Shimano's Saint group defines super heavy-duty, and the rear derailleur is no exception. It's been designed from the ground-up to stand up to the abuse dished out by today's more aggressive riders.
Submitted by
mike_d_1583
a Weekend Warrior
from Cincinnati, OH Date Reviewed: January 8, 2009
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$110.00
Purchased At:
Universal Cycles
Strengths:
Super strong. Shifts pretty well. Through axle is way stronger than a hanger.
Weaknesses:
Just a tad on the heavy side. You need a Saint hub also which is massive.
Similar Products Used:
Deore LX
Bike Setup:
2004 Specialized Rockhopper
Bottom Line:
After snapping a couple other derailleurs I decided to get this. I could tell it was strong within the first five minutes of riding. It's stiff as hell when you curb hop or log hop, where others would bang around and crap. Seems like it will last a few years.
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Submitted by
mini_death
a Downhiller
from England Date Reviewed: January 4, 2009
Favorite Trail:
Somewhere where the grass is green and the girls are pretty.
Duration Product Used:
More than 3 years
Purchased At:
Buckingham Bikes
Strengths:
Utterly indestructible. It was on my 4X/DJ bike before it was stolen from me and it had the battle scars to prove it. Everything took a knock at one point or another and it still held together. Bit of a faf to set up, but nothing that bad.
Shifted as well as an LX, better than an X.7, not quite an XT or a X.9
Weaknesses:
Heavy, I knew that it was strapped to my rear wheel. Also used to knock against my chain stays on really uneven ground. (On a hardtail)
Similar Products Used:
Every top end mech made by Shimano and SRAM. (XTR, XT, LX, Deore, X.0, X.9, X.7.)
Bike Setup:
Orange Ms Isle frame, Zocchi DJ 1, Atom Lab Trailpmip (lolpmip) DHRs laced to saint hubs, saint brakes (was about to ditch the saint hubs and brakes), old saint cranks, DMR wingbars, XT shifter pod, DMR V12 Mags.
Bottom Line:
Solid, the thing would not break on me, and we had a lot of tumbles on flinty hardpack to solid concrete. (Bent my bloody Cro-Mo bars) Getting the new saint rear mech to put on my lightweight SS, so expect a review on how that one holds up.
Great value, due to not needing replacements, the 10mm axle was a good idea, but I think I'll stick to hangers.
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Submitted by
Enosz
a Cross Country Rider
from Hungary Date Reviewed: April 2, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Urban trooper
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
www.nella.hu
Strengths:
Robust, indestructible. Shifts like a dream even if shifting under load. Precise and just keeps being tuned. YOu set it once it will hold onto it. Before I had to do this finetuning routine at the start of each season. This rocks.
Weaknesses:
None so far.
Similar Products Used:
XTR, XT, Deore
Bike Setup:
Trek 9.8, Mavic 729disc wheels, XTR levers and discs, Saint derailleurs.
Bottom Line:
Through the path of Shimano derailleurs this was the first time when I felt absolute peace in me after have it installed and tuned. No noise if set properly. Takes a bit time of finetuning, but that is the case with any positioned derailleur. If you want something that lasts and takes the blasts, this one is for you. I think the price is reasonable as well.
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Submitted by
Kyle
a Racer
from Utard, UT, USA Date Reviewed: July 16, 2007
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$30.00
Purchased At:
Jenson USA
Strengths:
Strong! Looks tough, beefy. Takes the hits. Cheap
Weaknesses:
Doesn't shift great, Not great in mud. Incredibly hard to set up. Rapid Rise
Similar Products Used:
XT, XTR, Deore. Unfortunately no SRAM...
Bike Setup:
Giant Trance w/ full Saint, fox 36
Bottom Line:
This thing is tough, but has a couple weaknesses. It is great for urban stuff coz you can land on it and it won't break, or hit it from the side and it won't bend. It is hard to get set up right coz it has a breakaway feature that keeps it from bending. Plus it's rapidrise, which I just don't like. I was riding in the mud and because there is nothing to stop the derailleur body to stop from pivoting back it would pivot back and then the lower pulley would pivot above the upper pulley and get jammed in the cassette, causing the whole thing to tear up the derailleur hanger. I never thought I'd need to replace that with a Saint derailleur. I like it coz it's tough for urban stuff, and holds up well. Just don't ride in too much mud.
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Submitted by
luke
a
from Detroit, MI, US Date Reviewed: May 2, 2007
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$95.00
Purchased At:
local shop
Strengths:
Sturdy. Takes a hit. Fashionable.
Weaknesses:
Never shifted well AT ALL. Weak, slugish shifting from the outset. Frequent ghost shifting. HEAVY.
Bike Setup:
Six inch trail bike, slack angles, made for fun times.
