bres dad

I was in the local co-op tonight looking for some pedals and other misc. parts when I came across a partial SRAM Rival set (both brifters, front & rear derailluers & brake calipers). It had just came in and they hadn't set a price on it. I'm wanting to do some upgrades on my main road bike and thinking this might be the ticket. Or I could use it on another bike that's on the list for rebuild. I'm not as familiar with SRAM road bike gear as I am with SRAM mountain bike and have some questions I'm hoping someone can answer. Its double tap with carbon fiber brake levers that have SRAM printed on them instead of Rival. I tried to count the clicks on the rear shifter to see if it was 9 or 10 speed but it seemed keep clicking and clicking (unlike a Shimano shifter that stops once you've hit the last gear), though not being familiar with SRAM I'm sure I just don't know what to look/listen for.

1. How to tell if this is 9 or 10 speed?
2. How to tell if the shifters are working properly?
3. What would this compare to closest in the Shimano line up?

I did get a list of part or serial numbers:
RD: 42T00011738
Rear shifter: 41T00016333
Front shifter: 40T00038653

Kopsis

It's almost certainly 10-speed. I don't think SRAM ever made a 9-speed Rival group.

Good question. I have Rival on two bikes and I've never had a problem with either so I'm not sure what typical failure symptoms are.

SRAM has traditionally targeted Rival to the "entry level enthusiast" category where Shimano targets 105. Only you can judge how it actually compares. But it's worth noting that with SRAM, there is very little mechanical difference between bottom-end Apex and top-end Red when it comes to shifters.

rms13

I'm also pretty sure there was never 9 speed sram road group but that should be easy to figure out with a simple Google search.
And mechanically the groups operate the same the only difference is weight as you go up. The new red 22 has some mechanical differences but the 10 speed stuff I'd pretty much the sake