Weaknesses: 4th cog bent out sometime during a ride (only 6mo winter use).
Bottom Line:
My XT cassette has been working really well with the XTR setup. My LBS tried to send it in to Shimano, but Shimano sent it back, said " you got to easy on the shifting." What the ....? That pisses me off. Oh well, I like the new XTR cranks. The cassette is pretty much an expensive paper weight. I guess I will try to bend it back.
Similar Products Used: Always been an XT guy. Maybe I should try Sram?
Bike Setup: SC Blur (it is really nice). I bought it used and it came with mostly XTR.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
patrick
a Cross Country Rider
from Fresno CA
Date Reviewed: February 24, 2004
Strengths: Weight, Shimano product,
Weaknesses: None so far
Bottom Line:
I chose to go with this cogset due to reviews about lighting fast shifting, I was a bit concerned about other reviews I've read saying the product might not be durable, I've had no problems so far. Good product to shed some wieght, durable. I'm 190 and it withstood my first race, no problems shifting, I feel it was the icing on the cake in terms of my shifting/drive train.
This is the best cogset i have had. going against the other reviews, this cogset has great durablility. Shifting is lightning fast with the complete 04 Setup. Nice job shimano but maybe the way people ride the things makes a difference in the durability. I am 130 and I ride relatively light in terms of stlye. Or they could have consistency problems.
Strengths: Great shifting performance, light weight.
Weaknesses: The titanium cogs bend easily, high cost.
Bottom Line:
Stick with steel cogs, titanium is too soft to withstand heavy use. Having your chain skipping across gears gets annoying as h*** on a long climb. So unless you're sponsored and can get a new cassette given to you every other week the XT cassette is a much better value. It's one third the price and lasts forever.
Submitted by
KelCov
a Cross Country Rider
from NYC
Date Reviewed: August 3, 2003
Strengths: Looks good and love the gearin' on that Beatch.
Weaknesses: Hard to clean with all those milk and cranys to dig into.
Bottom Line:
I refused to buy the Ti edition because I ride pretty hard and I not much of a weight weenie'. Some parts you should try to shave off some weight, Cogs are not one of them.
Submitted by
Buff
a Cross Country Rider
from Elkridge, MD
Date Reviewed: July 28, 2003
Strengths: Light, Looked really cool when it came out in 1996, Aluminum lockring fits other shimano cassettes
Weaknesses: Titanium rings bend so you can't even hand cassette down to your beater bike
Bottom Line:
Rode cassette for 6 months on hardtail and bent the ti-cogs (the 4th biggest cog got on my nerves the most--nothing worse than a ghost shifting power gear). I used to bend them back after every ride by prying them over with a cone wrench (cone wrench just skinny enough to get between cogs). Replaced with XTR-8 steel and XT-8 and no bending. Tried another new one on a 4" rear travel bike thinking I wouldn't torque it so hard. I was right, I't didn't bend for a year. Now it's impossible to find any XT-8 that aren't 11-28, so if you want 11-30 or 11-32 in 8sp then jump on SRAM 5.0 if Nashbar's still got em (a bit heavier but who cares when you're a retro grouch who was only crazy enough to shell out for XTR group once in a lifetime). Seems to me Shimano could avoid the ti cog bending if the aluminum spider had 5 arms instead of 4--do the XTR-9 have 5 arm spiders?
Similar Products Used: XT-8, XTR-8 Steel, SRAM 5.0
Bike Setup: 94 S Works, 00 Z4 Air, 1996 XTR
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Fatman
a Cross Country Rider
from Feldafing
Date Reviewed: June 30, 2003
Strengths: Lite, reliable smooth shifting, holds out
Weaknesses: expensive, but worth the extra money, and some of it is titanium, so the price seems justified.
Bottom Line:
Very good cassette. I am 260 lbs, at times, and when I get going, there should be much strain on the drivetrain. The only thing I do for maintainance is to change the chain frequently (2 times a year), and I have used only Shimano's HG90 and the Rohloff STL 99 eight (aaahhhh!!, what a chain). I really can't imagine how you can really bend or brake this thing. But I am used to keep strict shifting discipline, i.e. I never shift under heavy torque and I don't care for oblique chain lines. I am very satified with this product.
Similar Products Used: XTR steel eight, XT eight, LX eight
Bike Setup: Trek 9900 Pro Issue 1998, full XTR 98 eight ...
