You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Saw pics of a mech a while ago. Anyone know when the new groupset is out? 2024 or something i imagine
Its long overdue, would guess sometime this year?
Lots of XT bits being used and older bits (I think):
-XT shifter (modified 12 speed?)
-Modified Shimano road block?
-M8000 cranks (didnt think they did an 83mm version, unless they've pressed in a different axle)
https://www.pinkbike.com/news/spotted-prototype-shimano-dh-derailleur.html
Cheers, that is QI. It's the brakes I am looking at. Current xtr will probably be new saint with DH oriented tweeks.
Is there enough of a market there for a DH-only group?
I'd have thought they'd go with an enduro group, maybe a 12 speed group with a 7 speed option with short cage. I hope so, I'd buy that happily.
Don't fix what isn't broken. We've all seen what happened with the XT brakes. Old M785's were amazing, new M8000 were very inconstant. Saint brakes are superb and don't need changing.
Don’t fix what isn’t broken. We’ve all seen what happened with the XT brakes. Old M785’s were amazing, new M8000 were very inconstant. Saint brakes are superb and don’t need changing.
I had Saint brakes that were absolutely useless. Unfortunately it was years ago and I didn't realise it was such a common problem so I messed around with the setup for ages when they should have went straight back to the shop. Because they were on a DH bike they didn't go out that often and I let the warranty period expire.
There's nothing wrong with them if you get a good set. There's something about the way they're built that drastically needs fixing before I consider them again.
Is there enough of a market there for a DH-only group?
I’d have thought they’d go with an enduro group, maybe a 12 speed group with a 7 speed option with short cage. I hope so, I’d buy that happily.
You can have your pick of enduro groups right now, this IS the DH option.
Shirley this will follow the usual Shimano MO? Someone will spot a patent application from them, then a few nicked imagines will appear online a year later. Then a year after that there will be a lot of positive reviews from a press launch somewhere nice, and then nothing for a year or more and then, completely without announcement or fuss, it'll start to dribble onto CRC etc, wearing a 30% discount from Day 1.
squirrelking
Is there enough of a market there for a DH-only group?
I’d have thought they’d go with an enduro group, maybe a 12 speed group with a 7 speed option with short cage. I hope so, I’d buy that happily.
You can have your pick of enduro groups right now, this IS the DH option.
That was my question - will it be DH only? It never was in the past, there were always 11-36 options for non-DH bikes, mechs had mode converters, etc. And DH was a much bigger part of the market then, but far fewer DH bikes are sold today.
Don’t fix what isn’t broken.
True, I loved my Saint Brakes. But that many DH and Enduro pros are using XTR now, and even a couple of years ago were using things like XTR levers with Saint calipers, there is a desire for more modulation and so on.
Is there enough of a market there for a DH-only group?
Probably not I don't really know how the Shimano range is pegged these days, they used to have the likes of Hone and Saint and even SLX was first sold as the replacement for Hone, but I think that went to Zee.
Looking at their website now, they only seem to show Deore-SLX-XT-XTR, a range based on cost/quality not riding niche. Maybe we've reached a point when a XT brake (forgetting the whole wandering bite point issue) is as well suited to XC racing as DH Racing, Enduro racing and all of us weekend warriors in between).
Either way, it seems for the moment at least, Shimano's super-gnar sub brands are dead.
would ,like to see some new saint brakes. nothing wrong with the old ones, but would be interesting to see what they do. still prefer the saint's to the XT 4 pots, more power and better feel
Incremental change one presumes....
the standard deore-slx-xt-xtr is being marketed as XC->enduro use, with the only appreciable difference being 2 or 4 pot brakes... (and maybe choosing the close range cassette option).
Zee & Saint havent moved on for ages, and as pointed out a lot of the shimano riders on the DH circuit are using XTR brakes (or XTR levers and saint callipers)
Does a DH group make sense for them, not sure, they will know the numbers, is it actually needed? again not sure but I think you would expect their brakes to be updated with a new style supported lever sooner or later....
They needed to update their core range, as SRAM left them well behind on the wide range 1* party, but as to the actual drive train on their DH group, not sure there is an obvious need to change....
maybe they go to a dedicated DH cassette close ratio rather than a road one, and update their mech shifter to be the DH race 7spd and 10spd wide range 'freeride'
One thing I would like to see would be a new saint crank, spiderless, but will still with the steel pedal insert like the current one. The general use ones are all alloy pedal threads and Ive killed a couple of cranks by ripping pedals out.
So if they had that, that I could put a small chain ring on for my enduro bike, Id probably get them.
New Saint when?
Ceslas.
I hope (but don't expect) that the 7 speed uses oldschool 7 speed cassette spacing rather than half a 12-speed cassette - put a nice wide chain on it, but build the mech and shifter to modern tolerances.
saint has never been a dh-only group - the original m800 iteration had a front mech and double (maybe triple?) chainrings available. I think its just a heavy-duty version of xt - stick it on your enduro bike if you prefer solidarity - stick xt on if you prefer low weight
I'd happily take saint gears, 7 speed, 12 speed spacing. My 12 speed stuff is staying working well with loads of wear far better than the 10 speed stuff ever did. Let's face it, a saint mech will basically be an xtr, maybe a bit beefier with an alu short cage.
I like being able to swap cage/cassette between compact for bike park stints dand bigger for pedalling around.
I'm already 12 speed xtr with the shorter cage and a 12 speed xt cassette with the largest sprocket chopped off.