Deore MTB gear.....?

[Banatean]

Last year when we bought the bikes we didn't know much about the different levels of gear a mountain bike can have so now that we know more ...are thinking of "upgrading" out bikes that realy only have about 150 kilometres on them.Anyway my Trek 4900 came with chezzy front deraileur (Alivio...) and brakes (Pro something...chezzy) ,and tires (Bontrager AC Jones...),etc.Now what we want to do is go Deore all the way (my rear deraileur is Deore),the tires are already changed to Continental Travel Contact.
My question is this,will i benefit in any way by yankin my front deraileur Alivio in favor of Deore ?,and my rim brakes will be better once i change to Deore ?,will the difference be that much better ?

Thank you fellow MTB'rs.
Dan

 

[Marx SS]

I currently run a MTB – Avanti Aggressor – which has Shimano Deore LX front derailer, crank & XT rear derailer.
I heard that Deore & above is good stuff. Anything above Deore doesn’t really give better action, but may put up with more in wear. But the chain & cassette is usally the first thing to go in wear anyway, & no level of equipment can put up with mega heavy dirt & grit at the end of the day (like offroad racing).

Brake action between Deore & Deore XTR (top of tree) are similar. Going for hydralic brakes will give you a certain edge here, but my exp with hydraulic brakes are that they are overkill for 90% of MTB use (who downhills??). Also make sure you price disk brake pads, you go through more of those than canterlever shoes easy with normal use.

Most bike makers run higher quality in rear derailer as its out there for all to see & go lower spec on cranks, front derailer cassette. They usually skimp on pedals, seat & rims as they’re harder to acknowledge.

I mostly commute but rack up big miles as I do it every day. I do some light offroad (no racing) & have gone through 3x cassettes, 3x chains, 2x set chainwheels, 1x rear hub, front rim (split along braking edge, brake wear [cheapo rim]), 3x canterlever shoes [set]. In about 7 years.

 

[dabac]

Originally posted by Banatean
My question is this,will i benefit in any way by yankin my front deraileur Alivio in favor of Deore ?,and my rim brakes will be better once i change to Deore ?,will the difference be that much better ?

"If it aint broken, don't fix it!" Once you start upgrading its easy to continue and before you know you've sunk a lot of money into a bike that maybe isn't worth it. IMHO front derailleurs are so heavily stressed that it's hard to notice a significant (performance) difference anyhow, as long as they are in decent shape. Rear derailleurs are more critical, a good one will work under load while covered in mud, a bad one won't.

Try to find a bike that's OTHERWISE equal to yours and compare to see where you'd like some improvement.

V-brakes: geometrically speaking there's usually very little difference between cheapo's and expensive ones. If there's nothing disastrously wrong the cheap one usually performs decently if set up properly. Likewise not even XTR will work well if shoddily assembled.
Then again I had to scrap a couple of Tektro's because they just couldn't be adjusted to stop squealing.

 

[Hardtail]

My bike came with an Alivio front deraileur and a LX rear deraileur. I havent had any problems with the alivio stuff... yet. Its more important to have a good (expensive) rear deraileur than a good front, they use to work ok anyway.

My tektro's doesn't squeal.

 

[Banatean]

Thank you guys,i have to agree with you all,if ain't broke ...why reolace it (especialy when it's relatively still kinda new) ,the bikes actually perform very nice,it's just that i see all this Deore stuff on so many bikes,but really who cares...right ?
I will take your guys advice and get the most of what i've got;i calculated the cost for two complete sets of Deore Vbrakes with levers (for two bikes),two front and one rear deraileur...for around $ 350 Canuck bucks !...a tad much.
Thank you again
Dan

 

[boudreaux]

Originally posted by Banatean
Thank you guys,i have to agree with you all,if ain't broke ...why reolace it (especialy when it's relatively still kinda new) ,the bikes actually perform very nice,it's just that i see all this Deore stuff on so many bikes,but really who cares...right ?