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Eric
a Cross Country Rider
from Michigan
Date Reviewed: February 12, 2003
Strengths: Light, crisp shifting, fairly easy to clean
Weaknesses: Price
Bottom Line:
Very happy with the 12-34 cassette and have had 0 problems. I ride about 1300 trail miles a year (wish it were more) so I think I put it to good use. The design allows for easy cleaning and maintenance which I performed every couple rides (less since I started using ICE Wax).
After the XTR started showing some wear, I a SRAM 9.0 cassette to save about $25. I ended up bending the 34 cog on the SRAM which is what people complain about the XTR here on the board. Well, since I don't want to stop riding I purchased another XTR cassette.
Bottom line, if you have the bucks, want crisp shifting, performe routine maintenance, and don't beat on your bike, then buy the XTR. Otherwise I would suggest going with the XT since it holds up and shifts reliably.
Bike Setup: Cannondale Jekyll, Mavic/King, Raceface ISIS Next LP, XTR, Hayes Hyd.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
rafi julius
a Cross Country Rider
from JERUSALEM
Date Reviewed: February 5, 2003
Strengths: this review is for the xtr 8 ti 11 - 30 cassette: amazing cassette: shifts great,very light, and after 1 year of abuse (12K ofroad) looks like new. theath selection of 11-30 is the best for a reasonblly strong xc rider.
Weaknesses: i bought new in the box from a cyclist that did'nt know what he was selling and got it real cheap. in shop its rather expensive.
Bottom Line:
probablly the best 8 speed cassette (i find 12-32 cassette rather sealy gears selection)
Bike Setup: trek stp xt\xtr 8 speed , avid sd ultimate, crossmax notubes converted, mars elite
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Mike B.
a Weekend Warrior
from L.A. Cal.
Date Reviewed: January 20, 2003
Strengths: excellent ratios; seems very strong
Weaknesses: none yet
Bottom Line:
This is for the 8-speed model. As far as I know, this set is all stainless steel ( it was advertised that way ). It was on close-out at Jenson so I figured is was an older unit. Anyway, in the brief time I've used it, it has performed flawlessly. I probably could use a 34-tooth low gear, but otherwise, the ratios are spot-on. And the shifting is superb ( unless I go through water ). The cassette feels very strong and solid, and I like the "spider" type of frame to hold the rings. I have had it through horrible mud, water, up and down steep hills, and nothing has tripped it up. I only hope that it is NOT titanium ( it felt pretty heavy ) because I'm pretty hard on my gear.
Submitted by
Nick Ong
a Cross Country Rider
from Melawati, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Date Reviewed: January 18, 2003
Strengths: Light, 9-speed
Weaknesses: Ti 8th and 9th cogs too delicate....
Bottom Line:
i decided to join the 9-speed masses last year. after years of trouble free rides with my 8speed xtr cogs, the 9speed 2002 xtr's looked like a good choice. big mistake! the 8th and 9th rings bent outwards after 6 months of riding (bent while shifting, climbing out of the saddle). my LBS changed the whole set for a 2003 (XTR again) set and within 2 rides, the same thing happened! do people actually race with this untested fragile equipment? go for xt or sram.. they're tougher.
Submitted by
Michael
a Cross Country Rider
from Calabasas, CA
Date Reviewed: November 23, 2002
Strengths: Light Weight, Precise Shifting
Weaknesses: Cost, and durability
Bottom Line:
My 8 (12/32) speed has performed well throught the years, but the thin titanium teeth will eventually bend. I've replaced my recently after three years of use. Overall a very good cogset the shifts perfectly. Just expect to replace it every couple of years of hard riding.
I really liked this cassette at first as it shifted very smooth and was light. During a long practice ride, my bike wouldn't stay in gear no matter what. When tuning the barrel adjuster did nothing, I checked my cassette only to see that the teeth on the third largest ring were bent. Three teeth were bent inward, two teeth were bent outward. This stunk because now, I couldn't use the second or fourth rings either. Bottom line is that I went back to my XT cassette as it NEVER gave me any trouble. This is really unacceptable when you consider how much this thing costs. Do yourself a favor and use the XT or SRAM cassette.
Submitted by
Eric
a Weekend Warrior
from Modesto, Ca
Date Reviewed: June 28, 2002
Strengths: lightweight
Weaknesses: WEAK, especially the ti cogs!
Bottom Line:
Despite everyones review of the ti cog breaking on the M-952, I tried it anyways. The first day I rode on it on flat terrain, I bent a ti cog, the 4th one from the granny gear. I was disappointed, but I read everyones reviews and I still bought it so it was my fault. Don't waste your money on this crappy cassette! Go with the XT if you want a light weight cassette and it's cheaper too. If you're strapped for cash, get the Sram 5.0. For the money you can't beat the 5.0s!!!
