I'm not a weight weenie, and for the record, I don't care one way or another between sti and double tap or their ergonomics. But I am more concerned about long term durability. Sram groupsets are across the board lighter than their Shimano counterparts. Where do these weight savings come from? The answer won't really sway me one way or another. I'll take which ever groupset that's laid in front of me, because neither would let me down. I'm just curious whether anyone knows about this.

P.S. please try to be objective, because I'm just trying to gain some knowledge. Things like "I got 40,000 miles on so and so... not a single hitch" won't really help. It would help a lot more to get feedback from those who know a lot about the nitty gritty, or who have used both brands extensively. Thanks

Probably not what you're looking for, but I had three Shimano 10-speed 105 5600 series rear shifters go bad, each at about 15,000 miles. A cog on the ratchet would wear out, so it would skip a gear. On my other bike, a new Shimano 9-speed Sora rear shifter totally jammed at 6,000 miles. Warranty replacement. Would love to hear about SRAM reliability. So far all I recall is that the shifter "paddles" would break (Rival?).

I've always bought Shimano, probably for the comfort familiarity more than any other reason. But I have two friends that tell me they prefer Sram. I think its all pretty good stuff these days.

SRAM's weight savings come from using lighter parts. If you aren't a weight weenie, then go with which hood feels better to your hands and whether you prefer double tap or not (try both).

i like the feel of SRAM hoods and also like double tap. YMMV. But SRAM is lighter at similar price points.

Campa is fully rebuildable though.

Yeah... That's usually how it's done...

SRAM Red Brake levers, front and rear der with about 15,000 miles. No problems what so ever. On an earlier Red RD, the internal spring broke.

Lighter makes me question the durability. That was my point. I've read that ultegra is where durability reaches a plateau. Once you get into dura ace, it's more about weight savings, and less about finishing and those kind of stuff. and as I understand it, Sram uses the same shifting mechanics for their entire lineup. But as you start to use lighter materials, something's got to give, am I right? But from the looks of it, it seems like the equipment fails before any sign of wear actually starts to show.

Anyone ventured to find the causes for these failures? did the bike crash? too much dirt, not enough maintenance? quality control? straight up wear and tear?

I've seen both shimano and sram stuff fail prematurely and I've seen both shimano and sram stuff last a long time.

Well carbon fiber is lighter than aluminum. Does it give more?

You won't find any objective differences between these two brands in durability. As in all mechanical goods stuff lasts, stuff breaks. The two brands (all three for that matter including Campy) are very comparable. You can't learn anything valuable from anecdotes which have no statistical validity. On the other hand bike equipment isn't forever. You should expect long reliable service, but you should also expect the need for the occasional repair or replacement. That is just life in this universe. Serious riders who are concerned about durability for cost or other reasons should do their own mechanical work. Parts can be obtained more reasonably on the internet and the mechanical service savings are significant. Most failures are not the result of defects in materials, design, or manufacturing, but rather just the result of hard use. Bikes take a beating. You have to keep them up.

To answer your question a little bit more accurately: SRAM's indexing mechanism in it's shifters is simpler then shimano's. If you look up their video on how leap-frog technology works you will get an idea. If you somehow manage to hunt down my teardown of an STI shifter you will then be able to compare and understand.

I have had both shifters die on me. Shimano shifters basically grind their internals to dust (Atleast older 9 speed did) a SRAM shifter's lever simply broke on me. It happens. I have crashed with both and they both have come out just fine. The failures in SRAM stuff have occurred because of metal fatigue so there is either some hairline crack or damage to the part and it eventually goes. The Shimano shifters I have seen fail are due to dirt and old grease buildup.

One thing to note is that SRAM shifters and their failure rates have an inversely proportional relationship with their cost. Red stuff seems to fail the least since the quality of the internals is very very high since they mainly use CNCed parts for the shifting mechanism. On the other hand Apex and Rival use forged pot metal parts which have a greater chance of breaking.

I've had my Sram Red group for a few weeks and I've ridden it up and down the driveway several times. So far, so good.

I was a Shimano user with 9s but moved to SRAM on 10s, so some of this may speak towards 9 vs 10 speed. I now have mostly Rival with some Force on 3 bikes. Overall, my Shimano stuff seemed more reliable. I never had a 'failure', just replacements of wear items at what were respectable service lengths. I still have a DA7700 bike running and shifted one of my 105 level mixed groups on to my wife's bike and they are running well.

With SRAM I have had a couple of failures and some definite pre-mature wear outs.

Specifically, I have had 2 FDs go bad. Looking from the top, the cages would get bowed out. I could bend them back, it would happen again quicker. I have since replaced them with Shimano FDs which work fine with Sram. No failures and the set up and shifting is easier and better.

I have had one set of Rival jockey wheels that needed an early replacement due to cogs kinda wearing off the bearings.