Right! Especially if you actually USE the stuff and get it muddy. Then who knows xtr from sheit.

 

[allmountain]

Originally posted by Banatean
Thank you guys,i have to agree with you all,if ain't broke ...why reolace it (especialy when it's relatively still kinda new) ,the bikes actually perform very nice,it's just that i see all this Deore stuff on so many bikes,but really who cares...right ?
I will take your guys advice and get the most of what i've got;i calculated the cost for two complete sets of Deore Vbrakes with levers (for two bikes),two front and one rear deraileur...for around $ 350 Canuck bucks !...a tad much.
Thank you again
Dan

Dan, welcome to the wonderful world of Mountain Biking! probably one of the most expensive sports out there. I just wanted to dispell someones myth that you can't tell the difference between V-Brakes above Deore. That's ****! That's where you start to notice the MOST difference. LX and above all have a paralellogram linkage that makes for better/stronger and more consistent braking cause it continues to contact the pad w/the rim at the same angle.

A rear derailleur is quite important, but as long as you have a Deore/LX/XT, you'll be fine - just make sure you are running GOOD housing and cables or else it will all go to the s**t very quickly. A good mechanic will tell you to spend the 10$ more (yes, Canadian) to get good stainless cables and sealed Shimano housing. Insist on sealed cable ends (called Ferrels) as those crappy Jagwire aluminum things are garbage.

As for brake levers, Deore/LX are very similar, it's not till XT/XTR that you get a real difference. So as long as your at that level, you'll be good.

My words
me out

 

[Banatean]

Very well put "allmountain" ,what i don't understand is why do bike makers don't go all the way Deore,Altus,Alivio etc...they kinda take advantage of the fact that some new bikers can't tell the difference untill you look closer at another bike and only then you realize....wait a minute,my bike is got decent stuff and crapy stuff !,i think that bike component should remain the same.What that tells me is that everything below regular Deore is the same low end (Alivio,Acera,Altus and Tourney) and everything above Deore is the stuff we all would like to have Deore LX,XT and XTR !

Thank you all
Dan

 

[Banatean]

Well,i couldn't resist so yesterday i shelled out about $ 300 canuck dolars and bought Deore stuff; 2 sets of V-brakes with levers,2 front deraileurs and an LX rear....i hope the investment is worth it .
Thank you all,
Dan

 

[IKON]

Why 2 sets of V brakes and frontas derailuer

 

[Banatean]

Originally posted by IKON
Why 2 sets of V brakes and frontas derailuer

Because i'm changing the brakes ,the front and rear deraileurs as well.If you are familiar with the Trek 4900 and Specialized HardRock CrMo 4130 (women model) ,both bikes came with chezzy brakes and front deraileurs,my Trek came with Deore rear deraileur and Alivio front,for brakes it "had" ProMax ....,the Specialized came with whoosy rims (so i got her some Sun Fire Rhyno Lites rims on Deore hubs,plus i converted her rear rim from freewheel to freehub too,i also made her bike a 24 speed now with the adition of an 8 speed cassette and an 8 grip shift gear changer...works like a charm), rear deraileur (Altus...) and the front deraileur was Shimano SIS (that's all it said on it,basic stamped metal ****),the brakes totaly "no name" so off they went too.So the Deore rear deraileur from my Trek went on to her Specialized,for me i got a Deore LX.
I know some may say ya but the bikes were not equiped with this Deore stuff,but who cares ?

Dan

 

[IKON]

I got the SIS thing on my bike but sadly it snapped just when my Brother had got an Lx from his work,lol.

My brakes where promax but upgraded them to Deore V's on the bak and a Dear mech. on the front.

my front hub is a promax,are they any good coz i like bent it the first time i did some mad downhill stuff.
the bak hub was a shimano bent the first day i got the bike.

im going to buy deore wheels to see if they help me out.

