# SRAM Force FD problems



## swierszcz (Mar 11, 2007)

I have been running Rival 2009 group with Ultegra craankset without any problems for two years. If fact the shifting was better than with original Rival crank and Ultegra 6750 is much stiffer.
Then I upgraded Rival to Force and I have problems with FD shifting: when I am on 23-21 on the back, I cannot reliably shift to the big ring. I got the chain locked between FD and a chainring at least two times. while shifting to the small ring.

Had no such problems with Rival. Had my LBS take a look a it, they made some adjustments but it did not help much.
I noticed that the Force FD cage just looked wider than the Rival one. And, after I measured it, it is wider. There is up to 1mm difference in various corresponding secrtions of the FD cage between Rival and Force. Could it be my problem?


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## GDTRFB (Feb 12, 2011)

I have had endless problems with my Force FD. Poor shifting & drops are the norm. The cage is wide & flimsy, it distorts easily. Sram is replacing the FD, but I'm skeptical.
Several others have written about poor Force FD performance.


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## swierszcz (Mar 11, 2007)

I managed to get better shifting by turning the clamp slightly clockwise, so the cage is not parallel to the chainrings, with the back of the cage pointing slightly to the rear wheel - 3-5 degree.
It is still not as good as Rival but better. There is no doubt this is the Force FD design problem. The following combinations work great. all on the same bike with RED shifters:
- Rival crank with Rival FD
- Ultegra crank with Rival FD
- Ultegra crank with DA 7800 FD
I am still excited about SRAM technology - I cannot imagine that the same people who designed the great RED shifters, came up with useless piece of junk like Force FD.


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## mogarbage (Jul 18, 2011)

I just switched to SRAM and my FD keeps tossing the chain. It takes a hard push and hold for the derailleur to get the chain up to the big ring. I thought it was my high low, but looks more like a engineering shortcoming. Has everyone else having this problem switched out to Rival?


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## swierszcz (Mar 11, 2007)

mogarbage said:


> I just switched to SRAM and my FD keeps tossing the chain. It takes a hard push and hold for the derailleur to get the chain up to the big ring. I thought it was my high low, but looks more like a engineering shortcoming. Has everyone else having this problem switched out to Rival?


Bad shifting can be caused by so many factors that "engineering shortcoming" is really the last thing on the list: after proper alignment , delimiting screws, cable installation and quality, cable tension, problems with a crankset etc..
I have been using SRAM Rival for 4 years. The front shifting requires more push than on ultegra but Rival shifts well. Problems reported in this thead are with Force FD.


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## mogarbage (Jul 18, 2011)

I should have been more clear, i use a force grouppo as well. If switching my FD to rival would help out then its certainly worth tackling.


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## GDTRFB (Feb 12, 2011)

There are many posts about poor FD shifting with Force. I have had countless chain drops. Several different mechanics have tried to get things right, but the adjustments never last. The cage is flimsy and deforms easily. I have an Ultegra 6600 FD that I may try instead of the Force. The 6600 cage is much sturdier, and is narrower. I ride with guys who have 105 5600 stuff, and after 5000 + combined miles this year, one of them had a FD drop _for the first time_ yesterday. I have them every ride. It's not the mechanics, the same ones work on all of our bikes. Sram's FD shifting is far behind Shimano's.

The forums are full of Sram FD problem posts. Try to find one on Shimano.


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## swierszcz (Mar 11, 2007)

mogarbage said:


> I should have been more clear, i use a force grouppo as well. If switching my FD to rival would help out then its certainly worth tackling.


It may help, for a while I was running SRAM Red shifters, Force RD, and Rival FD with Ultegra crank. Then I decided to "upgrade" and here my problems started. After spending a lot of time on it I managed to eliminate all problems except rather sluggish shift to the big ring when on two big sprockets on the back.
Turning the clamp, and the cage, clockwise around 3 deg changed a lot.


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