Following on from this thread I finished servicing my bike from several weeks of gloop to find the second clutch in 7 months has given up and died 👿 I could continue to support my LBS by purchasing replacement clutch mechanisms every 3 months but would also consider a sturdier design.

The XTR stuff uses a different clutch construction, so I’ve heard. XTR would look nice on my bike but it doesn’t make economic sense.

I need a medium or long cage mech… does Zee use a better clutch mechanism? Does saint (and is it even available in medium cage)?

Sram is of course an option but they’re not immune to failure and would necessitate a completely new drive train.

cheers in advance for the replies.

Sram just requires a new shifter not an entire drive train. The SRAM ones I have have worked well but I don’t ride through gloop every day of the year.

If it’s failing within a few months then it’s not fit for purpose and will they not replace under warranty?

I’ve had a few different clutch mechs now. When taking them apart, the only differences in them that I could see is that the XTR one had an adjuster tool where as Saint, SLX, and Deore didn’t, apart from that they were all constructed in pretty much the exact same way.

To date I have never had one fail on me

Shimano Tech Docs will give you part #s and cross reference which parts from other derailleurs are identical or functionally the same (maybe a different finish).

Per this, XT and SLX are mostly the same. But XTR only has a few parts in common.

But they’re not gonna say stuff like “crap clutch part” and “better clutch part” though… 😉

Edit – 1.5 yr old XT clutch on the fatbike and 1 yr old XTR on the full suspension. Both have been flawless.

What has given up the ghost? I have had a couple of ones where the clutch has stopped working due to the cam bit breaking. They are easy to fix though with a square bit of plastic cut to the right size put in the housing of the cam between it and the cam. This means the can has something to push against.

GEDA- The part that keeps on breaking (Me x 2, the Mrs. x 1) is the cage surrounding the cam and the clamp.

mikew- can’t be that lucky all the time. Mud is good for the soul (or some such nonsense, I don’t really believe it). It’s almost more hassle to get a warranty replacement (2 x trips to the LBS, remove/replace mech) than to just replace the clutch (1 x trip and 2 minute job).

My mates on his third from CRC. Each time they have replaced it FOC. Mine is a bit hit or miss sometimes but yet to break. I’ve bought a spare just in case.

can you tighten the clutch on the shimano ones?

my x7 needs tightening regularly and seems to have a lot of play in the pivots after 7 months

My Zee still works fine after about 2yrs of abuse. Out of interest, have you been retightening them at all? Shimano had to warn against overtightening after a lot of people broke that particular part. Seem to be pretty sensitive.