 

[Banatean]

Originally posted by IKON
I got the SIS thing on my bike but sadly it snapped just when my Brother had got an Lx from his work,lol.

My brakes where promax but upgraded them to Deore V's on the bak and a Dear mech. on the front.

my front hub is a promax,are they any good coz i like bent it the first time i did some mad downhill stuff.
the bak hub was a shimano bent the first day i got the bike.

im going to buy deore wheels to see if they help me out.

The guys at the bike shop said that Deore is good stuff,basicaly it's entry level performance gear and the way they are build tend to show just that.For rims check out Sun Fire Rhyno stuff (i got on my GF's Specialized the Rhyno Lites and she just loves them,also they get good reviews on e-pinion).
Take care IKON.
Dan

 

[IKON]

Well the deores(deore hub,mavic spokes n rims) are £50 a piece i think.
with my bro's discount i get the two for £85.

They arent as light as i would like,are the Sun Fire Rhyno things light?

 

[Banatean]

The Rhyno Lite rims are supposed to be lighter than regular Rhyno rims,but how light they are i don't know.You have to keep in mind that if they are way to light they may not be that strong.
Dan

 

[Greg-O]

wow, glad to see some enthusiasm!

i prefer to wait till it breaks. i'm still running my promax V-brakes. they work fine, but require very frequent adjustment. It's not something I mind though, considering I work in a bike shop and can center/align a set of brakes with my eyes closed and an angry customer screaming at me

 

[davidmc]

Originally posted by dabac
"If it aint broken, don't fix it!" Once you start upgrading its easy to continue and before you know you've sunk a lot of money into a bike that maybe isn't worth it. IMHO front derailleurs are so heavily stressed that it's hard to notice a significant (performance) difference anyhow, as long as they are in decent shape. Rear derailleurs are more critical, a good one will work under load while covered in mud, a bad one won't.

Try to find a bike that's OTHERWISE equal to yours and compare to see where you'd like some improvement.

V-brakes: geometrically speaking there's usually very little difference between cheapo's and expensive ones. If there's nothing disastrously wrong the cheap one usually performs decently if set up properly. Likewise not even XTR will work well if shoddily assembled.
Then again I had to scrap a couple of Tektro's because they just couldn't be adjusted to stop squealing.

I agree, unless u really, really like that frame & plan on keeping it indefinitely; it works out to be more expensive to upgrade than to just get a new one w/ the goodies already on it. It's up to you but, like the other poster said-"...if it aint broke, don't fix it. Generally the lower end parts will wear quicker but there are "some" that end going = 2 or > higher grade one's.

 

[Banatean]

Very true,but i seem to have this bug that always screams in my ear ....change this and that... so before i know it i'm changing stuff; and always it starts slow then it corupts me into going all the way.
The good thing is that "most" of the time i'm happy with the changes i make and i hang onto my stuff for a very long time this way i'm trying to get my money's worth,the only problem i now have is this stuff i remove is cluthering the garage so maybe i should try to get a few $ for it (maybe eBay !).
Dan

 

[davidmc]

Originally posted by Banatean
Very true,but i seem to have this bug that always screams in my ear ....change this and that... so before i know it i'm changing stuff; and always it starts slow then it corupts me into going all the way.
The good thing is that "most" of the time i'm happy with the changes i make and i hang onto my stuff for a very long time this way i'm trying to get my money's worth,the only problem i now have is this stuff i remove is cluthering the garage so maybe i should try to get a few $ for it (maybe eBay !).
Dan

It is hard to fight that temptation !!!

 

[Banatean]

Oh yahh....,hey guys the other day i bought this front only rim made by Mavic ,model X221 on Deore hub brand new without skewers for only $ 15 us !,i thought it was a good buy because at REI they sell it for $ 60 us !;anyway i thought of using it on my Trek ,take the tire/tube out of my Bontrager Corvair rim (front rim ;that's a good rim BTW,keep it as a spare),would it look gooffy ,what do you think ?
Thank you.
Dan