Sramano- Franken Drivetrain - Covidiot or no..

With the recent release of the wallet friendly Deore 12 speed drivetrain, got me thinking who has experience in running a franken setup...as in does it actually work?

What chain do you run? what shifter?

Example of the Franken setup

Sram Eagle Cassette, Sram Cranks, Shimano derailleur(XT, SLX..Deore)?

or

Shimano Cassette, Sram cranks(?). Shimano or Sram derailleur)?

ahaha- Apparently by the lack of responses..Im crazy

I would not use a combination shifter derailleur. The cassette and chain would work just not as well as if you use the same brand. I have always been skeptical of the second point and use sram chains from time to time with my shimano drivetrain but from what I read the shifting under power benefits that the new shimano have depend a lot on the way the chain and cassette interact. I also have read the 12 speed stuff if more different between brands than the 11 and lesser speed stuff. No personal experience though.

10 and 11 sp Shimano shifter/rd is interchangeable in the real world as long as the rd has the capacity. 

I've read that 11 sp Shimano and SRAM shifters and rd are also interchangeable with a close enough cable pull ratio in real life. 

11 and 12 sp cable pull ratios are once again virtually identical,  so compatibility is determined more by cassette size and rd capacity.

The 12 sp Shimano HG+ chain will not work properly with 11 sp or anything SRAM. Not sure why anyone would want to run a SRAM chain on a Shimano 12 sp cassette.

Was just reading this on another tab https://www.bikemag.com/gear/components/drivetrain/a-mismatch-made-in-heaven-xtr-axs/

So, same brand chain & cassette and it looks like chainring. Same brand derailleur & shifter.

Posted by: Hepcat

Was just reading this on another tab https://www.bikemag.com/gear/components/drivetrain/a-mismatch-made-in-heaven-xtr-axs/

So, same brand chain & cassette and it looks like chainring. Same brand derailleur & shifter.

Pretty thorough article on the subject which I like- Thanks Hep

This video shows that in a pinch you could throw on a shimano derailleur with nothing more than throwing it on

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpWRmFaXvRU

I’ve run 10Spd X.0 shifter-derailleur with Shimano cassette Chromag ring and KMC chain

11spd Shimano shifter-derailleur with SunRace cassette Blackspire N/W and KMC chain. 

I keep shifter-derailleur the same. Everything else is a dogs breakfast.

If you’ve got the parts give it a whirl. I’ve mix matched lots over the years. It’s been a function of needing something now, having a decent bin of parts, several bikes in the family, and just enjoying tinkering. 

Some good info On Sheldon Browns site on the topic, what works and what doesn’t. I’ve mixed things that are not supposed to work (8 speed dura ace rear d with 10 speed 106 Brifters) as an experiment and some things stick and some don’t. The dura ace mix actually works against all common beliefs. 

That said, I try really hard to keep shifter-derailleur brand matches and pull ratio matched. This makes a world of difference. And in the end nothing really beats a complete and new matched gruppo.

Shimano SLX Mech and Shifter

Absolute Black Oval Chainring

Connex Wipperman Chain

Sunrace cassette.

All 10 speed, works fine.  Shifting is about 90% as good as a perfectly set up all SLX 10 speed drivetrain but with a wider range than normal 10 speed. Would probably just run a wide range Deore cassette now.

Posted by: DanLees1978

Shimano SLX Mech and Shifter

Absolute Black Oval Chainring

Connex Wipperman Chain

Sunrace cassette.

All 10 speed, works fine.  Shifting is about 90% as good as a perfectly set up all SLX 10 speed drivetrain but with a wider range than normal 10 speed. Would probably just run a wide range Deore cassette now.

Similar here - 10spd SLX derailleur, XTR shifter and sunrace cassette. I found the shifting downgraded significantly when I went from a Shimano cassette to the sunrace (11-42, b screw at full in), wolftooth goatlink helped pull it back closer to the performance of the full Shimano set.

My drivetrain of choice right now is 10 sp xt and xtr shifter, 11 sp xt rear derailleur, 10 sp sunrace 11-46 cassette. I had 11 sp shimano shifters with 11 sp 11-46 sunrace cassette as well but I didnt like the more clickety feel of the 11sp shifters

Posted by: UFO

My drivetrain of choice right now is 10 sp xt and xtr shifter, 11 sp xt rear derailleur, 10 sp sunrace 11-46 cassette. I had 11 sp shimano shifters with 11 sp 11-46 sunrace cassette as well but I didnt like the more clickety feel of the 11sp shifters

I run a 10 speed XTR shifter as well -- IMHO the shifter makes most of the difference. There is negligible difference between the XT vs SLX rear

I've found the 10 sp XT and XTR to feel very similar, I probably couldnt tell the difference in a blind test to be honest. 10 sp XTR shifters are definitely getting harder to find (at a reasonable price) so I've started to stockpile some XT units too.

For 11 sp same idea, but the SLX 11 shifter feels significantly more plasticky and decidedly lower end

Is anyone on here still running 10 speed?

My current setup is full 10 speed, XT shifter, HG95 chains (rotating 3), Zee mech (11-36), Shimano HG500 11-42 cassette, Works Chainring or similar.  I run this on my HT and FS bike (Starling Murmur).  Even though the Zee is only rated to 36t it works fine on my frame for 42.