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XX1 knocking/clunking

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#22 ·
sfmoto39 said:
The pink stuff is lock tight. That's the cap you will pulling off with the T55 torque socket. If you tighten that cap down to much it puts more drag on the clutch action.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your help. I see the little plastic cap comes off to expose the T55 screw on cap. How did you know when to stop tightening it (when the clutch felt resistance)? Mine already has a couple threads exposed when new, so I guess a torque is specified or some kind of resistance setting.
 
#24 ·
So I did it, and took some pictures too.

I was kinda lazy (needed to do this quick) to remove the chain and the derailleur and then put it back and recalibrate it etc., was quicker to just do it on the bike, although putting the spring back and preloading it with one rotation was quite an exercise (in fact probably the hardest bike mechanic operation I've done by far). (I did separate the derailleur from the bike, but did not separate it from the wire.)

At first I just undid the T55 torx, tilted the bike and drowned the clutch in WD40, but that did not help. The WD40 has made into the roller bearing (as I found when I opened it), so my hunch is that it's not the roller bearing that was the problem, but something external to it (but internal to the derailleur clutch joint).

So I greased everything, cycled the cage by hand properly, and then tightened the T55 to a level where no chain slap is possible, yet the derailleur cage moves smoothly.

I CAN NOT BELIEVE the difference this has made:
1. on the ease and precision of the shifting,
2. on the increased smoothness of the rear suspension.

Of course the bad sound went away too, but the bad sound was nothing compared to the other 2 points.

Should I get a new XX1 rear derailleur in the future, you know what's the first thing I'm doing with it, clacking or not.

Enough said.

 
#25 ·
I called SRAM because I'm having the same issue with my XX1 derailleur on a new Blur TRc that I just built up. Basically, the rep said that the knocking should get better once I break in the derailleur, but that it is also "a function of the Type 2 derailleur."

Both of these statements seem odd since some people aren't having this issue at all and some people are having this issue after the derailleur has been ridden some. Some of the problems could be from user error I guess or based on suspension design. Nonetheless, it would be nice if this fancy system didn't have this issue.

I haven't ridden the bike yet, so my hope is that the knocking sound either won't be noticeable or will go away on trails. If not, I'll try adding a couple of links (even though I'm fairly certain the chain is properly sized). If that doesn't work I'll see if SRAM can warranty it or else open up the derailleur...not motivated enough yet to open up a brand new derailleur.
 
#26 ·
LowLow said:
...Basically, the rep said that the knocking should get better once I break in the derailleur, but that it is also "a function of the Type 2 derailleur."...
Click to expand...
My experience is that it only gets worse with time, plus the extra strain put on the derailleur due to the clutch not working smoothly actually wears the derailleur much faster. Mine started to squeak also on other places than the clutch joint, due to the extreme force the jammed clutch was exerting on it during rear suspension flexing.

It's also possible that all you need to do is to rotate the T55 (freely accessible under a non-glued removable plastic cover; but itself glued with a lock-tite) just a few degrees CCW, to make the clutch work with less resistance, as I reckon mine was way overtightened, and that may have been the cause of it all. If you remove the T55, you can also put some oil in, without removing the derailleur from the bike, or separating the cage at all. Whether this voids the warranty is another matter entirely.

Good luck.
 
#28 ·
I greased mine and so much better. Hopefully it will stay that way. Really disappointed in SRAM. I called to get the problem fixed after a couple of rides and they said take it to a dealer. I tried to buy the kit from my dealer, but they could not get it for 30 days so I bought it online. I did not feel right taking it to the dealer to get a warranty when Sram could have sent me the part.
 
#29 ·
i got mine all apart, greased everything but how do you retension the spring? I tried to hold it all together but the spring shot out and now im not sure what to do.
 
#30 · (Edited)
Mr. Lynch said:
i got mine all apart, greased everything but how do you retension the spring? I tried to hold it all together but the spring shot out and now im not sure what to do.
Click to expand...
When I did the work on mine I left it on the bike.

Pull derailleur cage down and lock with pin.
Remove wheel.
Remove stop bolt on derailleur cage.(cylindrical bolt with allen head to let jockey unwind)
Release cage and let unwind (be careful under pressure/ left chain on)
Remove cap and T55 bolt.
Remove cage bolt by using 4mm allen one on cage side and one on clutch side.
Hang cage with chain on wire from chain stay to keep out of way (don't change rotation)
Remove cage plate, spring, clutch clean and grease.
Install clutch, spring, cage plate and then cage from the wire, install bolt and tighten.
Wind clutch up and lock with pin and install lock bolt (lock pin holds cage)
Unlock cage.
Install T55 and set tension by moving the cage to feel resistance.
Put cap back on.
Install wheel and adjust derailleur.
 