Bottom Line:
I had a terrible time with this product. It did not appear to be a lemon -- it just never worked well. Having changed to a Sram x7 rear derailer my bike has come alive. What a relief and a joy to take that anchor off my bike. Switching to the x7 (which cost 1/3 the saint) has been the second best improvement to my bike (behind switching to UST Kenda Nevegal tires).
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Submitted by
Justin Mcular
a Downhiller
from South Lake Tahoe Date Reviewed: February 22, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Northstar Resort
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$36.00
Purchased At:
bike shop
Strengths:
good shifting
Weaknesses:
cage bends easily. not many ajustment features. im not a shimano fan....go sram
Similar Products Used:
sram xo.
Bike Setup:
specialized demo 8
Bottom Line:
get sram
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Brandon
a Downhiller
from Iowa City Date Reviewed: February 14, 2007
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$30.00
Purchased At:
Scheel's all sports
Strengths:
I have bashed it and thought it would be destroyed, but it comes back for more. Shifts precisely and smooth. Being from this area, it's kind of a freak. Oh, I obtained it for $30 at my bike shop
Weaknesses:
I can't carry a torque wrench with me everywhere. Other than that, I would put one of these on my road bike.
Similar Products Used:
LX,XTR
Bike Setup:
P2, all mountain, freeride thingy. SUN Single/Double Track, TruVativ Crank, Race Face FR bb, Saint brakes, Shimano Drive train, Man. Stance flow w/20mil.
Bottom Line:
Don't be put off by someone else saying, oh man it sucks because its a pain in the butt to take off your rear wheel and all that other stuff. The rapid rise takes a few rides to get used to, too. As long as you are going to use this derailure for what it is intended, it is a great buy and addition to a gnarly rig. Spend the money on it because Shimano and Shandro and all the others that developed this gear did it right. It loves abuse.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Travis von Staden
a Weekend Warrior
from Lincolnt, NC, USA Date Reviewed: January 17, 2007
Favorite Trail:
peewee's mtb park
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$49.00
Purchased At:
www.beyondbikes.com
Strengths:
durability, and tuning, as well as asthetics and precision
Weaknesses:
none yet so far
Similar Products Used:
shimano xt
Bike Setup:
kona 06 scrap, w/syncros dh hubs and rims, sram cassette, sram chain, race face 36 th chainring, mrp system 2, thomson seatpost, titec ithycas seat, hayes hfx-9 8 front, hayes sole 6 rear, shimano saint shifter and derailer, oury grips
Bottom Line:
great derailer, went through alivio and xt before i went with the saint medium cage. Diffuculty finding the right hub but shifting is precise and quick. The durability is outstanding. Slid off a 3 inch skinnny and grinded the rear derailer. It stood up no problems and no adjustments afterwards
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Submitted by
James
a Downhiller
from Victoria, BC, Canada Date Reviewed: January 3, 2007
Favorite Trail:
2 Shieks
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Purchased At:
Mountain City Cycle, Courtenay BC
Strengths:
Super strong, easy to set up once you figure it out.
Weaknesses:
Heavy.
Similar Products Used:
Shimano XT, Shimano LX
Bike Setup:
2004 Devinci 8-Flat-8
Bottom Line:
The bottom line is that yes, this derailleur costs more than an XT or a LX new, BUT it will save you HUGE money if you have had problems breaking standard mountain bike derailleurs. I broke three XT derailleurs during the course of one year and decided that I needed a change. I'm not a graceful rider, I mow stuff down and crash a lot, so I figured I'd try Shimano's Saint because it was reowned for it's toughness. I have not been disappointed. My first Saint has lasted through numerous direct hits, sometimes with my full body weight landing on top of it (ie, slipping the rear wheel off of a skinny directly onto the derailleur). I replaced it with another Saint after about two years, and I look forward to abusing the new one. The shifting may not be as "crisp" as other high end shifters (SRAM X-0), but that's not nearly as important to me as reliability/durability - what good is crisp shifting if you're breaking a derailleur every four months? If you don't mind the weight and ride hard and often, this is the derailleur for you.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Mike Notion
a Downhiller
from UK Date Reviewed: October 6, 2006
NOTHING, well, for anyone who loved SRAM, you can say goodbye to them... Shimano left them, and their rediculously expensive X.0 mech eating thier dust.
Similar Products Used:
LOADS
Bottom Line:
Gash's in the metal, Scraps, Rocks, nuclear missile hits... this mech has eaten up everything... and still continues to shift as smooth as a hot knife through butter, and as crisp as a pack of Walkers. Really does puzzle me as to how shimano did it... I have the 10mm axle version. I don't use Saint Hubs... Modified hub axle... If you can get anywhere near a workshop, or someone who works in one. Grab a Solid bit of Stainless Steel rod, 10mm diameter, Weld some kind of bolt on one end, and create a thread on the other, long enough to go through and into the Saint's. Get someone who knows thier stuff on threading to get a correct thread on the end. And just like magic........ It is worth it, good luck breaking this thing.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Matt Y
a Downhiller
from Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada Date Reviewed: March 12, 2006
Favorite Trail:
up north
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Purchased At:
came on bike, Sports Wise
Strengths:
everything, this is the beefiest hunk of steel ive ever seen on a bike, and performs flawlessly, despite the major beatings it has taken from rocks, trees, etc.
