# Red Ft. Derailleur issues?



## epicxt (Apr 26, 2005)

Quick question for all you guys with Red ft. derailleurs: have you had any issues with flexiness, etc. in the plates? I'm almost done with my new build, and the only thing left is switching out the Dura-Ace ft. derailleur for a Red one. However, a little birdie just told me that several dealers have been having issues with the ft. plates being a bit flexy and now I'm thinking that I'll hold off on swapping out that ft. derailleur for a few months until this has been either a) solved, or b) proven baseless.

Look forward to replies from those in the know!
-epicxt


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## A-Hol (Dec 16, 2007)

A friend who works for Big S told me to go w/the Force FD over the Red...must be something to the rumors.


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## Drummond (Sep 4, 2007)

There is very little difference between the two, I have a red fm but started with a durace one. The red is easier to lightweight, but both would benefit from having a user servicable bushing like old duraace or mavic.
If you want a consistent look and save 20g then go red otherwise no reason to change. They don't flex and shifting performance is the same.


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## Coolhand (Jul 28, 2002)

Yep, Specialized sent out a notice for that (using Force over Red front deraillers), but not sure if that dealer notice effects other brands at all.


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## STLRoady (Mar 29, 2006)

I've got a new Tarmac SL2 with full SRAM Red. Front derailure doesn't shift well at all when under stress. After about 250 miles I gave up and let the shop swap it out for force and its much much better.


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## epicxt (Apr 26, 2005)

*Good info...*

Thanks for the input everyone. I think that I'll hang tight with the DA fd for now and just deal with the minor chain rub which occurs in gears I'm not normally in anyway. Hopefully SRAM will make the necessary changes to fix the issue pronto!

-epicxt


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## orlin03 (Dec 11, 2007)

I wonder if there were just some bad ones made? I've put 100 miles on my derailleur and crank since Sunday, and (aside from the bolt that attaches the DR to the clamp coming loose) have absolutely no complaints; once the bolt was tightened, I must say it is the quickest, most precise shifting system I have ever experienced, even when crossed over a bit (not that too much crossover is possible with an 11-23 out back).


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

orlin03 said:


> I wonder if there were just some bad ones made? I've put 100 miles on my derailleur and crank since Sunday, and (aside from the bolt that attaches the DR to the clamp coming loose) have absolutely no complaints; once the bolt was tightened, I must say it is the quickest, most precise shifting system I have ever experienced, even when crossed over a bit (not that too much crossover is possible with an 11-23 out back).


I'm in the same boat as you- I switched from Ultegra, and the Red shifting is a lot better. The only issue I've had is that I suck at adjusting my front derailleur, so I've got to tweak it a little more to eliminate some of the chain rub when I'm in the small ring.


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## edorwart (Aug 9, 2007)

I thought that Sram Shifter were not interchangable with Dura-ace Derailleurs? Or does that only apply to the rear derailleur. I would love to get some Red shifters and drop 210g over my Ultegra's but do not have the coin for Red derailleurs at this time.


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## epicxt (Apr 26, 2005)

*Rear derailleur...*

needs to match the shifters. Dura-ace FD works pretty well with the Red shifters. Just rubs a bit in the small/small combos which I'm not in usually.


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## DMFT (Feb 3, 2005)

*Contrary to reports here...*

I have heard otherwise from a few people at Specialized. When my SL2 arrived without a Red der. and without it's Barmac we questioned them and have been informed that they "ran out of them". Other distributors don't have them in stock either so there must be a little shortage currently.

- To one poster who mentioned the Red der. didn't shift well "under stress" - Note : You should never shift either der., either up or down under power. One should always back-off the power for a second, shift, resume pedaling under power. It will make your gear last longer and work better. :thumbsup:


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