I have also had their BBs go bad after just a couple thousand miles, even one of the newer 'improved' models. They did see some rain/winter miles, but nothing excessive and not more than my Shimano bikes have seen. But I do have one bike with an original Rival BB that has been running fine since 2008, so it appears to be a hit or miss thing.

And last, their chains tend to get ratty quicker than any others. This has mostly been the 1050/1051 model. I still use them sometimes as they are often the cheapest 10sp chain out there, but I just replace them after 2500 miles and before they go south. Since I often find them on eBay for less than $20 miles per $ is stiill equal or less than other brands, but I also use other chains when available at good prices (usually KMC).

So why do I stick with SRAM even though I do like the durability and 'quietness' of Shimano better? First, I do like the shape and double tap action of their shifters. I also prefer the simpler look the Rival group to the fancier Sram stuff and anything Shimano has out. And where some of the problems that have occurred I have swapped in a different makers part and solved it.

As for the durability, if I had one bike and relied on shop labor I would find it unacceptable. But I have a few bikes and do my own wrenching so it's never an issue to be out of a bike when some goes down and time wise it may seem like the above is a long list but it breaks down to 1 or maybe 2 extra 15 minute repairs a year. I have never been stranded do to a SRAM problem, and I keep a couple of extra chains and a BB on hand just in case. And cost wise I always seem to find better deals on SRAM stuff so I don't see that as an issue either.

With more practice, maybe your parents will let you ride on the road like a grownup!

I warranty replaced a Red shifter within the first month of using it. The cable head is held in a plastic "cup" on what appears to be an entirely plastic ratchet wheel, and the cable simply tore through on a shift and came out.

However, the replacement has worked flawlessly 3.5 years and lots of miles later.

So, my opinion is simultaneously "utter crap" and "really great". I do, however, expect a similar failure someday. Plastic can only hold up to a metal cable for so long. Don't know what I'll do when it fails...the new Shimano stuff is not exactly to my liking. Guess I'll become a permanent e-bay bike part archaeologist.

How long is your driveway?

i havent been super impressed with SRAMs durability.

i've had a Rival shifter paddle snap off after a coupe of years and a RED rear derailleur fail catastrophically after 3 years. this is out of two complete bikes, one rival and one RED.

i like the feel but that definitely more catastrophic failrure than i ever had with shimano. the positive is SRAM replaced both items no questions asked. nd in a timely manner.

what's the warranty on these parts? Does Shimano/Sram replace these things regardless of where you purchased your bike, or what year the broken part is from?

from what i hear there are alot less parts in sram shifters than shimano. Which makes the sram shifters easier to rebuild, but i don't think they are quite as durable.
That being said shimano is my least favorite out of the big 3

Lets not get carried away here....

You take it off any sweet jumps yet?

I doubt you'll get much more than anecdotal stories here since the vast majority of respondents here are, like myself, individual end users who don't go throught enough samples of both brands to give anything that even approaches statistically significance. Frankly, I'd be surprised if you average LBS wrench ses enough of both brands to provide real data.

That said, I think most Shimano/SRAM/Campy built equipment, given proper care and baring crash related damage, are more durable than the average non-competitive rider. Quality control being what it is in this industry, you are going to find the odd case of premature failure no matter what brand you use. Stuff happens. I've been riding and wrenching on and off since the 80's, and I've yet to see any components from any of the big 3 show what I would regard as a higher than expected failure rate nor have I seen anything that was universally bullet proof. Now there have been poorly designed components foisted on the consumer, no doubt about that. But again, no one of the major manufacturers has a monopoly on that kind of folly.

Anyway, that's just my opinion. If you do come across some source of real "knowledge", please share...

Just riding along?

Stuff breaks. Pro stuff is not designed to last forever. Pros do not ride the same stuff forever and parts are readily available due to sponsorships. If you want bike parts etc. to last forever do not buy pro stuff.

that being said, if you are really careful and maintain your bike properly, the really light stuff will do you for a long time. You are not riding a bike like a pro. the problem is that most people do not pay attention and as a result things fail.

I have a Rival and a Red bike. Other than damaging a derailleur because I had the wrong torque wrench, I have had no issues, but I maintain and replace things like cables and chains regularly.

Well, I had a bike with Ultegra 10-speed. Road it for about three years, then put that Ultegra on a race bike. Crashed it. Moved the Ultegra to a cross bike, and that is where it still is seven years later.

I replaced the Ultegra with Sram Red about 5 years ago. I am still running that Red. I have crashed it. One of the RD pulleys has a slight crack in it, but still works. That groupset has probably more than 50k on it.

And I now have 2013 Red on my new bike. It only has a few thousand miles on it.

Also, my wife has had Force on her bike for four years now and probably has more than 40k on it. She crashed once on it. No issues whatsoever.