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XT rear derailleur vs. SRAM X9

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20K views 28 replies 23 participants last post by  RagerXS  
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#1 ·
My bike comes with SRAM X9 rear derailleur and I tried riding friend of mine and his comes with XT. The shifting seems so precise and quick, is XT supposed to be better than X9?

Much appreciate your help.
 
#6 ·
This ^

Also cable routing can make a big difference. Frame design as well as where the zip tie/cable stops are located will affect cable routing. A good build will factor this in.

Also as Shiggy says personal preference will always prevail. I think X9 and XT are designed to be at the same performance level.
 
#9 ·
Complete bikes are cabled at the factory.

Cable routing and housing length can be "perfect", but if the housing ends are not clean or the ferrules set well the friction can be high.

Different model frames have different cable routing, which can also affect shifting performance.
 
#12 ·
Gore RideOn cables are great, especially if you ride in muddy or dusty conditions frequently. Their design keeps the cables sealed all the way from the shifter to the derailleur. Other less expensive but still good standard cables will shift just as well as Gore cables, but will degrade over time as they get contaminated with dirt.
 
#14 ·
breckenridge said:
Gore RideOn cables are great, especially if you ride in muddy or dusty conditions frequently. Their design keeps the cables sealed all the way from the shifter to the derailleur. Other less expensive but still good standard cables will shift just as well as Gore cables, but will degrade over time as they get contaminated with dirt.
Click to expand...
:skep:

can't you install any cable housing as full-length from shifter to derailleur?

and in doing so, don't you have to zip-tie it or drill out any existing cable guides that are sized for cables only, in order to fit the housing through?
 
#13 ·
My experience with Srams low end (bulk housing) was very poor. I quickly developed shifting problems. I thought my inner cables might be corroded so I popped the housing off the cable stop so i could slide it over and discovered that the housing had degraded so much that some of the longitudinal wires actually pulled through the ferrel along with my inner cable. I put Bontrager 5mm diameter shifter housing on to finish out the season. So far, so good.

BTW! I am running Sram X9 and prefer it to Shimano XT.
 
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#15 ·
You could do that with regular cables, yes. You'd probably get a lot of drag that way as they're not meant to be carrying cable their entire length, not to mention it would look like crap.

The Gore RideOn cables use a thin inner liner which runs the full length of the bike which the cables move through, and thick housing for it all where standard housing runs to the cable stops on your bike. It all looks like a standard cable job once its installed unless you look closely.

Check it out:
Wrenched & Ridden bike reviews: Gore's RideOn cable system
 
#17 ·
I read that, albeit quickly, and also this: Review of Gore Ride-On Sealed Low Friction Derailleur Cable Kit - Competitive Cyclist

...and I see coated cables, not full-length housing.

You can run full-length housing without any significant performance concern, especially considering the sections of cable that are exposed often are straight runs. Some bikes actually come with full length housing; all that is different is that their cable guides on the frame are larger to accept housing the whole way through.
 
#19 ·
Yep. Its basically a full length little plastic tube that the cables run through, that continues through the housing, that isnt tensioned like the housing is against the stops. The cables are coated, but they are inside of that plastic tube, which does not move when you shift.

Its kind of hard to describe without a picture, but trust me, they're the cats pajamas.
 
#22 ·
Actually, you described it better than anyone else, including those 2 articles. :thumbsup:

I get it now. Small, thin tubing protects the section of cable that would be exposed between cable guides, rather than using full-length housing. Cool!

I might do that this winter because I'm tearing my bike down to repaint the frame and I can't get my rear shifting where I want it... unfortunately I think the main issue is the resistance from my type 2 rear derailleur, but maybe Gore cables will help.
 
S
#23 ·
And then there are those of us who have mixed the two because we like one product from each. I love the crispness of the SRAM levers mated with the XTR Shadow Plus derailleur.

What would be even better would be a SRAM trigger that had the two way release like Shimano mated with the same Shimano rear derailleur.

Just my preference as I have now logged many, many miles on my mix as well as pure SRAM X9 and pure Shimano XT.

They are all good if cabled properly.
 
#25 ·
As stated shifters make the difference (not disputing cables or routing as well), I just upgraded from the deore shifters (3X10) to the XT shifters. HUGE difference in Crispness. Much better shifting moreover, I like the push/pull shifting you get with the XT/XTR shifters. It brings me back to the 90's. You can pull the top shifter to up shift or push it. Way cool. Nevertheless, rear dealrailer only keeps the chain on your sprocket while climbing. A low quality one will let the cog skip gears under heavy loads.

Mark
 
L
#27 ·
My bike came with X7 shifters, and an X9 rear derailleur. Over a couple of years, shifting deteriorated slowly but steadily. I replaced all the cables and housings (with SRAM slick) and realized some improvement. Shifting was still FAR from smooth and precise.
So I installed XT shifters (because I LOVED the XT brakes with which I replaced the Avids that came on the bike), and realized a significant improvement. But, I could not get the X9 RD to shift through the entire rear XTR cassette (that I put on months before, without incident). Even though I couldn't access 2 cogs on the cassette with the XT shifters (the 2 smallest or 2 biggest, depending on how I set it up -- I went from 3x9 to 3x7), the XT shifters still shifted much better than the X7's, with the X9 RD. I've got an XT rear derailleur coming next week that will (hopefully) shift through all 9 cogs, and restore my 3x9 setup.
 
#28 ·
That would be because the SRAM and Shimano systems shift different amounts of cable, they are not compatable with each other. The SRAM shifters work on a 1:1 ratio, whereas Shimano work on a 2:1 ratio (more or less). Once you get an XT derailleur to go with the XT shifters you won't have any more issues (assuming you are getting a 9 speed derailleur, a Dyna-Sys rear wont work with a 9 speed system)
 
R
#29 ·
FYI about the Gore cables - they are discontinued. Small part of Gore's business and they are focusing elsewhere. Interesting to note that Jagwire manufactured the Gore cables, but Gore owns the patent on their design and there are no current licensing plans (last I checked). However, Jagwire's Ripcord line is somewhat similar and I have been very pleased with mine. The end caps for stops have long nipples on them and the kit comes with a thin plastic tube that goes over the nipples between the stops to protect the cable from the elements.

Fred
 
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