Time to sound off on this important debate!

[mntbiker12]

Nope, no politics here.

Just want to talk rear derailleurs. What side of the fence are you on: high normal or low normal?

I rode high normal forever until my most recent rear mech, which is low normal. After a good year of riding with it, I'm faced with possibly replacing it, and I'm wondering whether to stick with it or return to high normal.

Couple of things:

I do like the idea of the low normal and it springing back to the larger sprockets for better downshifts. In my opinion, downshifts up steeps are the most critical and the ones you hate to miss.

However, over the last few months, it feels like the spring has a dead spot between the 4th and 5th sprocket which results in a mis-shift between those two gears. I'm meticulous about cleaning the cassette, chain, and rear derailleur constantly before anything else on my bike to keep shifting crisp. That includes lubing the housing and changing cables frequently. No matter what I do, I can't get rid of the dead spot. Having only owned one low normal der., I don't know if it's a defect, wear and tear, or something common.

So, before springing for a new one, I just wanted to hear from others and whether there's a preference for one over the other.

Thanks.

Woohoo it's Friday and I'm only 2.5 hours on the clock from hittin' some tasty singletrack!!

And then , which if done properly, should result in .

[Neccros]

*cough*High normal*cough*

Dead spot might be caused by a slightly bent hanger... I could be wrong

[allison]

Are you talking about REGULAR and RAPID RISE?

I don't get it otherwise

[Neccros]

Rapid Rise= Low Normal
Regular rise=High Normal

Rapid Rise=Retard Rise!!

[mntbiker12]

Yeah, I guess High normal = regular, Low normal = Rapid Rise

Originally Posted by allison

Are you talking about REGULAR and RAPID RISE?

I don't get it otherwise

Here's a quick recap on difference straight from Shimano:

http://cycle.shimano-eu.com/publish/...fference2.html

[Collette]

I'm running a long cage, whichever one that is.

[Winston]

I prefer mine to say SRAM.

[Neccros]

Originally Posted by Collette

I'm running a long cage, whichever one that is.

Long cage refers to the range of the derailer in rerlation to the size of the cassette...

So if you run a 34t cassette, you should run a long cage derailer....

Both Rapid rise and regular rise came in long cage

[denmother]

I used Shimano Rapid rise for years (8 speed). Then I swtiched to SRAM 9 speed (sponsorship), the shifting is just as good if not better than Shimano Rapid Rise in my opinion. I use the SRAM XO trigger shifters and love them. I converted all my bikes. I use the long cage on my Trail bike and the short cage on my DH bike.

[Neccros]

Originally Posted by denmother

I used Shimano Rapid rise for years (8 speed). Then I swtiched to SRAM 9 speed (sponsorship), the shifting is just as good if not better than Shimano Rapid Rise in my opinion. I use the SRAM XO trigger shifters and love them. I converted all my bikes. I use the long cage on my Trail bike and the short cage on my DH bike.

I thought rapid rise only came out in recent years with the 9 speed stuff???

[uzziboy]

how bout dont care/dont need one. i run a rohloff speedhub and just need a tensioner

[tkblazer]

i've never ridden a bike with rapid rise until i rode a yeti 4x... i must i admit that it wasn't bad.. using the big thumb lever to shift into a harder gear is a lot easier to do with the big lever when you're out of the saddle sprinting. i do run sram setups on my bikes though, not a fan of the shimano rear derailluers.. i like the solid shifts that sram has

[spookydave]

Originally Posted by Winston

I prefer mine to say SRAM.

Rapid Rise= Low Normal
Regular rise=High Normal

SRAM = [SIZE=5]MADE IN USA [/SIZE]

[2wheel_lee]

Originally Posted by Neccros

Long cage refers to the range of the derailer in rerlation to the size of the cassette...

So if you run a 34t cassette, you should run a long cage derailer....

False.

You can use either short, medium, or long cage derailleurs with an 11/34 cassette. However, if you're using a triple up front, you should use a long cage derailleur (a medium is ok in some cases).

Yes, the cage length determines how many "teeth" of gear changes, but not cassette size. All current Shimano MTB derailleurs can be used on a 34 tooth cassette (older ones were good for 32 tooth cassettes).

[tkblazer]

Originally Posted by spookydave

Rapid Rise= Low Normal
Regular rise=High Normal

SRAM = [SIZE=5]MADE IN USA [/SIZE]

you sure? i thought all of the SRAM stuff was made in taiwan...

[2wheel_lee]

For newbies, low normal is best. It makes the actions between the left and right shifters the same (push on the same lever and get the same results).

High normal rear and low normal front is very confusing for newbies. Those of us who've been riding gearies for a while have adapted our brains to backwards shifting from both Shimano and SRAM (twist grip shifting was backwards as well).

Interesting that Shimano hasn't adopted low normal on their road systems - too much resistance from the user base? I think so.

Nonetheless, I want to try the new XT Shadow derailleur on my M3. It only comes in a low normal. I'm sure this will be a problem getting used to for quite a while!

[cjwally]

How about SS with no derailleur....Why isn't that an option?

[2wheel_lee]

Originally Posted by Neccros

I thought rapid rise only came out in recent years with the 9 speed stuff???

Nope, it's been out for a while. It came out with the 8-speed XTR 950 series stuff. It never took off because the industry hasn't embraced it.

Which is exactly why Shimano continues to use it (and it's good for beginners, as I mentioned).

Originally Posted by cjwally

How about SS with no derailleur....Why isn't that an option?

The answer is "don't care."

Originally Posted by tkblazer

you sure? i thought all of the SRAM stuff was made in taiwan...

That would explain why SRAM stuff works well!

DOH!!!....sorry, the OP said no politics.

[mntbiker12]

Actually, I think it's the other way around and will be top normal.

http://www.beyondbikes.com/bb/ItemMa...2&MatrixType=1

Originally Posted by 2wheel_lee

Nonetheless, I want to try the new XT Shadow derailleur on my M3. It only comes in a low normal. I'm sure this will be a problem getting used to for quite a while!

[2wheel_lee]

Originally Posted by mntbiker12

Actually, I think it's the other way around and will be top normal.

http://www.beyondbikes.com/bb/ItemMa...2&MatrixType=1

Sweet! I bought it about a month ago, and I haven't installed it yet. After I bought it, I read somewhere that it was a low-normal. I'm glad that it's not.