Weaknesses:
NOTHING
Similar Products Used:
shimano deore, other garbage
Bike Setup:
2004 Norco Shore, saint hub and rotor
Bottom Line:
This deraileur is worth the extra moolah, and will provide you with assurance that you will make it home, as long as the rest of your bike will stand it. For the idiot that blamed the saint for him having a plastic axle, hes a retard. I recommend all my friends buy this deraileur,. as they have each gone through a couple dearailleurs as well as hangers. Congrats to the guys who make this thing.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
vic pasieka
a Downhiller
from canada Date Reviewed: February 15, 2006
Favorite Trail:
bend it
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
rev cycle
Strengths:
strong... asome...fast shifting...
Weaknesses:
none yet
Similar Products Used:
sram x.0
Bike Setup:
foes,the fly with all the goods
Bottom Line:
i banged the crap ou of this thing and nothing has happend..there 2 cm deep gouges in the meatl and it still runs fine...this thing wrocks
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Tyler Nicol
a
from St. Catharines Date Reviewed: November 22, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Henly Trails
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
A bike show
Strengths:
Nice Short cage, reduced chain smack on chainstay, sick mounting system which save me $ on hangars. Pretty hard to bend the cage. Shifts quickly but not smoothly.
Weaknesses:
I got the derailler on a brand new 4hun took one extremely small fall on it and the axle which the one of the gears runs on (made of plastic) shattered and my chain snapped. I had to take the derailler apart and take off the gear open up the gear take out the shattered axle and put one in from an old deore that i had which was made of metal, still works well and suprisingly the derailler didn't bend at all but still a stupid idea to have plastic little axles on a dearailler that is supposed to be bombproof.
Similar Products Used:
Deore (about 5 cause they all snapped)
Bike Setup:
4hun stock aline stock
Bottom Line:
Most deraillers would have probably snapped the hangar off the bike if this had happened but because of the new mounting system i dont even have to worry about hangars, which on its own makes this a sick derailler.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
darren winthrop
a Downhiller
from kamloops, bc Date Reviewed: October 24, 2004
Favorite Trail:
skinny butt
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$110.00
Purchased At:
john henry
Strengths:
i was hesitant to buy one of these because i didnt see the need for it. after seeing one on my friends new switch pro and then trying it out i realized that it really did have a lot of nice features. i like the way it bolts to the axle instead of the hanger and the saint axle is very beefy. shifts decent for me, im not really sure why so many people are saying it doesnt shift well? maybe they have a long cage version? no complaints with the short cage i have. it shifts pretty fast compared to the long cage lx that came with my bike. i also like the rapid rise because it shifts into low gear better. if you only do dh maybe you dont care about this, but for someone who does fr this can be very nice when you need to suddenly shift down on the middle of a skinny ladder or hill. my local trails have some chutes where i go down and back up very quickly and i find that the rapid rise helps a lot compared to my old xt rear changer.
Weaknesses:
expensive, heavy.
Similar Products Used:
lx, xt.
Bike Setup:
2003 rocky mountain flow with 2001 marz junior t.
Bottom Line:
i would recomend this to anyone who busts their rear hangers a lot or anyone looking to have a really nice rear changer and dosen't care how much it's going ot cost. i think it will outlast the average xt or lx anyway.
and you don't need the saint hubs to make this work like everyone says. i only have the rear d and my old lx shifter. no other shimano on my bike. hadley and formula both make hubs that have a 10 mm thru axle. soon saint will have a 12 mm axle availabe too from what i hear so there will be no more excuses that you have to run full saint anymore.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Guy
a Downhiller
from Canada Date Reviewed: October 21, 2004
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$100.00
Purchased At:
Bike shop
Strengths:
Good Shifting, super strong
Weaknesses:
Always hits my chainstay, hard to adjust
Similar Products Used:
lx
Bike Setup:
2004 torrent far from stock
Bottom Line:
good shifting and that is what you want in a rear derailleur. It makes a really loud bang when it hits the chainstays which is kind of annoying and it seems to do it quite frequently. I wrapped the chainstay in hockey tape and that worked to dull the sound. There is giant dents where it hits the chainstay but it still works good as new. I find if you just keep it clean and lubed it shifts great all the time.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Kyle Schiavone
a Downhiller
from Milverton,Ontario,Canada Date Reviewed: September 25, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Autobond, Blue Mountain
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
came with bike at blue mountain
Strengths:
strongest derailler, perfect shifting, easy to set up!!
