https://bike.shimano.com/en-US/components/mtb.html

Crankset part numbers start with FC-M___, followed by 4 digits for newer models, and 3 for older (2 for even older). Numbers starting with 9 for xtr, 8xxx (4-digit) 7xx (3-digit) for xt, etc. The bigger the number, the higher the price.

https://bike.shimano.com/en-US/components/mtb/category/crankset.html

 

Your order is correct (XTR, XT, SLX, Deore, the rest). I’m not sure why Deore is the standout name among the other letter designations, but Deore did not always exist. When I got into riding, XT was called Deore XT and the tier below it was Deore LX (which is now SLX). The numerical designations are helpful to differentiate between different generations of each groupset. For example, 8100 is the current XT 12 speed, and I believe 8000 was the former XT 11 speed.

 

It's not that troublesome.

The Deore thing was a modifier, like jonlong mentioned, that came before some designations (Deore XT, Deore LX, Deore). I dunno what it actually meant when it was first used, but at this point that doesn't really matter. Deore XT is basically synonymous with XT. Deore by itself is a different group. SLX is something of an outlier because it replaced Deore LX in the mtb groups (though Deore LX still exists for Trekking components). I am pretty sure Deore XT was first, though. Because STX and STX-RC predated Deore LX and plain Deore groups.

At this point, the meaning of the Deore prefix before the rest of the name has been lost. I think Shimano continues to use the prefix simply because of momentum.

The names mean the least, though. The part numbers are really where you learn things.

In the current 4 digit part numbers, the first number (thousands place) refers to the group level (XTR, SLX, etc). The second number refers to the generation, and the final two numbers refer to variants of that part (xx20, xx50, etc) that might refer to different q factors, chainlines, or the difference between 1x and 2x for the crank, or whether the brakes are 2 piston or 4 piston, different derailleur cage lengths/types, etc.

 

I dunno, from the outsider perspective....that's pretty confusing. It's especially confusing when you have multiple 600-level components and such, XTR and XTR-Trail, and so on. Not that confusing to me, having followed it for a while, but for someone who hasn't, I can definitely understand the frustration.

 

From what I remember, Shimano Deore was one of their early MTB groups. I definitely remember seeing Deore II components on a blinged-out Klein on a shop floor in the late 80s. Then it fractionated into Deore XT, DX, and LX.

 

Campy?

 

Hard to figure out what the differences are between the groups are without digging into the techdocs side of the Shimano site, but what I do is find what demands I'm after from actual riding and ownership experience.

In the past, I found that my demands weren't met by anything less than XT, in terms of how good it felt over time and how much maintenance I was willing to put in to keep it feeling great and lasting long. The pattern at this time was cheaper stuff feeling okay at the start, but quickly turning awful and demanding more maintenance, and couldn't be neglected.

As tech trickled down, a few years ago I felt that SLX satisfied my demands, which was a bonus since things were getting more expensive and SLX saved me a bit of cash.

For the past year and a half, I find myself satisfied with Deore. I did expect to be spoiled by riding XTR and XT 11 spd, but I was mostly disappointed compared to Shimano 10 speed and SRAM's top end stuff. When Deore released a wide range cassette, I decided there wasn't any compelling reason to move away from 10 spd. It compared to the SLX level I liked before, and I fell further in love with the 10 speed XTR shifter's feel (much less resistance than the 11spd systems I've demo'd).

I have no ambitions to be a racer, nor count myself as an enthusiast, but more of a regular that puts out a decent amount of mileage who is just merely curious about how bikes work on a fine level. I don't think my demands changed that much, but feel that I am more comfortable with riding with heavier parts, compared to when I was newer, more worried about the cost of upkeep.

Haven't tried the 12 speed stuff yet, which I suppose has the model numbers 9100 (XTR), 7100 (XT or SLX?), etc. 7000 and 9000 were the 11 speed model numbers, and 985 and 986 was the 10 speed XTR model number, where the first number determines the quality level and the next numbers determine generation and version.

https://productinfo.shimano.com/#/spec/MTB/Rear Derailleur

 

thanks for all the info. its becoming much clearer.

looking at 2x11 crankset chainring options there seems to be only a 10-tooth spread, and a maximum outer chainring of 38t

is this because of DS-chainstay limitations, and the fact that mountain bike cassettes have such a large tooth-spread from small sprocket to large (ie: 11-42), and the rear derailleur chain capacity?

are there manufacturers that make larger aftermarket chainrings?

i'm also not wedded to shimano, but it looks like i will be wedded to the BB92 BB-shell standard

 

options for 2x cranksets have narrowed. part of it is indeed due to chainstays (tire capacities have gotten MUCH wider over the years) as well as wider range cassettes. If you crunch the numbers, the ACTUAL available gear ratios haven't really changed much. What has changed is the way those ratios are achieved.

 

Don't forget Zee and Saint products, if they're still available.

 

In terms of MTB shifters, I wouldn't consider lower than XT as the XTR/XT action is different than that of SLX/Deore.

Everything else is just a little weight/bling

 

http://mombatbicycles.com/Shimano.htm

Pics work if you click on them, I over paid for that DF-M730 shark fin chain guide thing back in the day.

 

Derailleur geometry I guess is part of what dictates the 10t spread between chainrings. Another part is the timing and shift assist tech, such as ramps and pins on the inside of the bigger chainring, and specially shaped teeth to reduces the challenge for the chain to make the shift and be okay taking splitting the force between two rings with the chain part-way derailled. MTB seems to deal with more torque based than road cycling. Other factors are stiffness of the ring, BCD, material economics, and I'm sure there's more.

