Nothing better than the equivalent shimano shifter.

Racheting fails. This one failed after about 3 months. X5 on another bike of mine failed too. Never had this problem with shimano shifters. Sometimes the pawls would gum up years-old ones after months of non-use, but they could always be brought back. In this case, the internals have popped loose and fixing it is like trying to fix a swiss watch.

Not worth it. Old SRAM problems of reliability and inferior quality. Some of their stuff is great and has made huge strides, but these aren't up to the level of their derailleurs currently.

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All

Worked great for 1st 7 months on my new Specialized Epic. Quick, snappy shifts.

Kablooey! The ratcheting stopped working on the rear. LBS replaced under warranty. 2 weeks later, same failure.

Don't know if I'll bother with a 7 again, even under warranty. Never had a single problem in 10 years with my Shimanos on the old epic.

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Shimano

Nice lookin, shifts very smooth, good positioning

No indicator (but I am starting to think that it is a good thing)

Works very nicely under different circumstances, positioning is very good and lengths of levers is just right. My model doesn't have indicator which at first seemed bit strange ... after few miles I realised that I do not need to know which speed it is, I am shifting regarding how my legs feel (which is right way to do it) not because my indicator shows some number and I think I would need to run on different number here.
So it is a good thing, makes you realise that shifting is not about theory but about what you can handle and which speed feels best at that part of trail

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Shimano acer, alivio

Quick possitive changes, good lever position. Easy removal from bars

After six months of frequent use, the lever does not return when pushing gear changes leaving you to manually return the lever to make another change. Completely dissassembled & cleaned, but no better. Mate with same shifters had same problem in just a few weeks. The problem means missed gears & loss of flow, no good when racing.
No crfashes & well maintained!

Do not buy. Mine came on the bike so no choice really, but can't change for Shimano without changing rear mech due to SRAM 1:1 ratio (Shimano 2:1)

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Shimano Deore LX combined brake/shifter. 5 years on Cannondale Rush without any problems although heavily worn & very slack.

Great accurate and fast shifting

Appalling reliability of new shifters

The old X7 shifters were reliable and lasted years, as in the above picture, the new X7 shifters without the numbers shift as well as the old ones. Don't get me wrong the way the shifter connects to the bar is more convenient, and I don't miss the numbers, you're either in the right gear, or you aren't! I can see the cost of production went up as the shifter looks more expensively made inside. However someone forgot to actually test these in the field adequately. Same piss-weak engineering as their Elixir brake line.

What happens is the up the up-shift paddle on these newer X7s goes outta whack and you end up with an unusable shifter that you have to throw away, mine lasted 4 months. What's worse is the new shifter is like a cheap Chinese fake Swiss watch inside and impossible to fix, whereas the old ones were much simpler, worked more reliably and were most likely cheap to manufacture!

3 out of five. 2 for new shifter, 5 for old shifter.

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older X7, Shimano Deore, Shimano Alivio

I'm still thinking...

Levers, no indicator

I put the bike together (new) for a friend. I hate the shifters. There is no indicator to show what gear you are in. I thought Shimano was retarded for not having numbers on their indicator, but no indicator at all is obviously much worse. I have no idea why anyone would buy shifters with no indicator.

Also, the thumb lever you use to shift the crank to the next highest ring has a flimsy return spring. You push it with your thumb, everything shifts ok, but the lever stays put. you have to move it BACK with your thumb after shifting before you can shift again. Maybe a defect?

This is my first SRAM drivetrain experience. I'm not impressed. Shimano's department store bike shifters are far superior.

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Various Shimanos

None I can think off.

These came with my new bike and are unusable. The levers overlap, with the upper lever preventing access to the lower. This makes changing gear a time consuming, hit or miss affair. It's not quite essential actually to look for the lever to push, but pretty close. How did this product ever get past the first mock-up?

One to avoid. I'll be fitting the Shimano SLX/Shadow set from my old bike asap

(BTW price is for the whole bike!)

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Various Shimano levers (Deore, Alivio, SLX etc)

Quick shifting and work smoothly

It's a real pain when you have to take them apart to put a cable in and then you can not line up the gear indicator or even get that to work at all.

Worth it if you want to upgrade from x5 other than that, just go with x9 or higher.

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Sram x5 and all Shimano stuff

1:1 actuation ratio, cool looking silver and classy metal push lever.

Purchased in May broke in Oct. Tore apart and is repairable!

Junk do not buy! Sram is awesome but bump up x9 or higher the x7 will bust in mid-use leaving you with a single speed rig. Although I love the smoothness of Sram I've owned some low end shimano shifters that have lasted for up to 5 years! 6 months for the life of a shifter is just plain unacceptable.

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All Shimano crap

simple, neat, quick-solid action

apparently they aren't bullet proof

There are some interesting comments on this product. Mine came fitted to an X9 rear and Deore front via Jagwire Felt cables. Both front and rear work flawlessly. Though I haven't actually run them into anything, they definitely haven't broken and show no signs of weakness. On inspection I found the access screw that allows you to spray lube the internals without pulling it apart-very thoughtful. Though I have used all other types of gear selection, I did not experience more than a mild, temporary confusion at this version, and find it comfortable. If your running into stuff and breaking these, you should try opening your eyes, or expensive carbon fibre cased units.

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various basic sets