TreyWestgate

so am getting a new bike tomorrow and it uses the shimano tourney shifters and freewheel cassette with the black mega range 34t cog.

I heard someone mention that the tourney parts are the bottom of the line and can be mediocre.

Are they really ok enough?.

They are on most entry level bikes, but I have seen them in bikes costing even up to 700$.

could one possibility be that they are used as a compromise on bikes with more higher level components in other places such as carbon parts, forks or lighter frames, better wheelsets or the like?.

someone said they are not for someone who rides a lot or aggressively.

I'm assuming that they are basic low cost equipment, but that doesn't mean they are terrible does it?.

Won't I just need to replace the parts more often?.

They are on many bikes and something that might concern me is that i think i have seen them in Walmart bikes as well.

Good?,bad? ok?.

cny-bikeman

They are low end but would not still be spec'd if they did not work OK for most people. There's really no way to tell you if they're right for you.

TreyWestgate

Well if they suck then I guess i can always change them later on down the road.

also what would be the biggest chainring size I could get out of that rear derailleur if anyone knows.

Myosmith

Tourney works but if you can afford the difference, bumping up to the Alivio level will give you good bang for your buck.

nfmisso

Tourney components are reliable, long lasting, but on the heavy side, and may not shift as quickly or as smoothly as higher end stuff. A continuing difference as you go towards higher end is lighter weight, which eventually starts hurting reliability and life.

Bill Kapaun

Maybe if you linked to the bike, we could see how "suitable" they are with the other parts.

I have one bike shifting a 9 speed rear with a 7 speed Tourney, so they DO work.

The rear doesn't depend on a max/min chain ring size except the difference between the largest & smallest has to be within a certain range to have sufficient chain wrap capacity.

You may see a Tourney FDER with the next higher level RDER on some bikes.
The fact it's a 7 speed free wheel suggests all the other parts are a relatively low level.

Shimano does make a level below Tourney for the cheapest box store bikes. I don't think these are available to the public unless they have a bike attached.

dabac

Tourney is cruder and sloppier. But perfectly fine if you can live with slightly sluggish shifts.

maddog34

two issues i run into constantly with tourney parts are:
1) the rear derailleur is typically hung from a cheap piece of steel that bends when a strong breeze hits it... if the rear gears stop shifting accurately, look at the ALIGNMENT of the rear derailleur immediately, ok?

2) the shifters wear quickly, and will begin not working if they get wet, or even just get older than a couple years or so.

and the CABLES typically paired with the Tourney parts WILL RUST when they get wet.

keep things lubed, and DON'T get the bike wet.

the chain will probably be a piece of junk, too.

and yes, the parts are HEAVY... Nigel mentioned that the higher end, lighter, parts are prone to failure from their lightness... he forgets that the lighter parts are made of much better materials, feature much improved designs, and are made with a much higher quality control level.... i deal with many old as dirt Road bikes that have higher end Shimano parts on them... they have a zillion miles of all-weather use, yet continue to work correctly.... the only bikes i see with old, LOW end, shimano parts that still work? ones that have been rarely used. Tourney parts will wear out, if used regularly, period.

As to the maximum WRAP CAPACITY of the rear tourney ders... it is about 40 teeth difference between small/small, and big/big sprockets... figure about 20 teeth difference at the freewheel, and about 20 at the crank chain rings... if you avoid CROSS CHAINING, you might get away with a few more teeth of difference... Let's say that your new bike has a 14-34 rear cluster, and a 42-22 front triple crank... that is 40 teeth difference... the tourney is already at it's suggested limit, eh?
Considering that the bike is spec'd with tourney shifters/ders.... your big chain ring may in fact be a RIVETED, non-changeable, type... and if you go too big on the front big ring, the FRONT der. will need to be changed, or the chain may start rubbing on the rear of the front der. cage when shifted to the small ring... and it WILL need to be correctly re-positioned, at best.... front ders. have max ranges, too, you know!

if you will be using the bike mostly on flatter, non-off road terrain, i'd advise a different crank set, with about a 26/46 range of chain rings.... then you just get the front der. reset, and install a longer chain, and go ride! A 48, 50, or 52 tooth big ring will require a ROAD TYPE front der.

add up the changed parts, plus labor, or tools... and you could have gotten a better bike, with the better parts, that was more like what you wanted in the first place.... and you would have enjoyed it more, too.

