Submitted by
Andrew1jsc
a Weekend Warrior
from Hollywood,Florida
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2011
Strengths: shifts DECENTLY but i always hear grinding,and there are constant misshifts where the chain pops off. I always wash my bikes and lube all the parts right affter i hit a trail.
Weaknesses: Today I was bunnyhopping in my neighborhood and my chain slipped to a different gear,like always i just tried to pedal and hope that it would correct itself. but this time it was different when i pedaled the whole derailer twisted and got caught in my spoke and the plastic part snapped in half.
Bottom Line:
It never worked well from the beginning. There was always rough shifting misshifts and the chain even came off several times and the final straw was when it snapped in half in my back wheel....I really expected more from shimano.... I ride on very harsh trails but at the same time i always take my time to maintain my things.
Submitted by
freshandfly101
a Weekend Warrior
from Los Angeles, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: July 9, 2011
Strengths: Simple, surprisingly strong on the trail
Weaknesses: Plastic, integrated with brake lever, optical display
Bottom Line:
I bought the bike for an around the city kicker but it got me into mountain biking. For a year, this whole set has been trouble free, set it and forget it. I love it. I hate the plastic and gear display, but its an amazing value. I've jumped, crashed, ran rabbits over, and far more, nothing has happened to them.
Bike Setup: Gary Fisher 29er. SSR stem, post, bar. bb7 brakes w/ speed dial 7 levers, x9 shifters, deraillers, 980 cassette/chain, stylo crank, rock solid carbon fork
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
joe
a Downhiller
from Vancouver Island, BC
Date Reviewed: April 19, 2011
Bottom Line:
I've had this model of derailluer for over 1 year. It is obviously not a performance part but it does well.
I ride hard, downhill and all-mountain trails, pushing my limits. I've gone through 2 of these derailluers. I know that for my type of riding I should invest more, but I'm poor and I don't need supreme performance. It does the job.
My first derailluer bent just from crashes and other stress. My second one just went 2 days ago when a stick got caught in the wheel.
I often lose performance because I don't replace my cables often, and they get gunked up fast. Cable replacements and cleaning the drive-train more often would get me more out of this product.
I'm surprised how well it does for what I do. Again it's not a performance part, but it's stood up to what I've thrown at it.
Submitted by
spaceman2011
a Cross Country Rider
from Maine
Date Reviewed: March 11, 2011
Weaknesses: Weak hanger, incapable of maintaining a tune-up for 24 hours
Bottom Line:
I got this derailleur with the bike at a nation-wide sports store, but within two weeks of having the bike and riding it daily, it wasn't shifting properly, and in first gear it caught on a spoke of the wheel, and snapped the hanger clean off. I sent it back for the replacement as per the warrranty, and this store put another Acera back on. Again, I had problems with shifting, and I got so fed up with the problem, I took it to the store and said I needed it replaced, because I couldn't even make a tune-up last for a day on this derailleur. They claimed they had no other 8-speed derailleurs, and offered a free tune-up and cleaning/waxing of the bike. I brought it back home, the next day shifting problems again. I dealt with this for two years, and two weeks ago, the hanger snapped again after the derailleur caught on the spokes of my bike wheel (In 6th gear this time). In neither instances of the hanger snapping were my spokes damaged, not even paint scratched off. If your a non-serious biker, maybe 5 miles on the weekend, this derailleur will work fine for you, but anything more than that, you will unlikely be satisfied with the quality of the derailleur. I wouldn't recommend any serious biker purchase this product and expect it to perform even basic functions satisfactorily. I have gone through two of these derailleurs now, and both times they had the same issues. I maintain my bike very well, as I ride a minimum of 3 miles daily through every weather and road condition known to mankind, including rain and snow.
Bike Setup: Diamondback Insight 1 700x23c use as road bike
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
molten three
a Cross Country Rider
from Thame
Date Reviewed: July 22, 2009
Strengths: Quick fast shift, was reliable and would avoid the biggest of hits
Weaknesses: Broke very easily, plastic, not very appealing due to easy scratch
Bottom Line:
i would not buy for a cheap reliable great performing rear deraillieur pick a SLX much better, this one broke for me after a year of on off riding but completely gave up in deep riding, and has now snapped and bent the hanger along with a few spokes.
Submitted by
pipexp
a Cross Country Rider
from Temuco, Chile
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2009
Strengths: Shift very well and fast.
