Xt Med Cage mech.

Goat link only £20 online – does this work well or should I get the 40t upper range cassette (or expander, i’m not picky).

I got away with screwing the b screw in from the opposite side

I just bought a longer b screw from eBay and it’s been shifting fine on my xt mech with that cassette

Depends, seems to be the answer. My setup wasn’t having it without some modification, went for a Radcage but sure a goatlink would’ve worked too

Depends, you might get away with an extra long B-screw or flipping your current B-screw and inserting it from the other side. Doesn’t work for everyone though, in which case try the GoatLink if you mech is compatible.

Goat link on my slx medium cage mech works fine with a sunrace 42 tooth cassette.

Sunrace 42 with an xt medium and Goatlink here.
It works.

Anyone have experience with the GoatLink on a Zee/Saint mech on a full suspension frame?

I’m still happy sticking with 10 speed for cheapness (broke/repaired two mechs last summer so I have three working Zee/Saints now), but whenever my cassette needs replaced the next one might be a Sunrace 11-40t or an XT/XTR plus 40t expander.

From the online spiel the RadR cage should do a better job than the GoatLink especially because of the slightly extended cage length, but it’s more expensive and it’s the cages that I seem to break occasionally. Just wondering if a Zee/Saint with 11-40t will work or if chain tension will be compromised in the top and/or bottom cogs because on an 11-36 it seems just barely OK on my last three 150mm-ish travel frames.

I’ve not had to alter the cage on my SLX medium mech.
Just used the longer B-Screw that came with the cassette.

FWIW, XT M8000 works OK on a 10 speed set up (shifter and cassette). Also works well with 11 speed shifter and 10 speed cassette.

Alternative to a Goat Link and RadR cage.

Neither.

I’ve been using a med cage XT with a sunrace 46-11 for months without any problems, I actually forgot that people sold extra cages for extra ‘compatibility’ with these cassettes, it’s not been necessary in my experience.

From the online spiel the RadR cage should do a better job than the GoatLink especially because of the slightly extended cage length

There are two different versions of the cage. One just replaces half the cage, is cheaper and still works fine

I’ve not had any problems with a medium cage with Sunrace 11-46 on my fat bike. Might be different if you are on a full suss.

(I’m on a full sus too if that is useful info, santa cruz 5010..)

I’ve had success with the RadR. I went for that over the goatlink as the RadR only changes the way the jockey moves away from the big sprockets, not the whole cassette, meaning you still get snappy shifting on the small sproackets yet clearance for the big ones. This is with a Sunrace 11-40 (or 42?)

One Up missed a trick with the high pricing though. That’ll turn off a lot of people.

The 11spd mech-with-a-10spd shifter sounds the best bet though, although I’ve not tried it yet. 11spd mechs are more £ than 10spd though.

I haven’t needed either (or even swapping/inverting the b-screw) on 40T … on 4 separate bikes…
I’m sure some combo’s work and others might not but if you’re going for the cheap option (unless you know you’re frame has problems) I’d try it first….

I’m sure some combo’s work and others might not but if you’re going for the cheap option (unless you know you’re frame has problems) I’d try it first….

Yeah definitely worth a go first. Mine was horrendous just on the workstand so it can become apparent pretty quickly

42-11t on a medium cage XT with just a longer b screw.

Works fine up at the 42t end of the cassette but can be a bit hesitant towards the 11t – don’t really notice it on the trail, sometimes on the road – hasn’t bothered me enough to look into Goatlink/radcage etc.

for the zee fr mech I had to fit a front plate from medium cage from an slx i think with the rad cage

works really well

but id probably go fr a goat link if i was doing it again, less hassle

my zee FR with sunrace 11-42 bolts straight on with not even a longer B-screw.

Goat link on my slx medium cage mech works fine with a sunrace 42 tooth cassette.

+1

On a Solaris if that makes any difference.

A bit cheaper than a goatlink….does same job

Pilo S10 adapter for Shimano

Anyone tried an extender cog on SRAM X7 10 speed? Have just picked up a bike with an oval 32 NW and think I might still need somet=hing under 36 at the back, but the b screw is all the way out at present – that said, they’ve also left the from mech and shifter on, so it might just be badly adjusted.

This is spurred by having torn two zee FR rear mechs and chains apart on 11-36 10-speed drivetrains because despite shifting well on a stand, when shifting to the big cog under pressure and force the mech was binding.

It worked fine on both for the first x many months of chain/mech, but after the tolerances wore a bit it just went downhill.

I’ve no idea how you get it to run on a 10-42? Maybe a hardtail?

Nope. Bandit 29r. Wasn’t expecting it to work but it’s all I had in the spares box so I chucked it on. Well over 1000 miles on it now and no issues.

It’s all about frame and derailleur hanget geometry. I couldn’t get XT mechs in 10 and 11spd to work without Goatlink.
Slightly annoyed about that I had to buy this small piece of metal with two holes to make it work though.

This is spurred by having torn two zee FR rear mechs and chains apart on 11-36 10-speed drivetrains because despite shifting well on a stand, when shifting to the big cog under pressure and force the mech was binding.

It worked fine on both for the first x many months of chain/mech, but after the tolerances wore a bit it just went downhill.

I’ve no idea how you get it to run on a 10-42? Maybe a hardtail?

If its doing that on 11-36 (twice) something else is likely wrong … bent mech hanger or play on wheels/axle or something ??? Or You bent something the first time?

Another perspective on it working without if possible is its one less part to fail or get bent …

RADR cage here, works rally well – ESPECIALLY when the chain is more worn and therefore flexible. I had to go back to a normal cage for a while and the shifting was poor through the smaller sprockets.

Have a look at my thread here that I started on using a goat link on my Production Privee.

Since I fitted it it’s been absolutely bang on.

The rights and wrongs of whether you should have to fit some aftermarket bodge can be settled another day. 🙂

I think I broke a zee mech when I first ran the 11-42 sunrace cassette on my tracer

I’ve used an xt and xtr mech with the rad cage for almost a year now. Shifting has been reliable and crisp, with three chains over that period.