# SRAM models for each year - how to identify



## anthro88 (May 17, 2010)

Does SRAM has any king of numerical model for each year, just similiar to what shimano has for each of the lines like ultegra 6600 vx 7700, etc. 

how do you identifiy what year Force or Rival it is? Thanks!


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## krisdrum (Oct 29, 2007)

The changes between "years" of SRAM stuff are pretty significant so it should be pretty easy to tell apart.

Rival is especially easy. Pre 2009/2010, Rival had metal brake blades on the shifters. The color of the rest of the components matched that metal color. After, when they added zero loss to the left shifter, they moved to carbon brake blades that were also longer. Believe the rest of the gruppo is black to match the carbon.

Force is more graphics/color related, and again the slightly longer brake blades.

Red is pretty easy to spot the difference as the new release has some pretty significant changes to many of the components.


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## anthro88 (May 17, 2010)

Good information! so you are saying that there is really no serial or model numbers like in shimano, but we have to look at the cosmetic design, shape, color, etc to identify the year, correct?

it sure would be nice to see pictures of the different years if that is the case.


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## krisdrum (Oct 29, 2007)

anthro88 said:


> Good information! so you are saying that there is really no serial or model numbers like in shimano, but we have to look at the cosmetic design, shape, color, etc to identify the year, correct?
> 
> it sure would be nice to see pictures of the different years if that is the case.


Correct, to my knowledge, no numbering system like Shimano is used. They don't release upgraded product every year, so at this point, there are only 3 generations (the 3rd just got released this week). 

1st gen - shortest brake blades, Rival and Force only. Rival with metal brake levers, Force with carbon

2nd gen - introduction of Red. Includes zero loss, longer brake levers, all of them carbon. They then trickled down the technology from Red into revised versions of Rival and Force and Apex.

3rd gen - just released with the new Red group. New ergonomics, new front deraileur action and a few other things. I haven't fully read up on it yet. 

They still have pictures of what the old Rival levers look like, just minus the shifting blade. Just look at the brake only levers. Metal lever is old Rival, Carbon lever is 2nd gen.


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## RC28 (May 9, 2002)

There are also revisions within the generations.

Rival
1) Silver finish, shorter shifter blade, brake pad holders had the screws set differently, crankset construction was different, no zero loss, trim for fr derailleur was for the small ring instead of the large ring
2) Moved to black finish and carbon brake lever, newer (I believe ) OCT construction, reshaped lever blade to mimic Red's (longer and different shaped), brake pad holder screws moved to the current location, trim moved to big ring, zero loss for left lever, reach adjust. RIVAL logo on brake lever.
2a) SRAM logo on brake lever replaced RIVAL logo.

Force
1) "champagne"like color, shorter shifter blade, brake pad holders had the screws set differently, carbon crankset with just SRAM FORCE logo, no zero loss, trim for fr derailleur was for the small ring instead of the large ring.
1a) revised shift levers with shape that mimics Red, zero loss for left lever, trim moved to big ring, reach adjust,brake pad holder screws moved
2)REvised graphics to mimic Red, revised brakeset to mimic Red, BB30 crankset option added

REd
Besides cosmetic revisions (Red LTE, Red Black), BB30 option addition, newer steel fr deraileur and larger SRAM logos on newer shift levers, there haven't been that many updates since new (up until the newly release Red).

Those are the differences I can think of from memory.


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