Submitted by
justjoshnya
a Cross Country Rider
from Lake Ozark, Missouri Date Reviewed: October 9, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Four Winns, Lake of the Ozarks State Park
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$110.00
Purchased At:
Oz CYcles
Strengths:
Best Rear Derailleur I've used. Fast shifts, butter smooth shifts. Light, strong. Sexy. Low Profile for less snags
Weaknesses:
Finiky setup. But thats the only price you pay for the best rear der on the market
Similar Products Used:
Sram x7,8,9, and xo. Older style Deore, LX,XT and XTR.
Bike Setup:
Custom built 08 Trek Fuel EX8 with full XT drivetrain and shifters.
Bottom Line:
XT stands for eXtra Tough. The second ride with this der and I got a 2" stick stuck between my chain and cassette, and the derailleur lived!!! I couldn't believe it. I am a professional bike mechanic and as you can see above I have worked on and ridden every kind of drivetrain. Paired with a full XT drivetrain, this is THE BEST REAR DERAILLEUR I'VE USED. Setup must be precise, no margin for error on limit screws or cable tension. So if you do not know how to adjust deraillers and don't have a desire to learn, this is not the derailleur for you.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
outside!
a Cross Country Rider
from San Diego, CA, USA Date Reviewed: August 14, 2008
Favorite Trail:
singletrack
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$80.00
Purchased At:
Jenson USA
Strengths:
Light, strong, low profile, doesn't flop around
Weaknesses:
non yet
Similar Products Used:
2007 XT Rapid Rise (hated it)
Bike Setup:
2006 Ellsworth Epiphany with Shimano SL-BS77 Bar End Shifters and Paul Thumbies
Bottom Line:
Great deraileur! The lack of the B-Pivot means it doesn't flop around and hit the chainstay. It only needs a short, almost straight lenght of cable housing from the seatstay instead of that long loop of previous derailleurs for less cable drag. Paired with the SL-BS77 9 speed bar end shifters mounted on Paul Thumbies means I have perfect shifts everytime. I can feel what gear I'm in with my thumb and shift the whole cogset from end to end in either direction with the flick of the thumb. I've been riding 20 years and this is the best derailleur I have ever used. Shimano should just discontinue the old style. I wish I could pick Barker Chile from Hatch for the flaming chiles below.
Chili = meat stew, Chile = tasty pepper from a plant!
$ 110.00
Overall Rating:
