I had the same questions when I started riding MTB. I found that there's not really a good spreadsheet of all different components and how they differ from one another.

I went to BackCountry or one of the different vendors (Amazon even) and just compared x5 to x7... x7 to x9... RS Recon to RS Reba... and so on. As long as you have a list that arranges the components from best to worse, you can compare and contrast and find out how they're different/better/worse.

As with most mods in any hobby, they'res a point of diminishing returns. For instance, they say the performance difference from the x7 to x9 derailleur is negligible so for 20-30 bucks, you're shaving 20-30 grams or something like that. For a dude like me who just rides for fun with no intent of ever racing, I don't care about 30 grams.

Good luck.

 

I went to BackCountry or one of the different vendors (Amazon even) and just compared x5 to x7... x7 to x9... RS Recon to RS Reba... and so on. As long as you have a list that arranges the components from best to worse, you can compare and contrast and find out how they're different/better/worse.

Thanks!

What were you comparing? Do they list materials, item thickness, etc.?

For a dude like me who just rides for fun with no intent of ever racing, I don't care about 30 grams.

I'm the same. In fact, I do not want to sacrifice weight for durability. I only want the most durable parts - I want to be on the trails not in the shop or waiting on me to research replacement parts and install them.

 

There's no real master comparison. On the manufacturer's websites are the specs and tech docs for the components but even those don't have all of the materials used in each component. Shimano, for example, provides exploded view schematics showing all the internals but not the materials. Not every component fits a group set. Acera, for example, is not a group set. This is an entry level component. For Shimano, the mountain group set starts with Deore, then goes to SLX, XT and XTR. There are also Zee and Saint which are more gravity oriented. The idea of a group set is to have a family of components.

Lighter doesn't necessarily mean less durable. XTR are the lightest but not less durable than XT or SLX, as an example. Whether the marginal weight savings and function justifies the price difference depends on the rider.

As far as Shimano vs SRAM you'll find acolytes for both. Do you like chocolate or vanilla? Both offer good products.

In comparing suspension forks, look at weight but also make sure you're comparing the same diameter stanchions. A 28 mm stanchion will weigh less than a 32, 34 or 36 mm, but will be a lot less stiff. You need also to see whether they are air or coil spring, including the negative spring (some air sprung forks use a coil for the negative spring).

 

There a large portion of components you find on bikes that won't be on the manufacture's website / product list. These are called "non-series" parts -- they are either specifically made for the bike / bike manufacturer, or parts that you cannot directly buy from retail.

From what I know, Shimano mainly lists the parts that are from a groupset on their website (i.e. those are the parts you can buy as a complete package / set); full XTR set that includes XTR derailleurs, chain, brakes, cassettes, etc.

With the high tier groupsets, compared to the lower end alternatives (for mountain bikes as far as I know), you mainly get new technology and reduced weight. As mentioned before, higher tier does not mean better durability.

Example, the XT / XTR line of components tend to use Aluminum or other light metal alloys to cut down on weight. The Acera and Altus parts tend to use Stainless Steel.

The top tier mountain and road bike groupsets are targeted towards racing machines; the parts get replaced much more often than "regular" bikes so durability is not much of a concern.

To have the best of both worlds, durability and weight, the best would be the product line(s) that are right in the middle (i.e. Deore / Deore SLX).

 

There's actually a tremendous amount of material on Shimano's Tech site to help you.

For starters, if you click on 2015-2016 SHIMANO Product Information Web it'll tell you all the components from shifters thru cranks to cassettes & chains that make up the 'Acera' groupset, and you can click on individual components to find out more about them. You can see the same for any other groupset just by selecting it from the menu box on the left. You'll find that higher up the range there are complete groupsets covering every component right down to wheels and pedals, and there'll be a lot more choice within individual components. But lower down the range with the likes of Acera and Altus there'll be a core of 'branded' components like cranks, shifters and a front and rear derailleur, hubs and maybe brakes, plus a lot of generic non-group components to make up the rest.

Then if you want to compare say cranks between all the different Shimano groupsets - what material they are made of, hollow or solid, what chainring ratios etc. then click on 2015-2016 SHIMANO Product Information Web and it's all there for you. Again, click on any other component in the menu on the left to compare that across groupsets.

By the way, the letters "RD" in the product code just refer to a Rear Derailleur. Like SL means shift lever, BL brake lever, FC crank etc. etc. The numbers refer to the group and model. The first number being the group (so 3xx for Acera) and the last two being the generation of component. So a Shimano Acera RD-M360 is older generation than Shimano Acera RD-M390, the 360 was 7/8 speed whereas the 390 was 9 speed, but they are both Acera rear derailleurs. Again, if you want to get into this in detail then go to this part of the Shimano Tech site SHIMANO Dealer's Manual / User's Manual and click on M390 at the top to see that generation, or M360 to see the previous one. (Note: M390 is no longer the latest Acera generation, there's a new M3000 groupset here 2015-2016 SHIMANO Product Information Web )

Your TX50 front derailleur is from the Tourney Groupset (sometimes bike manufacturers mix components from different groupsets to meet a set price) and you can find it here SHIMANO Dealer's Manual / User's Manual.

And if you are wondering if x rear derailleur is compatible with y chain and z cranks - Shimano have that sorted too http://productinfo.shimano.com/download/pdf/com/1.0/en

So you can see there's a lot of information available from Shimano, and if you're into that sort of thing you can spend hours clicking around that site!

However, one thing it won't tell you is what's 'best' for you. Shimano stuff all works well, but it's up to you to decide where exactly on the price/performance curve you sit. As a wiser man than me once said, bike components can be cheap, light, or hard wearing - pick any two!

Have fun!

 

-snip-

Wow, great info there!
Certainly learn something new everyday.