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Which is better, Sram or Shimano??

1K views 12 replies 10 participants last post by  dan0 
#1 ·
I am interested in upgrading my shifters and deraileurs. I have been researching the reviews and from what i see, Sram seems to have pretty good reviews. I am not into having the lightest components, so XTR or the X.O line isnt inportant to me. I have a 2002 fisher sugar 4 and it is an all LX drivetrain. I have always had problems with the shifting since i got the bike. Would you recommend going with Sram. I do like the trigger shifters on my bike now and see that Sram has trigger type but read that they operate a little different. I appreciate any opinions you throw out there. Thanks.

Mike
 
#4 ·
My findings are:

Shimano XTR = Japan
Smoother and quieter shifts than X.0 and option for Rapid Rise.
Inexpensive.

SRAM X.0 = Taiwan
Requires less adjustment since 1:1 ratio accommodates for more cable stretch.
Option for Short Cage Derailleur.

My experience with Shimano's Customer Service has been much better than SRAM.

I use both, I like both, I recommend both.
 
#6 ·
Didnt mean to open up a can of worms. The issues i have had are no matter the adjustments, i still have a dragging noise from my chain, kind of like it is in between gears. I have tried shifting up and back down but it doesnt work. I am a big guy and i put alot of pressure on my drivetrain and am afraid of breaking parts when i am hearing those noises. Dont know if changing to SRAM would make a difference or not. I have tried adjusting it myself and even brought it into the lbs for adjustment. Same results. Any input? Thanks for the responses everyone.

Mike
 
#7 ·
If it feels like it is in between gears, have you tried to adjust the lever barrel adjustment 1/4 of a turn?

Sometimes when I am a bit stuck, I will remove the chain and give the chain, cassette and chainrings a good clean and oil them. Then I will start the adjustment from scratch.

Is your derailleur bent?
 
#8 ·
If it was this way from the beginning then I think you should have brought it back to the shop that you bought it from. If you bought it used or you cannot bring yourself to bring it back then I would try reading this article and trying to adjust it yourself. Maybe you need to replace the cables and housings?

If your current system works for you and it only needs an adjustment then I would stick with it. If you want to change it for the sake of changing it then that's a different matter altogether. I've used Deore, Deore LX, and Deore XT components and they've all performed great for me but I can see that a poorly adjusted shifting system would be frustrating to anyone trying to deal with it.

Just throwing this out there: if it's making a lot of noise and everything is properly adjusted, try replacing the chain. Make sure you get the proper chain (get a 9-speed chain for a 9-speed setup).

I've used Shimano components on my mountain bikes for years and I've never had any real issues with it. I've just recently bought my first SRAM shifters and rear derailleur but I put it on my nephew's bike so I do not have anything but a subjective impression of it.
 
#11 ·
I dont have enough time to tell the story about my bike here...lets just say i didnt have a good rapport with the lbs afterward. A long story short, i ended up changing out my crankset to the hollowtech LX and that cured my chainsuck issues i was having...but it has always had that dragging noise. I am going to try your advice PCC. Thanks, i will give it a try.

Mike
 
#13 ·
mike1991 said:
Didnt mean to open up a can of worms. The issues i have had are no matter the adjustments, i still have a dragging noise from my chain, kind of like it is in between gears. I have tried shifting up and back down but it doesnt work. I am a big guy and i put alot of pressure on my drivetrain and am afraid of breaking parts when i am hearing those noises. Dont know if changing to SRAM would make a difference or not. I have tried adjusting it myself and even brought it into the lbs for adjustment. Same results. Any input? Thanks for the responses everyone.

Mike
sugar is a lightweight race type bike , so with a big guy on it its going to flex around a bit (I broke 2 frames and 2 rear triangles)
being as old as it is the pivots are probably shot and who knows when the wheel bearings were last serviced
I would make sure the pivots and wheel bearings were tight first. then adjust the barrel adjuster for the deraillier in question. changing to Sram wont fix the out of adjustment unless the deraillier is shot, and if it is worn out, its cheaper to stay with shimano because with Sram you will also need to switch shifters

if the lbs didnt make any recomendations I would find a better lbs
 
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