Road Drivetrain compatability

[BFloFoxRider.]

Forgive me if there has been a forum on this already, but i tried searching and found nothing.. Maybe im just not good using the search?
Well anyways i know on a mountain bike alot of DH/FR's use road cassette's. My question is, can you use the road derrailluers too, or are they too fragile?
For example i have seen dura ace derailluers (the older model's) on mountain bikes, but ive never seen the carbon derailluers or more "lightweight" ones on any mountain bike.
Will they work if they are cleaned alot or are they too weak?

Thanks

[BFloFoxRider.]

Originally Posted by mechmann

RD is no difference between road and mtn except cage length (pretty sure this is true for shimano) i have an ultegra one if you want to buy it from me.

you don't want to use 10 speed stuff. stick to 9 speed. the SRAM cassettes that i bought at The Path are working great (9speed road cassette). call and tell Brian you want one. it will get to you next day.

How much would it cost?
i just need something so i can fix my dh bike, and i was thinking i'll switch over to road drivetrain in the rear while im slowly fixing it. and if im going to drop my money into i mine as well do it the right way

oh and i did notice road derailluers are just like mountain... they even have cage lengths.. so im gonna get a short one if i got one

[2wheel_lee]

I used to run an Ultegra derailleur on my M3. The problem that I had with it was that the B-tension screw plate is made of aluminum on this derailleur where it is steel on mtb derailleurs. Because of all the bouncing, this plate would bend then eventually break. I went through two plates in a couple months (and consider that I don't ride my DH bike that often), so I gave up on it and went with the XT Shadow derailleur.

Yes, road derailleurs will work, but I think their longevity in DH use is limited. Ultegra cassettes work well, though.

[2wheel_lee]

Originally Posted by mechmann

i had that happen on my DH bike as well, but figured out that due to the chain growth on the VPP suspension, i did not have enough chain length. added two links and the problem went away.

My problem was not chain growth related. When I build suspension bikes, I remove the shock and cycle the swingarm to ensure chain growth isn't a problem in all gears as well as that the cables all move correctly.

[2wheel_lee]

Even still, I rarely ride in the easier gears on the M3. And when I do ride in the easier gears, I'm probably sitting on the seat, and I'm not going through much suspension travel.

[2wheel_lee]

Although the SRAM vs. Shimano is another topic, my reasoning for staying with Shimano is simple: I am often a creature of habit. I've always used Shimano stuff, so when I build bikes, out of habit I use Shimano stuff. Only when Shimano threatened to go Retard Rise across their lineup was I looking at SRAM. Even my road bikes have always had Shimano...until recently. My current roadie has the SRAM Force components, so maybe this is the beginning of me changing over....?

Just the same, for many years, I always used Hayes Mag brakes, only last year I tried using Avids on my DH bike. I now have them on my AM bike and now my 4X bike, so I'm slowly changing over.

Also, I used to use Rock Shox forks on everything, until I started getting burned with junk. Then I went to Manitou, where I got burned again. I had a brief stint with a Marzocchi fork, but never really got interested in their stuff. Now I'm between Rock Shox and Fox.

I could go on an on with many brands or parts that I generally use on my bikes.

Oh, and did I even need to mention Intense?

[nintense]

a road cassette.
If you like to run on 32 / 34 cassette, you need a special arrangement, but it's possible.