Mountain Biking - Derailleur totaled, should I upgrade?

Hey, I was out riding today, having a pretty good day then I had to go to the side of the trail to get around a buddy in front of me and banged my rear derailleur against something I guess but it pushed the derailleur into my spokes. This has happened before and I was able to fix it with some pliers and other tools but this time it is alot worse and it is eyond repair.

I had a shimano deore LX derailleur and was wondering if it was worth it to upgrade to a better one. any help would be very much appreciated, thanks,

Jeff

Hey, I was out riding today, having a pretty good day then I had to go to the side of the trail to get around a buddy in front of me and banged my rear derailleur against something I guess but it pushed the derailleur into my spokes. This has happened before and I was able to fix it with some pliers and other tools but this time it is alot worse and it is eyond repair.

I had a shimano deore LX derailleur and was wondering if it was worth it to upgrade to a better one. any help would be very much appreciated, thanks,

Jeff
Ive been using my deore rear der for almost 2 seasons with no problems. LX would be fine.

I personally don't go below XT for my rear derailleur anymore except on my DJ bike where I don't need it. There is a big difference, XT's shift way smoother. If you do a lot of XC I would recommend it, but if you do lots of trail riding with drops and such where you wipe out a lot then stick to the lower end stuff so it's cheaper to replace.

Upgrading to XT or XTR will not neccesarily protect it from smashing it into things. The Saint der. from shimaNO is supposed to aid in this so shimaNO claims.

I'm thinking of going with the shimano xt derailleur with the short arm. I did not brake it so much from smashing it against anything as I did by getting the arm caught in the spokes. do you think that this would help? thanks.

I looked into the saint but it's out of my price range for now.

Saint is not worth the money or trouble. Afterall, dual control levers on a freeride bike does not sound too good.

Just go for LX unless you can find xt for the same price. I don't notice a diff in shifting between the 2. Weight yes, shifting no :)

I'd say upgrade to XT, the difference in price isn't much. However, LX is a great working SOLID derailleur, so it's a matter of how much you want to spend.

L8R

Even XTR derailluers are not defiant of the laws of physics....i think the derailluer i have on my Trek(Altus)works just fine...and it has been put through its paces. Unless you race, no point in getting too crazy with stuff, thats my theory.

Saint is not worth the money or trouble. Afterall, dual control levers on a freeride bike does not sound too good.
what dual control got to do with the derailleur??

If you regularly crash into things and break derailleurs, I'd go for a Deore.
If you ride lightly but can't afford XT, XTR or SAINT (which will require a new rear hub as well...), I'd still go for Deore. There no apreciable difference between Deore and Deore LX in quality and Deore cost less.

For big time strength go for SAINT or later this year get the HONE derailleur and axle fitted to your existing hubs.

My LBS told me that all 04 deore rear deraillers are exactly the same as LX's in performance

going to XTR wont change the salvage changes if you bang your bike into another clast. Deore is just as good as anything else... MAINTENANCE plays alot more into good, smooth performance than does price

if you want to listen to others and "buy XT and up only!!!" then go ahead and burn the $

you can get a Deore unit, destroy it, and have $ to buy another

Okay, thanks for all the replies. I was asking this because when people talk about upgrading a bike they say to upgrade as the parts wear out or break. I wasn't sure if this was one of those circumstances. Based on what you guys are mostly saying, I think I'll go with an lx unless I find an xt for somewhere near the same price.

Thanks alot for the help,
Jeff

I think I'll go with an lx unless I find an xt for somewhere near the same price.

Good plan. Not really worth the extra IMHO, and you'd really kick yourself for spending the extra dollars if you bugger up another derailleur this season... :D

Of course, you could always use this as an excuse to upgrade the whole bike ;)

why haven't they made derailer guards yet?

why haven't they made derailer guards yet?

i've got a (long cage) derailleur guard i bought in italy in '91. the reasons they never caught on anywhere (imho) are weight and the possibility of damaging more expensive stuff than just the derailleur.

because of the way the guard mounts, a really hard hit might not hurt the derailleur, but it could damage/destroy the rear axle, skewer and right rear dropout....

i am happy with my deore too and it shifts great unless its full of mud or the chain is crudded up.some stuff when it wears out do not really need to be upgraded.they are good as they are

Deore should be good enough for the back. Actually, it might even be a better deal than the LX (I don't know the common prices, though). I have Deore on the back of one back and XT on the back of another, and they both haven't skipped or failed to make a shift yet (though the XT does it smoother and faster).

why haven't they made derailer guards yet?

shimano needs to make money! :D

why haven't they made derailer guards yet?

I have an old 10 speed Takara road bike in my garage that has one.