[mward]

I thought I'd pass this on. Cambria has 952 xtr front derailleurs in 34.9 clamp size, bottom pull - fits basically all the 04 specialized and a lot of the 03s - for 29 bucks. I just got one. I wouldn't normally buy an xtr part but couldn't pass up the price.

 

[mward]

As an addendum, it won't fit on my 04 epic. When going to the granny the bottom part of the cage hits the swingarm pivot, so unless you're handy with the dremel you might want to hold off. Doh doh doh!

edit - added: I dremelled off about 2mm off the bottom curve of the derailleur and it works fine. It doesn't appear to affect it at all. So if you're thikning of buying one for your epic, or probably any of the 04 full suspension models since they all use a similar pivot, you'll have to modify it. Running it up higher so it doesn't hit makes the chain drag on the bottom of the cage in the middle and granny gear, so running it higher wasn't an option. Good luck.

 

[kneecap]

What front derailleur did you replace, & does the upgrade improve the bikes shifting?

 

[WOY]

I brought this subject up a few months ago

however it was for a 04 Enduro. I also had to grind the inner plate so that the derailleur can sit at the proper position as you have said. The shifting is great (using an XT crankset). However what I have also found with this particular derailleur is that the cable is secured on the rear side of the cable crimping bolt (or LHS when you are looking at the face of the cranks). In my case this pull the front derailleur cable onto the front of the chainstay (between the main BB pivot bearings) and over a few rides it has wore a nice grove on it. It seems all the newer front derailleurs (even on M570, M750) have the derailleur cable secured on the front side of the bolt thus much less rubbing on the chainstay.

What I have done is not using the channel on the derailleur and secured the derailleur cable on the other side of the bolt (ie the front side) and it all works fine.

Wayne

 

[massiveattack]

What size / type derailiur will fit for the 03 / 04 Epcis? Top Pull, Bottom Pull, Dual? Without having to do any fitting?

Thanks!

 

[mward]

Kneecap: I replaced an 04 LX model, and yes it shifts better. I hate to admit it because I oppose parts snobbery, but it does shift smoother and more precisely. I'm using x.9 triggers, if it matters.

Wayne: I just went and looked at it and it appears as though it would be a problem on the 04 epics as well. There is a plastic guide there though that keeps it from rubbing. It seems this particular derailleur is more trouble than it's worth, given the amount of crap one has to put up with to use it. I will try mounting the cable as you have and see if that reduces the rub on this frame. That doesn't affect shifting? That groove is on a cam and regulates cable pull/derailleur throw, so I'd assume it would.

Looking at the 04 xtr stuff, whatever their designation number is, it's not as nice as this one. It looks like an lx or something. There's no way I'd pay their price for it. I wonder how long till sram comes out with their front derailleur. I'd rather go that way. The most annoying thing about this xtr front der is you have to break the chain to install it.

 

[WOY]

I do find the XTR (well M952 anyhow) front derailleur shifts better than say the M570 LX and M750 XT.

Mward, Moving the cable has not affected the shifting at all. I suspect the cable life would be somewhat reduced becasue of the nasty bend just below the bolt.

It made the action lighter because there is less friction from the rubbing. I also run an inner from a Shimano SIS outer around the BB area with some soft rubber ends that came with some Shimano shifters kit.

Wayne

 

[mward]

I do find the XTR (well M952 anyhow) front derailleur shifts better than say the M570 LX and M750 XT.

Mward, Moving the cable has not affected the shifting at all. I suspect the cable life would be somewhat reduced becasue of the nasty bend just below the bolt.

It made the action lighter because there is less friction from the rubbing. I also run an inner from a Shimano SIS outer around the BB area with some soft rubber ends that came with some Shimano shifters kit.

Wayne

Well I tried it last night, with the cable on the inside, skipping the cam. It overshifts from the granny to middle, which makes sense because now the cable is pulling on a smaller diameter cam than before. On the second shift it doesn't shift enough and I had a hard time going to the big ring. Perhaps your rings are set up differently, or something, but it won't work on mine. I had to ditch the derailleur and put my LX back on. I'd buy a new xtr but they're pretty cheap looking, not at all like the 952, and not worth the ninety dollars they ask for them. I called sram, their front derailleur is going to be out soon as in before interbike. They won't have an x.0 immediately but an x.9 will do, so that is probably what I am going to go with. They also said to keep our eyes peeled for x.0 trigger shifters.

 

[DaFireMedic]

What size / type derailiur will fit for the 03 / 04 Epcis? Top Pull, Bottom Pull, Dual? Without having to do any fitting?

Thanks!

I have an 03 Epic, it takes a 34.9 Bottom Pull, I believe that the 04's are the same.

 

[massiveattack]

I have an 03 Epic, it takes a 34.9 Bottom Pull, I believe that the 04's are the same.

Ah -- Ok. So a dual pull would not work?

Thanks for the heads up... I was bidding on the wrong ones on eBay...

 

[skate]

Ah -- Ok. So a dual pull would not work?

Thanks for the heads up... I was bidding on the wrong ones on eBay...

Just thought I would add that I have Dual pull on my 03 Epic marathon and it works just fine without any problems.

Skate

 

[Archangel]

I ordered 2 of those XTRs

before reading this topic...haven't gotten them yet for I live in Europe...

Well, I'm interested to see how they will fit my 2002 Enduro and 2003 Epic. Now I have a '03 XT front der. in the Enduro and '04 XT dualpull in the Epic. Did they alter the main pivot for '04 ?

I took a close look in the pics of various derailleurs and it seems that '04 XT has almost as large cage as that M952 XTR so it might fit to '03 Epic ? The Enduro might be a another story but we'll see...

 

[mward]

As far as I know the 03 epic pivot is identical to the 04, although it might be slightly beefier. I have one of each and haven't bothered to examine it that closely. If the 04 was just a few millimeters narrower it wouldn't be a problem with the xtr front derailleur, although the cable routing would still be a problem.

 

[riverrat]

I'm reviving this thread to try and verify that the M960 XTR front derailleur will fit on a size large Stumpjumper FSR 120.

I learned that the M952 won't work. The M960 is spec'd on both the 2005 S-Works Epic and S-Works Stumpy 120.

So it seems the M952 will not work but the M960 will. Am I missing something here?

Also, will the M960 work on a 2004 FSR size small frame?