Ultegra 6700 Pulleys

[FIJIGabe]

I'm piecing together a CX bike (very early stages - no frame yet), but I do have some of the components, which are hand-me-downs from my wife's road bike. I've discovered that the top pulley on the rear derailleur (Ultegra 6700) has a lot of drag, much more than the lower pulley, so I'm going to replace it. What pulley do you recommend? I can always go with a replacement Shimano pulley, but since I've already got this one apart, I figure I might as well upgrade the parts to something stronger/lighter. Any recommendations?

Thanks,

[mattyNor]

Trax (spelling?) Makes some rad ceramic bearing ones.

[kulivontot]

This is normal. One pulley uses bushings the other uses bearings

[FIJIGabe]

The top pulley has more friction than I've ever seen before on a derailleur. I always noticed that her bike had some resistance, but was never able to pin it down until I pulled her drivetrain when I swapped in the 6800. Since then, no issues whatsoever with friction. I definitely think this pulley is shot.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. I'll look into them.

[drider85]

I have had both Tacx and KCNC. The Tacx keep the shifting performance high but the looks are boring. I KCNC has a bit more lateral play rolls equally well and comes in color. As said before the stock upper pulley was underwhelming on a good day. If looks are not a big consideration go with Tacx.

[FIJIGabe]

Thanks for the recommendation. I ended up getting an Ultegra upper from my LBS, who had it laying around (free). If it dies on me at some point in the future, then I'll upgrade the set.