Rear Der for Appaloosa

[J Schwartz]

Greetings 

I have a 55cm Appaloosa and currently use an older but good condition rapid rise Deore LX as the rear derailleur.  It's 9 speed with a 9 speed Alivio trigger shifter.  There is a lot of chain slap and I'd like to just replace it with a nice but basic, non-clutched, rear derailleur that will keep the chain appropriately taut....given the long stays.

Casette is Shimano 12-36 9-speed and triple crank up front with a 43t big ring, 35t middle and a 26t granny.

Would the current Alivio 9 speed that Riv sells do the trick?  I was also looking at some 9-speed era XT derailleurs on eBay but would rather just put something on that is new and not priced like a collectors item.  What about a Microsoft Marvo 9-speed MTN ? 

[Nick Payne]

I don't think Shimano ever made clutch derailleurs for 9-speed indexing. Microshift make clutch rear derailleurs for 9-speed. e.g. https://www.microshift.com/models/rd-m6195l/. But if you want indexed shifting, you'd need to pair it with a Microshift Advent shifter.

On my Appaloosa I have drop bars, and I'm running 11s cassette/chain with a Shimano GRX RD-RX810 rear derailleur, which is clutched, and Shimano 11s barend shifters.

Nick Payne

[Steve]

Nice looking Appaloosa - I really like the build !

Regarding the chain slap issue - is it possible that you have a few more links in the chain than what's needed?  Another question;  Does it occur across most of the chainring/cog combinations or just a select few?  Regardless, definitely consider something to protect that chain stay.

Steve in AVL

[Dan]

Your rear der should be ok?

The gearing you have looks well within its capacity. 

I have the same era Deore non-rapid rise on my Appaloosa. Works fine. Sure the chain flops a bit but nothing of concern. I do have a chain stay protector though, actually one of those deore shark fins that also somewhat prevent the chain from getting dragged between the tyre and chain stay (which used to happen). 

[Joe Bernard]

Either of the derailleurs you listed will work fine. I agree with your thoughts about buying new, it's possible your old LX mech has a soft/worn spring and the pulley cage is letting the chain bounce a lot. 

Joe Bernard 

[Garth]

I doubt a new RD is going to offer any less slap. To me the relatively light spring action is part of modern indexed shift design, so the chain moves across the cogs with ease. Shimano brand at least, I can't speak to other brands. Use anything as a chainstay protector, even wrap an old inner tube. Clear racers tape cut to fit will stick well. 

My experience with modern RD's is with the Deore LX M581 I've had on my Bombadil. Slap happy since day one. I just wrapped some old inner tube around it. The floppiness has never caused the chain to change gears or anything like that, it just alarming at first, but doesn't hurt anything. 

[Eric Daume]

I agree with Garth that any non-clutch derailleur won’t make a big difference. 

But after riding modern parts, chain slap really annoys me. My off road bikes get clutch derailleurs. 

Eric

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/7cd65667-0ea7-49b5-a2f8-3d00f5a1162cn%40googlegroups.com.

[J Schwartz]

Thanks all

Yes I think that my old LX is both worn out and just a light action spring. 

Would a newer 9-speed XT or Deore be any better ...or just the same thing 

I would consider a clutch if so. 

I'm not worried about my chain stays,...they are already pockmarked...it's just the instability of the whole thing and the slapping.   I don't think I can take out any more links..it's not the chain length.

Are there any indexed 9-speed Shimano clutch derailleurs ?

To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com.

[Jason Hartman]

Many models of Shimano derailleurs have adjustable cage springs. Here’s a picture of an xt 750 showing the two holes. The hole on the left is for low tension

And the other is for higher

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/90993510-4ed1-4eaf-b4fc-0d8229c062e0n%40googlegroups.com.

[Jason Hartman]

Forgot the picture and sign off

Jay Hartman

[Nick A.]

My first feeling is that anything with a newer spring will be a bit stronger. The Deore m592 comes to mind. I've been running one for about 5 years without issue, and they're still available out there. If you're wanting to shell out, I would recommend the predecessor, the XTR M952, which has a tension adjustment screw.

Nick in Falls Church VA

[Nick Shoemaker]

There is one: Sunrace RDM900 - I have one on my Clem and it does the job. Cheap & ugly, but works!

[Nick Payne]

On Sunday, 13 July 2025 at 4:10:19 am UTC+10 Nick Shoemaker wrote:

There is one: Sunrace RDM900 - I have one on my Clem and it does the job. Cheap & ugly, but works!

I think that Sunrace is intended for 1x drivetrains - there's a large offset between the cage pivot point and top jockey wheel. The OP appears to be running a triple crankset.

Nick Payne

[Tim Tetrault]

FWIW, I run a non-reduced 9s chain with an SLX normal rise RD on my not-as-long-as-your chainstay on my Sam Hillborne, no slap. 

That LX rd look nice, You could build a robust chain stay protector out of stair tire treads and let it slap away?

[Nick Payne]

My Appaloosa has a Shimano GRX 810 RD, on which the clutch can be on or off. If I have it off, the chain occasionally slaps the chainstay, even on sealed roads if they aren't particularly smooth. When the clutch is on, I get no chain slap, even on fire trails.

Nick Payne

[J Schwartz]

Thanks all

Ended up going with the Alivio 9-speed non-clutched rear der.

Will know this week if there's any improvement over the old LX.  I suspect there will be...it felt a lot stiffer in my hand than my current derailleur 

JS

[Tim Tetrault]

Nice, sounds like a great value solution. 

Sent from Gmail Mobile

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.
To unsubscribe from this topic, visit https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/cljgcevsXW0/unsubscribe.
To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0e6072f5-c87c-4c97-abde-61c735708c33n%40googlegroups.com.

[Eric Daume]

This discussion makes me wish that instead of a rapid rise rear derailer, Riv had invested in a silver derailleur that is 8 or 9 speed compatible, but with a clutch. Clutch derailers are wonderful on rough terrain, but they mostly don’t work with friction shifters. 

Eric

--

You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.

To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0e6072f5-c87c-4c97-abde-61c735708c33n%40googlegroups.com.