Need help with MTB components

FYI. 8-speed & 9-speed Shimano rear derailleurs have the same PULL and are interchangeable ...

• Are you sure you need a new rear derailleur?
  

There is really no practical difference between the particular Shimano XT (772) rear derailleur and the XTR (951) RAPID RISE rear derailleurs from the turn-of-the-Century ... that is, the reverse-pull expedites downshiftng then-as-now ...

• the only (?) thing you need to know with regard to a Rapid Rise rear derailleur is that if you are not using a Rapid Rise shifter then the functions of the "triggers" (or, whichever shift mechanism is employed) will be reversed and so continuity between the particular bike and others will not be present. I don't know if that is a serious factor for most riders.
  
  
• The SHADOW design is Shimano's contribution to rear derailleur design which may be comparable in significance to the slant parallel design which SunTour introduced a few decades ago ... at least for MTBers ... because the rear derailleur is less vulnerable to side impacts than with a standard rear derailleur.
  

• BTW. I honestly thought that the new (e.g., 7900) Road shifters & rear derailleurs would use a Shadow rear derailleur design ... I am now going to presume that until the Di3 (Di4, or later?) is introduced with a cosmetically reconfigured rear derailleur that Shimano's rear Road derailleurs will continue with the standard pull rear derailleurs.
  

I think that whether you ride in dry or wet conditions may be a factor in which BB & crankset type you choose ... while the EXTERNAL Bottom Bracket has been in vogue for almost a decade, many people consider them to be susceptible to wet conditions. Octalink components (which some people hate, but which I love) are still available.

SLX is considered to be a best-buy ... slightly closer to XT than to LX, but with a closer to LX price.

Cosmetically, if that matters, XT components have maintained greater continuity over the years than components from other groups.

BTW. For longevity, I think that Marzocchi forks are the best choice.

cheers for that post,

the thing is the terminology thats used...i am easily condused at the best of times but i have no idea what they mean when they say: Top Normal, Direct Cable Routing

so where does the gear cable enter that derailler?

I have a set of Marzochi Bomber forks which have been on there for 11 years and have take serious abuse and are still rock solid, the shocks are probably not super lively any more but they are still good but they need replaced as at some point water has got under the paint and the magnesuim has started to bubble and corrode and is flaking. So i am not so sure how strong they are now...just lac of maintenance on my part i am sure. I was looking at rockshock Tora 302 forks but you reckon that morzochi is still better for thr price?

The BB is a square taper cartridge type...UN52 if i remember correctly, i am keeping that as it is still solid.

I have seen a new bike that i am buying hopefully next month...
evanscycles.comx control 210 2011 mountain bike ec024832Open ↗ i was checking it out i the shop a few weeks back and it looks stunning...just got to ask permission from the wife...
this will be my main bike and my old one is just for rainy days and keeping for in winter etc...

FWIW. Since you are planning on keeping your current MTB, one upgrade you may want to give serious consideration to is replacing the current rear shock (presuming your MTB is full suspension, that is) with a FOX FLOAT R rear shock of one iteration or another ...

The FOX FLOAT R shock supposedly makes up for any of the sins of this-or-that rear linkage design with regard to bobbing ... it may be worth further investigatoin on your part before you buy the particular Lapierre MTB, or any other MTB .

hey man,

thanks for the advice, i will bear it in mind when choosing a new bike...most bikes with that type of rear shock tend to be outside my budget, i.e. > £1500

perhaps i should raise my budget....