 

I just remember Deore, SLX, XT, and with XTR being the top end. I usually don't look at anything below Deore.

 

But what about STX-RC? It was like a Bling crackass XTR anodize and...... apparently forgettable.

 

Didn't that replace LX? I remember I had a full LX bike. It was a steel Balance.

 

The RC stood for “Really Crap”

 

LX Gold.

 

You should stick with road riding...:cornut::cornut::cornut:

 

Here are their confusing levels going back a bit farther. You can see that the Deore name was used alone and in conjunction with XT, DX, and LX at various times.

I was working in or owned shops from the early 1980's to the late 1990's and had to keep this stuff straight when explaining it to customers, along with the Suntour hierarchy.

1983-1985: Deore XT Deerhead
1986: Deore XT Deerhead, Z
1987-1988: Deore XT, Deore
1989: Deore XT II, Deore II, Mountain LX, Exage Mountain, Exage Trail, Exage Country
1990-1991: Deore XT, Deore DX, Deore LX, 500LX, 400LX, 300LX, 200GS
1992: XTRace (XTR), Deore XT, Deore DX, Deore LX, 500LX, 400LX, 300LX, 200GS
1993: XTR, Deore XT, Deore LX, Exage EX, Exage LT, Altus A20, Altus A10, Altus C20, Altus C10
1994: XTR, Deore XT, Deore LX, STX (and STX SE), Alivio, Altus, Tourney
1995-1999: XTR, Deore XT, Deore LX, STX / STX-RC, Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney
2000-2002: XTR, Deore XT, Deore LX, Deore, Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney
2003-2007: XTR, Saint, Deore XT, Hone, Deore LX, Deore, Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney
2008-2012: XTR, Saint, Deore XT, SLX, Deore, Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney
2013-2020: XTR, Saint, Deore XT, SLX, ZEE, Deore, Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney

This archive shows the info for the past 15 years or so
https://productinfo.shimano.com/#/archive

 

I miss DX...or maybe I miss how old I was when DX was available.

 

XTR M900 and MT900 is funny, some retro collector might get "scammed" with a brand new crank.

 

Weirdly I find SRAM more confusing. I've always used Shimano so that helps. But there seems to be so many XXs in SRAM.
Someone want to a SRAM list??

 

If you want to go back to around 1983-4 a little history lesson on where XT & Tourney names came from. Shimano absorbed Takagi some point in the mid 80's. Prior to that Shimano cranks sucked. big time.

Kozo Shimano was involved for more than 20 years with the company his grandfather, Shozaburo Shimano, started in 1921.
His (Kozo Shimano) maternal great-grandfather Kotaro Takagi owned the factory where Shozaburo Shimano (Kozo Shimano's grandfather) apprenticed before he went on to start Shimano. Takagi became known in the United States in the 1970s and 1980s for its bulletproof BMX crank sets."

Here's a pic of the Takagi Tourney XT crank that came on an old 83 Ritchey. & A pic of the shimano deer head.

 

The problem is they have too many groups. They should have one 8-speed for under MTB/Deore for entry level bikes. No one needs a "better" 8-speed or a 9-speed. whoever needs "better", can just go 10-speed. Combine Deore and SLX into one. Maybe make a 10 and an 11-speed version of that combined group.
XT 12-speed for premium and for whoever gets a sponsored bike, XTR 12-speed. No need for an 11-speed XT.

and get rid of name duplication. Either call them M8000, or XT, not both

 

I will say that the "difference" between groups, in both quality features and price is getting less defined. Not badge engineering like campy does, but its more about marketing tiers than specs. The retail price of a bike with xt and slx would differ by $100-$200 if nothing else was changed. They have the same BB, same cables, same chainring, virtually identical cassettes except one aluminium ring.. etc. If they only sold groups to end customers, they wouldn't have both. But when you buy a bike in a store... the one with the recon fork, inner tubes, and seamed rims gets SLX, the one with the pike, tubeless, and through axles, gets XT just cause its expected, even if there's no meaningful difference in performance or price.

In the 90's, the difference between xtr, xt and lx was really defined. xtr WAS objectively better than xt, and xt objectively better than lx.

 

from what i understand, there's :
1. XTR
2. XT (which is also Deore, and also not Deore?)
3. SLX
4. Deore (again)
5. the rest

Want to get REALLY confused? Try sorting out "the rest" ... Alivio, Acera, Altus, Tourney, Tourney TX, Tourney TZ .... If you think it tough to differentiate the benefits of SLX and XT, try to figure out the differences between Alivio and Acera LOL

 

If none of those have a RD clutch, not worth my time to learn for mtb purposes. XD

 

... its really not confusing at all. Dont worry about the old stuff, its not available or relevant anymore. Dont worry about the old deore prefix either, its gone. Deore is its own unique group now.

Like others have stated, it goes from deore to XTR for real mountain biking stuff. Dont worry about the numbers, they're essentially part numbers. All deore is 6000, slx 7000, xt 8000, xtr 9000. But again, they're really just part numbers.

Deore is pretty decent! But weirdly, its priced pretty close to slx. IMO, you can skip the deore group unless it comes on your bike, in which case its pretty close to the next 2 groups and you should keep it. I wouldnt buy deore aftermarket.

IMO, XT is dead and has been replaced by SLX. SLX is often the same or occasionally a little better than XT, and its always cheaper. Especially now, the SLX group even looks better than XT!

XTR is a massive step up and crazy more expensive. A deore crank might be 80 bucks. A slx would be 90, XT maybe 95... and XTR comes crashing in at like $450. Amazing stuff, but holy crap.

In short, just buy slx. Shimano is dead simple, just go slx.