Which Shimano XT gears for a Sherpa build.

[mikerr]

Hi, I'm a new member on the forum that has just taken delivery of a Sherpa frame.

I'd like to fit Shimano XT front and rear mechs. So, looking for some help please.
Can anyone recommend the best versions of these gears to suit my needs?

I will be using Thorn's Dura Ace conversion thumbshifters with a Deore 44/32/22 crankset and an 11-34, 9speed cassette.

Many Thanks,

Mike

[jags]

best of luck with your new bike,i have shimano xt770 front and rear i had to get on line barrell adjusters fitted as there's adjustment on the mech's but they work great .im sure any of the xt will work fine good stuff that shimano.
,

[mikerr]

Thanks for your reply Jags and helpful information.

Since I posted my question I have been looking at pictures of Sherpas on the web. I notice that many use the top swing XT 770 for the front mech. So I think that's the one I'm going to go for.

Still undecided on the rear mech. As well as the XT 770 there is the 771 which seems to look the same. Will need to find out what the difference is.

Mike

[bobs]

Hi Mike,
I've got an old LX one which works great , just decide how much you want to spend. Have you tried out your thumbshifters. I had a set of "Pauls" which are almost the same and did not get on with them.
Bob

[john28july]

If its any help take a look at my Sherpa
John
www.pbase.com/leftpoole

http://www.flickr.com/photos/leftpoole/sets/

[mikerr]

Hi Bob,

I do have an old XT rear and LX front on my Cannondale I could use. As I have most of the other parts it seems a shame to cannibalise the Cannondale just for the gears.
I haven't got as far as trying out the thumbshifters yet. They will be new to me. In my biking life I went from Campag downtube changers straight on to Rapidfire, missing out on thumbshifters.

John
I very much enjoyed looking over the pics of your bikes and the Sherpa in particular. You have given me some good ideas on how to put the finishing touches. So far I have only thought about building the basic bike.

Thanks,

Mike

 

[mikerr]

Just a quick update, I went with the combination that Jags recommended, XT700 mechs front and rear.
No problems at all setting them up.

Although my bike is still not finished I did try a spin round the block and they work just fine.
Also found the Thorn mods for thumbshifters nice to use.

Mike

[jags]

mike one thing if you have a rear rack make sure the outer cable for the rear mech is well tucked in .what i did i cable tied tied it to rear rack so it's nice and neat reason for this theres no barrell adjuster on mech so if the pannier hit's the outer cable the gears will skip took me a while to figure this one out taught i had a faulty mech.works great.have fun.

[mikerr]

Jags, thanks for the tip.

Have been fitting mudguards and rack today and I can see what you mean.
Just waiting on a couple more parts, once they are fitted I'm ready to go.

Mike

[jags]

no problem mike ,whatabout some pic's