Shimano vs Sram 12-speed chains

 

Having dominated the 12-speed market for several years, Sram is now faced with a tough competitor from Japan - Shimano. The formerly pro-front derailleur outfit has finally admitted defeat and gone almost fully 1-by for MTB drivetrains. Many people and bike OEMs have been excited to change from the quite frankly overpriced Sram components to Shimano. This means you may have a wheelset from a previous bike with a Sram cassette and your new bike comes with Shimano. How will this work?

Construction

It’s quite obvious what Shimano mean by Hyperglide+, when you compare the Shimano chain to a “standard” Sram chain. The pictures below tell the whole story, but basically the difference are the inner links, which are longer and heavily chamfered on Shimano. Another major difference is that the XT chain is showing significant blackening and rust spots, where as the finish on an X01 chain of similar age and mileage is still in impecable condition.

 

I will not compare the cheaper alternatives from either manufacturer, as I don't use them and quite frankly don't recommend the Sram SX or NX, or Shimano Deore and SLX chains to anyone who does any serious mileage, as their longetivity is sub-par. I have also touched this subject in my previous article on different Sram compatible 12-speed chain in the ultimate 12-speed chain test.

 

I have a Shimano XT 12-speed chain with 1600km on it, and a Sram X01 chain with 2500km on it, both showing 0,5 elongation / wear. I'm now running an XTR chain on my Shimano drive train, so time will tell if that will be able to match the quite amazing longetivity of the Sram X01/XX1 level chains. Pricing is certainly similar at around 45-55EUR for both the XTR and X01.

Shimano on the left, Sram on the right. It's clear the Shimano inner links are longer and heavily chamfered

Shimano XT on the left, Sram X01 on the right. The XT has solid pins, and here you can see the extended inner link protruding past the outer link with the chain links at a 90-degree angle.

Shimano on top, Sram on the bottom. The shape of the inner links is completely different. The Shimano outer links are also chamfered in all 4 corners, where as Sram only on the 2 opposing corners.

Shimano XT on top, Sram X01 on the bottom.

Compatibility

So you've dished out on an EXPENSIVE Sram X01 or XX1 level, or perhaps a nice aftermarket cassette like Garbaruk, but have decided it's time for a new bike. This is fantastic, but the new model comes with Shimano and not Sram drivetrain! What to do!?

 

Shimano chain on Sram cassette and chain ring:

This option simply does not work. The inner links of the Shimano chain are so much longer, that the chain binds on a Sram chain ring and the 50t "Eagle" gear of the cassette. You may get away with a new Shimano chain on used Sram sprockets, but new or even lightly worn the compatibility is less than ideal.

Sram chain on Shimano cassette and chain ring:

This option works with the exception of the older "banana" shaped Sram quicklink. The link interferes with the top pulley of the Shimano derailleur. You can, however, fit the Shimano quicklink to a Sram chain and it will work OK. Some roughness can also be expected from the chain ring, as the shape is not ideal for the Sram chain. You will lose Hyperglide+, but potentially gain a longer lasting chain, so it's 50/50 if this is worth it.

Aftermarket chain on Shimano cassette and chain ring:

I have not tested this, but looking at the shape of most aftermarket 12-speed chains and their chain links, I can provide an educated guess and say this will work, but you, again, lose Hyperglide+ and my experience with aftermarket 12-speed chains has varied from appauling to less than decent, so in my opinion this is not worth it.

Shimano chain on an aftermarket cassette:

I have only had the chance to test a Garbaruk cassette on Shimano drivetrain, and this combination worked quite well, despite losing Hyperglide+. Is this a viable option? Perhaps yes, as both the E13 and Garbaruk offerings are both cheaper and lighter than XTR. 

Verdict

So you can run a Sram chain on Shimano drivetrain, but this does not solve the less than ideal compatibility of a Shimano chain on Sram drivetrain, so personally I don't recommend mixing and matching components unless you keep both the cassette and chain from the same manufacturer. Despite Sram chains coming in all the nice colors like gold and oil slick, they still don't perform well enough on Shimano drivetrain to actually call them cross compatible.