Sram or shimano

William Henry said:

right now I am running shimano XT I woondered how XTR compares to X-O

I have been riding XTR rear derailleurs (w/ XT shifters) for the past 5 years and have had no problems whatsoever with that combination. It has been reliable, durable, and performs well in all conditions. I have used SRAM X0/X9 on the new bike for the past 3 weeks, so:

XTR vs X0 in terms of build quality, I would put them on par, if not X0 slightly ahead as it has the rebuildable rear derailleur.

XTR vs X0 in terms of look, X0 is miles in front.

XTR vs X0 in terms of performance, there is no comparisson. The SRAM shifting is much more positive. Only downside is that is has a longer throw to shift to easier gears.

But, as I said, I have only been using X0 for 3 weeks, so I am not sure about the long term performance, or its racing performance (off-season at the moment).

Also remember, that X0 is MUCH more expensive than XTR.

id go with the SRAM, ive got x9 at the momnent and i think its quite a bit smoother than the shimano XTs shifting and theyre rebuildable and i dunno aobut you but i like the shifter better

I had a bit of a play with a C'dale Prophet which was fitted with SRAM X-7 triggers, the lever action felt a little "plasticky". Granted, it was a demo bike that has probably been thrashed about, but the XT pods on my mountain bike are close on 4 years old now and still feel in tip top shape.

Are the X-9 shifters any diffferent? With the way Shimano groups are going now I can see a move to X-9 when things start to die out, but those shifters really didn't feel as nice as I was hoping they would. (The ergonomics of the triggers themselves is fine, it's just the 'feel' of the lever as you engage gears feels plasticky and brittle)

Up until now, all my bikes have had Shimano stuff.

I just bought an SRAM 7.0 derailleur and a set of unused 9.0 shorty twist shifters for $20 at the Madison bike swap and plan to use them on my soon to be built CF recumbent. I also picked up an unused 2005 model Bontrager triple crankset/BB for $90 (made by Truvativ, I think). I think it came off a Trek bike. Has 53/39/30 chainrings. Looks real spiffy and weighs just a hair over 2 lbs (917 g). I can't wait to try it out! The BB bearings sit outside the BB shell (is that a good idea?). The axle is an ISIS type, but one end is permanently swaged to the drive side of the crankset (eliminates one crank bolt, I guess). The other side has a single, self extracting bolt.

TD