14 Speeds? ??

What have those boneheads at Shimano done now?  It was recently revealed that the old practice of adding one cog at a time in the development of gear systems has been thrown out the window by the S-guys.  Campagnolo recently released their new 10-speed cassette for the 2000 year gruppos, and now Shimano has patented a 14-speed cassette/chain combination.

Here, from the U.S. Patent Office, are the official patent drawings of the cassette and the special chain that goes with it.  (Click on the images to see a larger version of these thumbnails.)

shimano_14_cass.gif (25973 bytes) shimano_14_chain.gif (14878 bytes)
The cassette, shown above, includes a special spoking pattern to prevent the chain from hitting the spokes.

To see the entire patent, go to:
Cassette Patent

 The chain has a unique single-plate system--part of the chain sits on top of the cogs, rather than around the sides of the cog teeth.

To see the entire patent, go to:
Chain Patent

What's next?  And will this system ever see the light of day?  Watch this site for future developments.

Thank you to reader webmaster@campyonly.com from bringing this news to us!

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