Weaknesses:
nothing, the deraillers the best shimano ever made for bikes.
Similar Products Used:
xtr,lx
Bike Setup:
saint,Lx,hayes,e13,alexrims,blue grove tires,fsa,truvativ,axiom
Bottom Line:
this derailler is the best derailler theres no dout about it. like, it was smashed 15 times onto a bolder intil it broke, and i know for a fact that their isnt a better derailler right now. for the people that think it has rough shifting i have no clue where you guys are coming for, maybe ur bike is in rough shape..
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Matt
a Weekend Warrior
from North Vancouver, B.C , Canada Date Reviewed: September 24, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Oil Can
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$200.00
Purchased At:
john henry bike shop
Strengths:
Very strong and it never hits your chainstay. It shifts well but it's main strengths is it's ability to not hit your chainstay.
Weaknesses:
Expensive
Bike Setup:
On Norco VPS Fuse
Bottom Line:
Get it if you have the money, if not, get something close to it because it is awsome!!!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Sean S.
a Weekend Warrior
from Saskatoon, SK, Canada Date Reviewed: August 31, 2004
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
Very Strong and quiet when riding over bumpy sections
Weaknesses:
Poor shifting and adjustability
Similar Products Used:
XTR,XT,LX all shifted better:( (all high normal)
Bike Setup:
04' Norco Torrent, Z150 FR, XT/Saint.
Bottom Line:
I was really dissapointed with the overall performance of the rd. Adjustability was very poor too, you are forced to use the shifter to do the adjusting whereas on normal rd's you can use the barrel adjuster. Good for someone who has a history of breaking rd's and hangers.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Ernst Yang
a Downhiller
from HKSAR/PRC Date Reviewed: June 9, 2004
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$80.00
Purchased At:
WING'S BIKES
Strengths:
THAT'S THE STRENGTH...ITS REVOLUTIONERY!! AND THE LOOKS!! ROUGH SHIFTING...MAY BE...IT'S BETTER TO ADJUST THE BB AND THE CRANKS TO ADAPT TO IT...
Weaknesses:
NO 12mm VERSION..I GOT TO ASK A LOACL WORKSHOP TO MAKE THE HOLE BIGGER FOR MY 12mmTHRU AXLE HUB...
Similar Products Used:
NO SIMILAR ONES..ITS DESIGNED FOR FR/DH
Bike Setup:
MOAB-BOMB(CUSTOM-10" TRAVEL), 888R, Hussefelt cranks, Da-bomb guide, and of coz siant!!!
Bottom Line:
recommended for any dh/freerider, no longer have to worry about the derailler hanger....!!! spent a bit more to save your dollars used to buy deraillers!!! Its incredible once setup properly..;) TRY IT OUT!!!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Michael
a Downhiller
from Reno, NV Date Reviewed: February 24, 2004
Favorite Trail:
anything going down
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$106.00
Purchased At:
cambriabike.com
Strengths:
this thing is the ultimate in strength. once you see it, you'll know what I am talking about. The mounting to the axel is a great idea. I really like how it mounts directly to the axel. It has some other really sweet features too. They say it is unbreakable. I have yet to put that theory to the test, so we'll see.
Weaknesses:
rough shifting. can't quite get it to shift as smooth as shimano stuff usually does. most likey due to the fact it is on a DH bike. a bit more difficult to set up. Plus if you get the derailleur you need the hubs which in turn forces you to get the brakes.
Similar Products Used:
XT, LX and Deore derailleurs.
Bike Setup:
2002 Rocky Mountain RM9 with Mavic D321 rims, panaracer FR 2.4 tires, saint hubs brakes and derailleur, ird black lightning chain and cassette, mr dirt chain guide, XT levers and shifter, race face cranks bottom bracket handlebars and seatpost, azonic seat and pedals and a marzocchi super t pro up front.
Bottom Line:
This is a thing of beauty. Out of all the saint stuff, the R.D. is the most noticeably beefed up. It's huge and the rear axel mount is sweet. All the force of a direct hit on it is transfered to the hub and axel which leaves everthing intact and working great. It has a bump stop feature that allows it to never come into contact with the rear swingarm on big drops and it is adjustable as well. I can't quite get it to shift like I want though. My buddies at my local bike shop spent a good amount of time working on it after I did, with the same result. It shifts but not all that smoothly. It does shift pretty good for a DH bike though. Another feature is how derailleur movement never pulls on the cable. The cable sits stationary and the body of the derailleur is the only thing that moves. The cable never experinces unecessary tension. Sweet huh? I told you it was. The rough shifting is worth the added bonuses of everything else. It is on a DH bike anyway. How mch shifting am I going to be doing? If you can afford to get all the saint stuff at once, DO IT! You won't regret it at all. I sure don't.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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