# SRAM Rival vs Red shifting performance?



## OnTheRivet (Sep 3, 2004)

Just curious for those that have ridden both is Red appreciably better in feel and action? The reason I ask is I installed Rival on my cross bike and have put the first real miles on the new SRAM stuff after riding Shimano exclusively and the Rival shifters feel well... crappy. I've fussed with the cable runs trying to to sharpen up the shifting but it still feels vague and cheap. It'll work for cross but if Red feels anything like this I can't imagine anyone making a serious comparison to Shimano Dura Ace. The Dura Ace on my road bike is light years better than the Rival on my cross bike. A couple other things, the lever throw to shift to a larger cog in back is too far and the worst, dumping gears to the largest cog trying to ride up a steep section only to realize that last gear you were hoping to get wasn't there and you have just downshifted at the most inopportune moment. I'm sure I'll adjust to the idiosyncrasies but still a bit underwhelmed.


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## JHAN (Jun 29, 2010)

I have Sram Force on my new road bike, (always had Shimano) and know what you mean.
I thought it was just a matter of getting used to it but after 3weeks, I still prefer the Ultegra on my old road bike.


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## artnshel (Jun 29, 2004)

Two years ago I rode Ultegra and disliked how quiet and indistinct the shifts detents were. I went to Red shifters with a Rival derailleur and like it so much more. The shifts are positive and consistent.


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## Kram (Jan 28, 2004)

Yea. I switched to Force/Rival and am never going back. The shifts, esp downshifts, are much more crisp than Shim and go.


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## Vegancx (Jan 22, 2004)

What generation of Rival are you running? 

I still use the 07 alloy levers for 'cross, and my initial reaction after putting 10,000 miles on the road w/ the early Rival stuff was similar. It felt like it took too long to dump a lot of gears quickly to get up short, steep stuff. 

The new Rival is decidedly better as far as lever throw and feel. 

With good cables, housing, and routing (not to mention a mechanic who knows what she or he is doing), I've found that the early Rival shifting is almost robotic in its consistency and feel. The lever throw is still a bit long, but the feel is excellent. 

I now use 2010 Force on my road bike, and it's even more impressive with less lever throw and lighter action.


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## OnTheRivet (Sep 3, 2004)

Vegancx said:


> What generation of Rival are you running?
> 
> I still use the 07 alloy levers for 'cross, and my initial reaction after putting 10,000 miles on the road w/ the early Rival stuff was similar. It felt like it took too long to dump a lot of gears quickly to get up short, steep stuff.
> 
> ...



It's new Rival and really I'm not new to this bike mechanic game, was a shop wrench when you actually had to know how to work on stuff (instead of throw away and replace) and build wheels. That being said still not in the ballpark with my Shimano stuff.


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## rsroka23 (Jan 24, 2010)

You can actually pull the shift lever close to the bar and the action seems a lot easier. 

Also, when you're halfway into trying to shift into an easier that isn't there, there is a motion of dragging the shifter left still to a click and *magic* no shift either way.


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## CX Noob (Dec 1, 2009)

OnTheRivet said:



> That being said still not in the ballpark with my Shimano stuff.


That's because they don't play in the same park. Shimano and SRAM have distinct qualities, and it sounds like you simply prefer the feel of Shimano. That's cool. But it has nothing to do with the performance of your Rival shifter. The half of us in this thread who rave about our Rival shifters also probably think Shimano hasn't made a shifter that felt good since 9-speed Dura Ace.

To answer your question though, Red shifters feel noticably better than Rival. It will never feel dead and floppy like Shimano though, so you might want to switch back rather than upgrade.


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## biken (Jul 20, 2010)

I was a long time Shimano user, but my new cross bike has SRAM Rival. I noticed that nearly every major manufacture (Trek, Specialized, Cannondale, etc) use SRAM components on their highend cross bikes. To me, that says a lot. 

I will say though that the SRAM feel has taking some getting use to. The biggest difference is the 1 to 1 ratio and instant gear shifts. Now that I've put in some miles on the SRAM stuff, I have really grown to like it. I really love the one lever for up and down shifts- so much more intuitive once you get the hang of it.


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## sa7nt (Jun 28, 2010)

I'm a longtime Shimano user. My two latest bikes have SRAM - one with Force and one with Red. I'm never going back to Shimano. My bike that is used solely for the indoor trainer has Ultegra and the entire time I'm riding it I miss my SRAM bikes.


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## OnTheRivet (Sep 3, 2004)

biken said:


> I will say though that the SRAM feel has taking some getting use to. The biggest difference is the 1 to 1 ratio and instant gear shifts. Now that I've put in some miles on the SRAM stuff, I have really grown to like it. I really love the one lever for up and down shifts- so much more intuitive once you get the hang of it.


You're right, it's starting to grow on me, getting a bit smoother with each ride also. This isn't directed at you but I find it surreal that people get defensive about bike parts.


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## sa7nt (Jun 28, 2010)

OnTheRivet said:


> This isn't directed at you but I find it surreal that people get defensive about bike parts.


This type of behavior isn't limited to bike parts. Brand loyalty applies to almost everything to include cars, clothing, jewelry, electronics, etc....

People are crazy.


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## TedH (Jan 1, 1970)

once you get the cable tension adjusted, it's very snappy; much more so than Shimano (7800/6800). I have Red shifters and new Force and think that Force can be set up to almost equal the zero-loss that Red has for the rear derailleur, just takes a little bit of effort to set up the rear. For me, Ultegra and DA (7800) didn't have the real positive snap that SRAM now has.


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