SRAM AXS Pulley Wheel ?

[madsciencenow]

Anyone know if the SRAM FORCE AXS XPLR Pulley wheels are the same or compatible with the non XPLR FORCE AXS RD? Same question with the RED AXS Ceramic RD Pulleys being compatible with the FORCE AXS RD. Essentially, I'm looking for options that are not the the regular SRAM FORCE AXS RD Pulleys b/c of where I'd like to order from.

I'm also be interested in understanding if the incremental increase in cost is worth it for the SRAM Red ceramic option. It looks like $50-70 more. Guessing no but thought I'd ask.

[Alistair]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

Anyone know if the SRAM FORCE AXS XPLR Pulley wheels are the same or compatible with the non XPLR FORCE AXS RD? Same question with the RED AXS Ceramic RD Pulleys being compatible with the FORCE AXS RD. Essentially, I'm looking for options that are not the the regular SRAM FORCE AXS RD Pulleys b/c of where I'd like to order from.

I'm also be interested in understanding if the incremental increase in cost is worth it for the SRAM Red ceramic option. It looks like $50-70 more. Guessing no but thought I'd ask.

They should be compatible (same tooth profile) across all the road AXS RDs. But, I'm not sure about tooth count - I know the MTB RD differs, not sure about XPLR.

Ceramic bearings do work, but require quite a bit more maintenance. They make gains in two ways... first, less/zero weather sealing; second, light weight oil instead of grease. I wouldn't bother for a high-use bike - ceramic stuff should be race-day only for most people/bikes.

[EB]

Side note just to observe that the bearings in these things do not last as long as they should. Symptoms of "grinding" due to roached AXS pulley wheel bearings are common and if you ride AXS you may be surprised how much your drivetrain improves with just a stock pulley swap.

[madsciencenow]

Alistair and EB, thanks for your responses.

EB, do you have an alternative that you like? The bike these go on is an all-road bike and sees a fair amount of dirt and gets hosed off frequently.

[gospastic]

I believe the XPLR and the regular RDs use the same pulleys, but the screws are different lengths. If you reuse the screws I think they should work.

I have had good luck with SRAM ceramic pulleys. I have high mileage on them and they still spin like new.

[madsciencenow]

Originally Posted by gospastic

I believe the XPLR and the regular RDs use the same pulleys, but the screws are different lengths. If you reuse the screws I think they should work.

I have had good luck with SRAM ceramic pulleys. I have high mileage on them and they still spin like new.

Noting your location, I assume they are getting wet frequently or are you managing to keep them dry and away from grime?

[EB]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

Alistair and EB, thanks for your responses.

EB, do you have an alternative that you like? The bike these go on is an all-road bike and sees a fair amount of dirt and gets hosed off frequently.

I haven't tried the SRAM ceramic ones mentioned above - I am uncertain if those are available for the mountain bike derailleurs. I tried the Hope ones and I wasn't happy with the performance of the teeth, though they look spiffy. Had some issues with chain getting out of sync with the narrow/wide.

[gospastic]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

Noting your location, I assume they are getting wet frequently or are you managing to keep them dry and away from grime?

I ride in the rain quite a bit. I do try to spray the bike off with water and shoot it with an air compressor afterward. I'll pull the pulleys off every 6 months or so for a general cleaning.

[madsciencenow]

Originally Posted by gospastic

I ride in the rain quite a bit. I do try to spray the bike off with water and shoot it with an air compressor afterward. I'll pull the pulleys off every 6 months or so for a general cleaning.

Thx! Love to hear what cleaning means? Just the grime or do you take covers off and do anything with the bearings?


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[Alistair]

Answering my own question about tooth count on the pulleys… looks like normal road and XPLR both use 12t pulleys in top and bottom position.

The mountain RDs use a 12t and a 14t.

There are different part #s for XPLR vs not-XPLR pulley kits, but it looks like the difference is one of the cage screws. As the included screws are ti, you may as well buy the correct kit.

XPLR
https://www.performancebike.com/sram...2.000/p1348771

Vs

Not-XPLR
https://www.performancebike.com/sram...27.000/p968635

[gospastic]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

Thx! Love to hear what cleaning means? Just the grime or do you take covers off and do anything with the bearings?


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I take the pulleys off and clean them and the covers. I don’t pull the bearing seals or anything as I haven’t had a reason to yet.

[madsciencenow]

Originally Posted by gospastic

I take the pulleys off and clean them and the covers. I don’t pull the bearing seals or anything as I haven’t had a reason to yet.

Thx!


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[oldpotatoe]

A note about ceramic anything. Many use just mild, non-hardened cups/races and cones, with uber hard ceramic balls. Get some grit in there and it kills the steel parts toot sweet...So if the google-foo shows that some brand doesn't seem to last in wet/gritty conditions, that may be why..so YMMV and all that.

[madsciencenow]

I asked SRAM the same question and they responded that the Red and XPLOR use pulleys with different designs so they can't recomend using these. This sounds to me like we aren't saying one way or another that it will or won't work. My thinking is, if third party parts will work and the chain is the same, how could it possibly not work? I'm sure the peanut gallery here will be happy to tell me what I'm missing (please do this) but I think I'm gonna roll the dice on the Red. Worst case as I see it is I waste some $$$ on overpriced pulleys.

[gospastic]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

I asked SRAM the same question and they responded that the Red and XPLOR use pulleys with different designs so they can't recomend using these. This sounds to me like we aren't saying one way or another that it will or won't work. My thinking is, if third party parts will work and the chain is the same, how could it possibly not work? I'm sure the peanut gallery here will be happy to tell me what I'm missing (please do this) but I think I'm gonna roll the dice on the Red. Worst case as I see it is I waste some $$$ on overpriced pulleys.

Theat just seems like a typical CYA response. I have one of each RD and looking at them side by side, I see no difference.