Weaknesses: It cage plastic design, heavy.
delicate
Bottom Line:
I got it 2 years ago, and works exactly like when i buy it.
shift fast and precise.
Be careful with this when fall down, because can be damage inside cage and not shows number of rings or shift bad.
Bought my bike stock, the Acera came with it. I bike to commute/workout on road everyday. I ride a basic trail (few short rocky downhills) about 5 times a week. With the everyday abuse, I thought I would be replacing my Acera sooner, but it still works perfectly. I had only tuned it once since I bought it. It has eaten sand, mud, grass, twigs, bumped rocks and curb, and it still works well. For an entry level component, not bad at all.
Submitted by
AA
a Weekend Warrior
from Manila, Philippines
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2008
Strengths: nice design, cool black color & easy to read indicators. Easy to shift
Weaknesses: paint easily scratches, brake lever on right side reaches my 2 outer fingers when hard braking, need to adjust it...
Bottom Line:
It is an afforable component group for a starter bike, which suits my needs. As I gain more experience, will upgrade to 9 speed, possibly with Deore group & Cane Creek brake levers (all black)
Bike Setup: stock 2008 Jamis X trail 3.0 24s disc with Cat Eye Velo 8 computer
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
AA
a Weekend Warrior
from Manila, Philippines
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2008
Strengths: nice design, cool black color & easy to read indicators. Easy to shift
Weaknesses: paint easily scratches, brake lever on right side reaches my 2 outer fingers when hard braking
Bottom Line:
It is an afforable component group for a starter bike, which suits my needs. As I gain more experience, will upgrade to 9 speed, possibly with Deore group & Cane Creek brake levers (all black)
Strengths: The Acera rear shifter on my Norco Bushpilot finally snapped in half, after 8 years of trail/ street/abusive riding. I plan on getting another one and repair the bike. I found it easy to adjust,with seamless shifting if properly done. As I've read, it's not the best for the exreme riders, but for what I do- streets, some trails and occasionally cross country- it worked out pretty well.
Bottom Line:
The bottom line: 8 years of riding everywhere, and a lot of abuse. Pretty good value, I'd say.
Submitted by
Joel C
a Weekend Warrior
from Sydney, NSW, Australia
Date Reviewed: April 7, 2008
Strengths: Bulletproof, strong
Weaknesses: Heavy, front crank rings cannot be tightened nor disassembled
Bottom Line:
My comments are on the front crankset and rear cassette only.
A certain bike shop changed my worn alivio gear for this series a few years back and I didn't think much of it (I wasn't all that fussed about materials and so forth back then). Though I probably paid too much as I actually thought it was better than the original ware.
This is probably because they are made of steel and not aluminium, which explains why they have lasted longer and haven't gotten all bent and worn out like the aluminium ones did. Works well with the original STX equipment.
They've mainly been used for commuting but have held up well to the occasional bashing on kerbs and ramps etc.
The only reason I would replace them is that dirt has gotten between the rings on the front and I cannot actually pull them apart to clean them nor can I tighten them. Oh, and they're heavy.
Giving them a high value rating because they are really cheap for what they do (and how long they last). Otherwise, they are pretty average.
Bike Setup: 98 Giant sedona (the black "anniversary" edition)
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Alfredo Flores
a Cross Country Rider
from Saltillo, Coahuila, MEXICO
Date Reviewed: April 30, 2007
Strengths: Shifts fast, I've used in the past cheapo bikes that I got fed up, then I decided to get a Giant Boulder SE 2007 Model, bought 1 month ago. I've ridden the bike almost 400km to this moment and this rear derailleur works great. You should fine tune as in every bike to get the most out of this component. I have used the bike offroad and have put a decent amount of stress on the bike, but no problems at all.
Weaknesses: None ATM, makes a little noise when using the 34T Mega-Range sprocket though.
Bottom Line:
If you're looking for entry-level performance get these. However, I did at first wanted a Yukon 07, but didn't have the budget, so, you better get a Deore, but if you don't have the budget go for the Acera, much much better the Tourney I used.
Similar Products Used: Shimano Tourney, came in a cheap bike I bought last year, heavy frame.
Bike Setup: Giant Boulder SE 2007: Shimano 7-Speed Mega-Range, Shimano C101 front derailleur, Shimano EF-50 Shifters. I wish I had a 8-speed drivetrain.
