Would you buy and slx mech and xt shifters or xt mech and slx shifters?

slx mech and xt shifters

don’t forget tiptop cables

I prefer cheaper for both.

+1 reggie\
I read a review recently where the tester said he’d have a deore mech if it meant he could have xtr shifters.
I have xt all round (used to have deore shifters) and there’s a marked improvement

Shifters, because that’s where the indexing comes from, and that’s the bit you can fell with your hands. A better rear mech may last longer and be a more obvious bit of bling, but shifters should make most difference.

My Pitch came with an X9 mech and X5 shifters, I’d have preferred X7 for both…..

definitely upgrade the shifters if you are going to do one or the other.

I have xtr mechs and xt level shifters on my bikes. All the mechs bought cheap secondhand.

XTR mechs do have less slop in the pivots thus shift more accuratly

XT shifters and whatever secondhand mech I can find (with new jockey wheels).
As said.. cables and sleeves are prob the most important bit.

slx mech and xt shifters

+ however many

Great combination, recently upgraded rear mech from SLX to XT after ripping the SLX apart – can’t tell the difference in performance.

need to find some xt shifters under £45 now then

Blimey – almost unanimous AND I agree! Definitely spend more on the Shifters, unless you value looks over function (as a lot of OEM equipment seems to do – headline posh rear mech coz it’s the most visible item)

Ok, following on from this, would you rather have 3 year old XT shifters or brand new Deore or SLX?

SLX is much better than old XT IMO.

It’s really close to XT in performance anyway, so I’d take new SLX over used “current” XT.

Doesn’t feel as “quality”, but seems to work the same.

What are slx shifters like? Ive had deore a few times on new bikes and found the shape awful

3 year old xt’s Paul, I had some at the time and it was the first version of the current ones that have the removable indicator windows and the adjustable position clamps. Nice shifters, last forever if looked after!

Has SLXs on my HT which worked fine, but felt a bit fragile and plasticky, changed to XT M770s now.
Much prefer XTs.

Always put the extra cash into shifters.

SLX shifters use plastic bushes to support the shift mechanism. As the bushes wear, the lever feel deteriorates and some precision is lost in the indexing.

XT (M770) shifters use two ball bearings to support its mechanism, which is different to that in the SLX. This reduction in friction is what gives the XT its ‘lighter’ feel and also means that their is minimal deterioration in the operation of the mechanism over time.

XTR (M970) shifters use the same mechanism as the M770, but use four ball bearings to support it, thus the ‘even lighter’ feel of the shifts.

The XT may be more expensive, but, to me, represents better value for money. The bearing supports mean that the shifting barely deteriorates over time; so a year or two-old XT/XTR is going to feel almost as it did when new.

As an aside, the multi-release capability of the M970 can be had from the M770 with a simple bit of fettling. The lower portion of the XT M770 shifter casing has a small plastic moulding, which is absent on the XTR M970. Slice this moulding out with a sharp blade and Robert, as they say, is your father’s brother…

multi shift – explain?

The XTR (and modified XT) will upshift/release two gears in one throw of the lever.

can you just change 1 gear still?

Very interesting Three Fish.

Funny enough I just started using my first ever (secondhand) XTR shifter and I’m finding it a bit annoying because I keep overshifting.

Maybe it’s a combination of the delicate lever feel and bulky winter gloves.

The release lever has two clicks in it. One click shifts one gear, then keep pushing (or pulling) and the second click will shift another gear. It’s an addition, not an alternative.

The multi-shift can take a bit of getting used to, but I find that it adds a useful dimension to shifting.

I should add that a good set of cables, with perfect square-end cuts on the outers and routed to provide a smooth line, should be considered the foundation of any shift system, whichever parts are used.

I look at it 2 ways- 1, the shifter does the telling and the mech does what it’s told, so upgrade the smart component not the dumb one. And 2, I’ve never smashed a shifter into a big rock.

But it’s a balance too, better mechs do bring advantages as well. One of my bikes is running X9 shifters on an X5 mech frinstance and it’s not quite up to my usual X9/X9. But perfectly adequate and way better than an X9 rear mech on an X5 shifter was!

I love that multishift thingy, got XTR M970 with it on the race bike. Looking to swap the XTR M950s on the other bikes for it when I find some cheap enough on fleabay/classifieds (hopefully now 10sp is around…)
So in answer to the OP, my choice would be to upgrade shifters rather than mech. Maybe keep the old rear mech and splash out on XTR shifters?

Def shifters, both my main bikes came with Deore level shifters, changed one to XTR and one to XT. Both a noticeable improvement but wish I’d gone to XTR on both as I think it’s worth it again over XT. I usually downgrade to SLX mechs when it’s time to change (wear or accident related) and can’t say I can tell the difference between SLX and XT/XTR rear mechs in use.

Go for the shifter upgrade every time. My SRAM bike feels much nicer with X9 shifters and an X7 mech than the then new X5/X7 setup that went before. An X9 rear mech was just window dressing really, but I didn’t notice a massive change in shift quality.

I can also only reiterate the previous comments about decent quality cables, time taken getting this right ensures that your shifting will stay sweet for longer.