Current Projects chat and miscellany

smaller hoods with inline gear and brake cables, I hate them coming out of the side like that. Any recommendations for a good (black if possible) 8-speed brifter? Could I swap the 8 speed cassette out for a more modern 9 or 10 speed one on my R540's?

I asked this a couple of pages back. There are options out there, although it might be worth looking for a whole groupset to get things as smooth as possible.