Shimano gear set ranking

andtmas

I've been given conflicting advise about the 'better' Shimano front and rear derailleurs - is there someone who actually knows who could rank the following from best to worst with a short note of the differences (these are as fitted to the Norco VFR 3 & VFR 4 and the Pinnacle Lithium 1 & 2):

1) Rear derailleurs
a) Shimano Altus RD-M310 7 speed - Black
b) Shimano RD-TX75 (I believe that this is a 'Tourney')
c) Shimano Acera RD-M390 - Black

2) Front derailleurs
a) Shimano Tourney FD-TX51
b) Shimano FD-TX503
c) Shimano Acera FD-M360

Thank you

supersonic

Heirarchy:

Tourney
Altus
Acera
Alivio
Deore
SLX
XT
XTR

With Zee and Saint being heavy duty.

There is a lot of tourney stuff, for different speeds and fittings.

Function wise there is little in it below Alivio - he higher up is usually lighter and better made. What is important is that the bike is 8 speed ie has a rear cassette system. So usually not TX stuff.

andtmas

supersonic wrote:

Heirarchy:

Tourney
Altus
Acera
Alivio
Deore
SLX
XT
XTR

With Zee and Saint being heavy duty.

There is a lot of tourney stuff, for different speeds and fittings.

Function wise there is little in it below Alivio - he higher up is usually lighter and better made. What is important is that the bike is 8 speed ie has a rear cassette system. So usually not TX stuff.

The guy in Evans Cycles said that the Tourney RD-TX75 (7 speed) on their own Pinnacle Lithium 1 & Lithium 2 bikes was better than the Altus RD-M310 (7 speed) on the Norco VFR-4 bike. I believe that supersonic's list is in ascending order with the XTR being the best and therefore the Altus RD-M310 (7 speed) is actually the better one (even if only slightly). I expected Halfords not to know but (assuming my understanding of supersonic's list is correct) this seems like an attempt by Evans to sell their own make of bike (and probably make a bigger profit). I would go elsewhere but have to stick with Evans as I'm buying through the ride 2 work scheme.

The Acera RD-M390 rear derailleur on the Norco VFR-3 bike is an 8 speed with a SRAM CS-PG-820 11-32T 8spd cassette - the Norco VFR-4 and the Lithiums all have Shimano HG20 12-32T 7 speed cassettes. Does the 8 speed cassette on the VFR-3 differ in design to the 7 speed cassettes on the others? And would it be worth spending £50 more than the cost of the VFR-4 to have 8 speed (spec of other items seems similar to me)?

Sorry about all the questions!

nicklouse

TBH the speck of the mechs etc would be one of the last things i would be looking at as they wear out and will need replacing in about a year.

I would be more concerned about fit and weight.

I would also be looking at the wheel quality and checking that they are not just 7spd hubs or you are limiting your self.

most hubs are now 8/9/10 speed compatible and a 7spd cassette can be used with a 4.5mm spacer.

supersonic

And of course many 7 speed systems are freewheels, not cassettes - and are poor.

andtmas

nicklouse wrote:

TBH the speck of the mechs etc would be one of the last things i would be looking at as they wear out and will need replacing in about a year.
I would be more concerned about fit and weight.
I would also be looking at the wheel quality and checking that they are not just 7spd hubs or you are limiting your self.
most hubs are now 8/9/10 speed compatible and a 7spd cassette can be used with a 4.5mm spacer.

supersonic wrote:

And of course many 7 speed systems are freewheels, not cassettes - and are poor.

I didn't realize that mechs wear out and need replacing on about a yearly basis - so the spec of the mechs (Tourney, Altus, Acera, etc) makes no difference to longevity? I've test rode the bikes so know that the fit and weight is fine. The hub on the Norco VFR-3 is 8 speed so must be a cassette system. I'll check with Evans regarding the hub systems (cassette or freewheel) on the others and whether the hubs are 8 / 9 /10 speed compatible.

Concerning the wheel quality, the Norco rims are 'Alloy Double Wall 700c x 32hole' and the Lithium rims are 'Alex G6000 deep-section 32H' - is one better than the other?

Thank you

unixnerd

I've never had a mech wear out on me. But my Sora front mech broke it's spring after ten years and 10k miles as it had rusted through (winter bike).

To be honest most of the mechs you've mentioned are fairly entry level but I doubt most folk would notice. Main difference with a dearer one would be a stiffer construction and better bearings at the pivot, this will give improved shifting.

markhewitt1978

Mechs wear out? Cassette yes, cables maybe, mech? Nah. Not unless you're doing like 50 miles a day every day.

t4tomo

markhewitt1978 wrote:

Mechs wear out? Cassette yes, cables maybe, mech? Nah. Not unless you're doing like 50 miles a day every day.

+1 the XTR mech on my old Gary Fisher is still going strong after 15 years and it changes much smoother than whatever newer lower end shimano kit (acera i think) is on the Carerra MTB