On my wife's new bike, I swapped the stock cassette out to a SRAM PG-970 11-34 to help her out on our vertical rides. I installed the brand new PG-970, along with a brand new SRAM PC-991 chain to accomodate the larger cassette. All of a sudden the buttery smooth drivetrain turned to junk, with clunks so hard I could feel them in the pedals, mostly in the 4th smallest cog. To eliminate all other possibilities, I took the 2 month old SRAM PG-970 off my MTB and put it on my wife's bike. Problem disappeared. Then I put the suspect cassette on my bike, and had the exact same problem. Analysis with digital calipers revealed that the 4th cog (15T) was canted on the body by 1.2 mm, which was not visible to the naked eye.

I called Jenson USA, where I bought the new cassette, and they overnighted me a replacement (kudos to JensonUSA). Same problem. Went through the motions, and installed the new replacement cassette on my MTB, same problem again. Just to triple check, I put the cassette from my bike on my wife's, and it was perfect. I also took my complete wheel with my cassette, installed on my wife's bike, no problems, and my wife's complete wheel on my bike, same problem.

Bottom line, the 2 brand new SRAM cassettes were junk. I'll be calling Jenson again tomorrow, sending the SRAM garbage back, and ordering a Shimano cassette. I will never buy another SRAM cassette, which is unfortunate, because I have always liked them in the past. I know daredevil had the same problem because I discussed it with him, anyone else?

+1000 dude!!

I got a closeout from Wheelworld for $33 and in 4th gear the stinkin' thing had a knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock...it felt like there was something hanging up on it. It got a little better over time, but I switched back to a PG990 and it's gone.

My PG990 has NEVER shifted as clean/crisp/quickly as my XT did. I'll be buying XT cassettes from now on...if I don't go Rohloff first.

Sounds like it's a bad batch of casettes. No need to flip out and start bashing a company because there was a bad batch of casettes. Every company in this industry has had a bad batch of something. Off the top of my head, I know in the recent months Trek, Cannondale, and even, *shock* Shimano has recalled stuff! I'm sure if you call SRAM and explain your problems they will be helpful.

Just cause you got a couple bad apples doesn't mean the rest of their casettes are garbage, saying they are is quite ignorant.

FWIW, I heard from my LBS, which is a pretty well-known and respected one where I live, that recently they have been having problems with SRAM cassettes and front derailleurs.

I don't recall saying anything about SRAM being "garbage" so your post must be for some other ignorant person who used that word in their first post...yet I'd be ignorant to blanket someone with "ignorant" just because they have had a two-in-a-row SRAMcrap experience and are growing tired of getting jerked around by a company that is supposed to be producing "quality bicycle components".

I never had a problem with my XT cassettes. Great shifting and long life...light too. I've had issues with my last PG970 and I'm dissatisfied with the "up-shifting" of my PG990 compared to the XT. Why is it so difficult to figure out? It just doesn't go up to the bigger cogs as smooth, quickly, crisp as my XT seemed to do.

I'm not bashing a company because they had a few bad apples...I'm simply saying they make inferior products in my own "hands-on" experience. Their X.9 rear derailleur didn't cut the mustard for me. It didn't last as long as an ElCheap'o LX. The PG970 had a weird audible knock that I could feel through the pedals. The PG990 doesn't shift on par with the XT cassette. Why waste more time and money dissapointing myself? I'm actually even considering going back to an XT chain...though I must say the only thing that I have had a positive experience with recently would be their chains. I love the powerlink! It's wonderful.

Now if you go outside of SRAM into the sister companies...I love my Avid Juicy's, and I liked my Tora for its intended purpose and pricerange. I'm leaning toward a PIKE at some point.

First of all, I was not referring to you.

Huh? SRAM is jerking you around?

I thought I made it clear that I knew you weren't referring to me...but I guess now we know.

Yup...SRAM is jerking around the consumer.

