Help With Shimano Groups

Here goes...

Acera: entry-level (8-speed)
Alivio: entry-level but a bit sturdier (8-speed)
Deore: decent quality, but a little heavy on some items (9-speed)
Deore LX: better finished, a little lighter, same functionality (9-speed)
Deore XT: great quality, best value, light & strong (9-speed)
XTR: pro quality, no expense spared (9-speed)

So generally if you're going to take your mountain-biking seriously you want to use at least Deore, and Deore XT is very popular as a good combo of price/performance

Cheers thanks for that Nick,now i have an idea of what is what...

ok..i willmake as simple as i can for you. i will list all of the shimano ATB selection from nicest and more expensive to the all around worst...keep in mind the best is lighter and works a hell of alot better.

XTR/XT/LX/Deore/Alivio

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by 7-Dayz
ok..i willmake as simple as i can for you. i will list all of the shimano ATB selection from nicest and more expensive to the all around worst...keep in mind the best is lighter and works a hell of alot better.

XTR/XT/LX/Deore/Alivio

How critical is the number of speeds in terms of long-term upgradability? Like Lasalles, I understand the road bikes, and would advise someone against buying Sora components as I suspect parts will be hard to find in the near future as the 10-speed groupsets move the 9-speeds down the lineup.

However, if I'm just looking for a cheap bash-around bike for the occasional social ride along a bike path, the prospect of picking up something new for just a few hundred (Aussie pesos) is pretty appealing. I really don't want to spend much as 95% of my cycling will be on-road, but don't want to make a myopic purchase. At present there are a number of run-out models going for just a few hundred with either 7-speed or 8-speed groupsets...
Suggestions?
😕

MidBunchLurker said:

Here goes...

Acera: entry-level (8-speed)
Alivio: entry-level but a bit sturdier (8-speed)
Deore: decent quality, but a little heavy on some items (9-speed)
Deore LX: better finished, a little lighter, same functionality (9-speed)
Deore XT: great quality, best value, light & strong (9-speed)
XTR: pro quality, no expense spared (9-speed)

So generally if you're going to take your mountain-biking seriously you want to use at least Deore, and Deore XT is very popular as a good combo of price/performance

any idea what an XTS is then as i got that on my bike and how does it fair on the evolutionary chain pardon the pun lol

penguinonabike said:

any idea what an XTS is then as i got that on my bike and how does it fair on the evolutionary chain pardon the pun lol

found it now.. its STX-RC RD-MC38...

now how does it fair... is it that old as if it is its in as new condition here.

Penguin,

STX-RC goes a long way back, probably around 2000 from the top of my head. I believe it was replaced by Deore, and then a year later, the STX level was dropped too.

As far as speeds go, I would think that 9sp is here to stay for a little while longer on MTB's. There would be issues with clearance and longevity of 10spd for MTB's, especially when mud is added into the mix.

I would advise against getting something 8spd as the 9spd stuff will filter down. Deore would be a good investment as it is all 9spd and is therefore capable of being mixed and matched (hubs/cassettes/chains etc) with other 9spd groupos
My 2c