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Is XT really that much better than SLX? What are the differences.
Medium cage BTW (Bash/36/22 up front) for an old style Orange Five, and I ride a bit of everything on it, XC, Trail centre and a bit of DH (Warncliffe/Stainburn/Silton).
I've had both on various bikes and couldn't tell the difference. There's not that much difference in price either.
Usually mechs are much of a muchness at that level, XT perhaps slightly lighter and longer lasting, the shifters would have a greater impact on shifting quality.
IF 10 speed can you hold out for the new clutch ones? Maybe get a 2nd hand one for now.
well, I have LX, SLX and XT rear mechs. all shift the same without any noticable difference. However, my LX jockey wheels have needed replaced but my XT ones have not despite more use. So the XT is cheaper in the long run in my case. I've not had the SLX long enough to be ale to judge wear rates of the jockey wheels.
Thought as much, the last 2 mechs i've had have been SLX and they shift perfectly fine. Just wondered if I should 'upgrade' to XT. They do look blingier bu I think I'll save my £15 or so and buy some new cables and maybe some new grips.
Cheers all.
I have SLX, XT and Saint. All perform flawlessly, as I've come to expect from Shimano at this level. The XT and Saint look more bling, have ceramic sealed jockey wheel bearings rather than the usual bushings on the SLX. The SLX parallelogram is partly steel, whereas the XT and Saint are all alloy, making them slightly lighter. The Saint is stronger.
For my money, the XT and SLX are much of a muchness, just get whatever matches your cranks. The Saint, on the other hand, is a different animal - both in looks and toughness (and price!), and may be the way to go for the style of riding that suits a double & bash up front.
Yeah i'd like a saint mech but just can't justify the £95 price tag at the moment. could be cheaper ion the long run if it lasts well though. I do seem to damage rear mechs quite a bit!!
could be cheaper ion the long run if it lasts well though
Yeah - that was my excuse 😉
Bought my Saint from a German mob and paid 67 Euros, which is about 55 quid is it not? Bout the same as an XT from CRC.
I always used XT, but recently switched to SLX as it was an emergency, nip-down-to-the-LBS purchase. I can't tell the difference shifting-wise. SLX jockey wheels do appear to be made of...
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I couldn't believe how fast they've worn. But I've got some Tacx ones to go on when i can be arsed fitting them
I'd probably just get whichever I could get at the best price at the time out of those two.