Mattp, thanks for the insult. I guess the root of the problem is my ignorance. Do you talk to people like that in person, or only from behind a keyboard?

For those interested in the constructive nature of this post, I installed a new Shimano cassette and the drivetrain returned to butter smooth. The SRAM's are on their way back to Jenson, never to darken my drivetrains again. I'm just ignorant like that.

That is really odd that it was fine on your wifes bike but not on yours.

Somebody's not paying attention.

The SRAM cassettes didn't work on either bike, either wheel, each wheel on the other bike, etc. Believe me, I tried every which way to make them work, because I used to like SRAM.

Have you called SRAM yet?

i love SRAM drivetrain. i have a not too high end setup and its still so awesome. bad batch like someone up there mentioned i guess

just put some sand on the chain and ride 100 miles... that will even out that performance for you ... this seems to be my method anyway.. give me the cheapest cassette and chan I can find.

Cheap cassette=carnage

Sram cassette are crap. No matter high end or low end, Shimano still seems to be doing better then Sram in cassette.

Thanks for that nugget of categorical, anecdotal, and completely unsupportable evidence that SRAM is crap, achc. Good on you!

I've been using SRAM cassettes for a while now. Just bought a new PG-980. Not a problem in sight. I'm a bit puzzled as to how anybody can say SRAM is jerking people around or messing with its customers, when Shimano basially invented the practice.

go jenson!

Can I ask how the cassette is being used?

Its not a performance cassette and you cant just shift and forget. I havea PG-850 and you have to be careful shifting these things especially when the chain is under tension up hill. There are times I'll have to jump off the bike and walk up a trail hill rather than forcing it into a granny gear and stressing it.

You have to use consientious shifting with these cassettes as they don't seem to be able to take the stresses of rough shifting techniques.

Keeping the gear train clean and well lubed is another thing that could help.

The SRAM cassettes I have are not too forgiving for rough shifting and am always thinking of ways to relieve the stress of the drive train in my rides.

I think that pic by Chelboed shows a hub under immense standstill torque were one would be on a steep hill practically motionless while torqing the crank with some strong legs might I say. Maybe over and over causing fatigue failure.
Or the cassette fit on loosely (poor tolerances of hub or cassette) causing a lot of movement between hub and cassette mating.
Or a hub whose metal was too soft.

Actually, no cassette should be subjected to "rough shifting techniques" as you put it. If you wanna downshift going uphill, pedal hard and give the bike a good "surge" forward...then soft pedal or basically just keep the cranks spinning enough to shift. As soon as you drop into gear, put the power back down.

This whole "shifting while applying alot of torque" crap is just asking for a broken chain.

As stated in another thread: Hope offers a stainless steel freehub body to replace the aluminum one. If I could do that or just use a carrier type cassette. (XT, XTR, PG980, PG990)

chelboed,

Was your casette the 12-26 one? I have 2 at the shop, that if you set them on a flat surface, and look at it from the side, all the cogs are severly slanted one direction. So when you put it on the freehub body it wobbles considerably. I'll call SRAM and have them send out a couple new ones, and post back here with what they say,

11-34

I used Shimano Deore line all the way to XTR and the only problem I notice is the XTR Ti series seems to have a problem. I have cracked one and so have some of my friends. And lots of them also had them bent and out of shape. Deore, XT and XTR (900 series) has never had a problem.

I am not saying Sram is bad. In fact, I like their 1:1 ration shifters a lot. However, in the cassette line, Shimano is still doing a better job.

Sram cassette has poor build quality and is not matching to similar level in Shimano. It is also not durability and wears out quicker then Shimano. The largest ring (if you get 34T) is really weak.

MattP. - I visually inspected my 11-34 and there are no slanted cogs.

Sentence structure!

And yes, you are still saying SRAM's product is unequivocally bad, and yes, you are still wrong. If you want to try to justify your purchase of a $200 cassette, then fine, but don't do so by claiming that you know something about its competitor's durability that the rest of us don't.