#31 ·
The part I dont quite get is
"Wind clutch up and lock with pin and install lock bolt"

Is this what tightens the spring? Right now I have it all back together without the T55 in and the cage just swings around loose with no tension at all.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Mr. Lynch said:
The part I dont quite get is
"Wind clutch up and lock with pin and install lock bolt"

Is this what tightens the spring? Right now I have it all back together without the T55 in and the cage just swings around loose with no tension at all.
Click to expand...
I believe you have to preload the spring once, meaning get the spring in the grooves for it and spin around the jockey/cage. It's a pain in the ass, but it's doable.

When I did this, the wheel was off the bike and the jockey/cage was apart from the rest of the derailleur, and the chain was off the derailleur as well. I reinstalled jockey/cage with the 3mm bolt just enough to keep things from flying apart before winding up the spring (that helps keep the parts in place until you tighten down the bolt). Once you spin around the jockey/cage so that the little cylindrical part goes past the groove in the upper part of the derailleur, tighten down the 3/4mm bolts. I got someone to help me tighten down the bolt so I could focus on keeping the spring preloaded...Sorry, wish I knew what all the parts were called.

For what it's worth, I opened up the derailleur and lubed up everything as suggested, but the knocking, while it goes away for a bit, comes back fairly quickly. It seems like the bolts tighten as the derailleur moves. It also seemed like just loosening the 3 and 4mm bolts and the T55 a bit is what made the derailleur stop making noise more so than putting oil in it. Also, I used a sewing needle to pry off the plastic cap that covers the T55, which kept the part intact.
 
#33 ·
LowLow said:
I believe you have to preload the spring once, meaning get the spring in the grooves for it and spin around the jockey/cage. It's a pain in the ass, but it's doable.

When I did this, the wheel was off the bike and the jockey/cage was apart from the rest of the derailleur, and the chain was off the derailleur as well. I reinstalled jockey/cage with the 3mm bolt just enough to keep things from flying apart before winding up the spring (that helps keep the parts in place until you tighten down the bolt). Once you spin around the jockey/cage so that the little cylindrical part goes past the groove in the upper part of the derailleur, tighten down the 3/4mm bolts. I got someone to help me tighten down the bolt so I could focus on keeping the spring preloaded...Sorry, wish I knew what all the parts were called.

For what it's worth, I opened up the derailleur and lubed up everything as suggested, but the knocking, while it goes away for a bit, comes back fairly quickly. It seems like the bolts tighten as the derailleur moves. It also seemed like just loosening the 3 and 4mm bolts and the T55 a bit is what made the derailleur stop making noise more so than putting oil in it. Also, I used a sewing needle to pry off the plastic cap that covers the T55, which kept the part intact.
Click to expand...
Yes you have to wind up the jockey. The bolt in the jockey I was talking about taking out is what you are calling the cylindrical part which screws into the jockey to keep the jockey from spinning around. The way I did it was to use the jockey lock to hold the jockey while removing the stop bolt cylindrical then unwinding the jockey. Then take everything apart grease and put back together. After you have it back together wind up the jockey and use the lock to hold it while you put the stop bolt cylindrical back in. It is very easy using the lock to hold the jockey while it is under load. I think the part you are missing is removing the stop bolt cylindrical on the jockey to let it unwind and wind.
 
#34 ·
Mr. Lynch said:
The part I dont quite get is
"Wind clutch up and lock with pin and install lock bolt"

Is this what tightens the spring? Right now I have it all back together without the T55 in and the cage just swings around loose with no tension at all.
Click to expand...
You need to take out the jockey stop bolt which is a small looking cylindrical bolt with a allen head and then wind up the jockey and lock it with the lock button and then put the stop bolt back in then release the lock. The spring does go in a slot on the derailleur and in a hole on the jockey plate.
 
#35 ·
Ever since I heard of this clutch design a while ago I wondered how the heck they would address chain growth issues. Anyone with issues on a HT? It just seems like someone in some department would have seen this coming..I did and I'm a plumber..
 
#37 ·
I took my bike to my LBS and it was a snap to get it back together. I removed the jockey stop bolt, got the spring into place and we wound it up basically 1 full rotation. tightened everything up and set the t55 bolt close to where it was stock. The knocking is gone now and shifting does feel a little crisper. Not sure how long it will last, but now that I know what to do i dont mind servicing the parts on a regular basis. Here in the PNW we do a lot of wet/muddy rides, so every 3-4 months i tear down my bike and clear/grease it all anyway.
 
#39 ·
ypocat said:
just saying, maybe you did not notice my post.
Click to expand...
your post was spot on. For anyone with knocking noise i would just remove the t55, add a little grease and then tighten the t55 to a point where the knock is gone but the clutch engages. Even just backing off the t55 a tad might be the best solution.

Thanks to everyone who was willing to mess with a $300+ bike part and post up info to the rest of us!
 
#40 ·
I know it's only been a couple of weeks for some of you guys, but how is the FIX working out. I'm thinking of getting a clutch derailleur, but I'm on the fence with brands. I currently have a new XO 10spd system and would like to keep my shifters, but will jump ship if I have to.
 
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