



  21. Terry Lynn on May 1, 2023 at 7:57 am

    As much as Ollie loves old components I love listening to Ollie talking about them.



  22. Pieter van Aken on May 1, 2023 at 7:57 am

    After two years of using hyperglyde SLX i can say its a peace of crap. Everthing is compleet gone after 2000 km.



  23. MarSo1997 on May 1, 2023 at 7:58 am

    How sick is that yellow bike



  24. Matty from Macc on May 1, 2023 at 7:58 am

    I’ve used both HG and UG, HG was a massive improvement and provides silky-smooth shifts even under load



  25. Greg B on May 1, 2023 at 7:58 am

    This video doesn’t make any sense. They are conflating hyperglide with cassettes and comparing them to freewheels. Cassette hubs have been around since the 70s. Hyperglide is a system of profiled teeth. It isn’t a fancy word for cassette. GCN don’t always know what they are talking about with the older stuff.



  26. The Ephemeral Glade on May 1, 2023 at 7:58 am

    Never heard of Hyperglide?!! Jesus I’m getting old…



  27. John Suarez on May 1, 2023 at 7:59 am

    I love you gcn!



  28. crusherbmx on May 1, 2023 at 7:59 am

    Hyperglide actually got a lot press in magazines at the time, I know all about it. I only use bikes from 85-92, mostly because I bought them back then and I’ve never had any reason to upgrade.



  29. Plastic Paddy on May 1, 2023 at 8:01 am

    Vitus 979 forks?



  30. Richard Wallace on May 1, 2023 at 8:03 am

    The magnesium frame caught my eye



  31. Robert Lund on May 1, 2023 at 8:05 am

    Never heard of! You sure?



  32. adjusted-bunny on May 1, 2023 at 8:06 am

    Be careful with that magnesium frame in the rain!



  33. Le Plessis on May 1, 2023 at 8:09 am

    It does not work on my Penny-Farthing – I want my money back.



  34. Oleh Filipchuk on May 1, 2023 at 8:10 am

    Newer think about hyperglide sprocket in such side – "wider spline")) I have always orient cassete rings by this narrower ledge ))



  35. Kim R Martins on May 1, 2023 at 8:10 am

    Gorgeous bike frame btw.



  36. Jennifer Thomas on May 1, 2023 at 8:12 am

    Shimano should have made a video cassette that showed you how their cassettes work.



  37. Adam Time on May 1, 2023 at 8:12 am

    Never heard of hyper glide, grow up. It was a system well known, and that stupid piano wire. How stupid can you be, Most mechanics broke it when it came out. The bottom bracket was your ratchet paws. Dude it was still junk crap way stupid. Take a strumey archer over it any day on the same bike. See which one is still running. Shimano still makes crap. You all just are not old enough to write the manuals and see real quality.



  38. Awen on May 1, 2023 at 8:13 am

    Greatest Cycling Innovation You’ve Never Heard Of | Shimano Hyperglide

    Yes I have actually



  39. Michael Michael on May 1, 2023 at 8:14 am

    Ah..Shimano made in Indonesia cassette sprocket, while I am living in Indonesia and can only get Shimano made in Malaysia or Japan group set



  40. Joswee trabahomix on May 1, 2023 at 8:14 am

    Owesome.



  41. Gregorius on May 1, 2023 at 8:15 am

    0:22 Stanger Cassettes



  42. GCN Tech on May 1, 2023 at 8:16 am

    Do you think Hyperglide is one of the most underrated innovations in cycling? Let us know in the comments 👇



  43. JoeW on May 1, 2023 at 8:17 am

    Shimano Hyperglide was presented back in 1987/88. At that time I have been driven the Sachs eloptoid drive, also available by Shimano as „Biopace“.



  44. Everything13ish on May 1, 2023 at 8:19 am

    Electronic shifting is now faster than cables, but seems like yall arent ready to talk about that lol



  45. elacayo96 on May 1, 2023 at 8:19 am

    Engineering. Not fashion rainbow cassettes.



  46. G on May 1, 2023 at 8:20 am

    This is cool stuff!!



  47. Art Xbklyn on May 1, 2023 at 8:21 am

    I’ve been telling people my whole life that George was the most talented Beatle. Give Rubber Soul another listen and you’ll hear why!



  48. Doctor Shawzy on May 1, 2023 at 8:22 am

    hard to beat sturmey archer 3 speed..



  49. A B on May 1, 2023 at 8:22 am

    The title is misleading. Familiarity of Hyperglide has been common knowledge since it was first introduced.



  50. NICOLAS S BROWN on May 1, 2023 at 8:26 am

    The older threaded sprocket clusters were not known as ‘cassettes’ on ‘freehub bodies’, they were called (and are still called) multiple freewheels.