NOW... if the bike is a low end walmart type bike, DO NOT think that since it has "Suspension", it is a downhill racer... you WILL break parts, and may wind up in a hospital.... the wheels will have cheap, cheesey rims, and they will go out-of true the first time you jump the bike... the suspension will be junk, and will not have actual damping in the "shocks"... the cables will rust easily, and the bearings will have next to NO GREASE, right from the factory... the axles will bend easily, and the front hub will almost always be set too darn tight.

Retro Grouch 

How thin can you slice the baloney?

Shimano markets bicycle components at so many price points that I can't keep track of them anymore. They all function. As you move up price levels, they tend to get a little more crisply functioning, a little lighter in weight, and a little nicer looking. There really is a difference but I generally have to move up or down at least 2 price points before I can detect the functional difference. I think that the functional difference is arithmetic while the price difference is logarithmic and shoots up much faster.

The "sweet spot" is wherever you perceive the function, weight and aesthetic difference line meets your price gag point. Everybody draws those lines differently. I rode some pretty marginal bikes for a lot of years because they were the best that I could afford at the time. They made it possible for me to ride and provided me many years of fun and satisfaction. I'm happy to be able ride better equipped bikes today.

Tourney parts are what they are. There are thousands of people who rely on Tourney equipped bikes for their day-to-day transportation and they use them for years with only minimal maintenance.

shelbyfv

Interesting choice for someone with such massive power that he routinely destroys geared bikes.

hokiefyd 

I have one bike in the family with Tourney stuff, my 11 year old daughter's 2015 Raleigh Alysa 1. I've been generally impressed with the value of this bike as a whole, and the Tourney stuff plays a part in that.

First, you did ask about "chainring size" and the rear derailleur -- most Tourney-equipped bikes are aimed at the entry level market, where riders generally prefer easy pedaling, and they often come with the 34T "Megarange" freewheels. A Tourney RD can easily handle a 34T large cog freewheel. You asked about chainring, though -- most will have a 28-38-48 triple on the front. Are you looking to install a larger chainring than 48T? The RD should be able to accommodate most anything within reason, as long as your chain is sized appropriately.

As far as how Tourney operates, I find it to be relatively durable stuff. My daughter hasn't broken anything on her bike, yet. It's fallen down on the drive side and there are war scrapes on the RD to prove it, but everything stays in alignment. I do like how Tourney is the only RD Shimano makes below some of their newer high end stuff that has a cable pulley on the back, so that you don't have to have a tight radius in cable housing. I think that type of arrangement can only help with shifting tension, etc. Maybe it's because Tourney is the only group that comes with twist shifters. I do not like the Tourney twist shifters (branded Revoshift). They seem to be durable, but they have relatively small gripping surfaces, and they can be difficult to use. The rubber surface is REALLY stippled, which can tear up the webbing of your hand if you shift a lot. I like Sram's (branded Gripshift) twist shifters much better at this price point.

Shifting, as others note, is not always super crisp, though it certainly works just fine. And it likely will work just fine for years and years. Her bike has the MF-TZ21 14-28 freewheel (not the 14-34 "Megarange") and a KMC Z7 chain. Upshifts and downshifts are executed quickly. There is sometimes some chain jump when upshifting (down the cassette) and there is sometimes some brief gnashing when downshifting (up the cassette), but some of that is user technique (shifting when pedaling slow or under load). I have better luck with it when I ride her bike.

The bikes I ride have somewhat better components than hers, but not by a long shot. My 2015 Trek has Acera, my 1997 Trek has STX (analagous to the base level Deore today), and my 1995 Motiv has Alivio. These all work a litter better than her Tourney in terms of refinement and smoothness, but they all also have trigger shifters. I think the Tourney components are let down somewhat by the Revoshift shifters. Put some nice triggers in front of a Tourney derailleur, and it'd probably shape up pretty nicely.

MRT2

I love this expression and have quoted you on it from time to time.

MRT2

Tourney components are for people who don't spend a lot of time posting on cycling enthusiast forums. If it were me, I would steer clear of entry level components on a bike I rode more than just occasionally. My wife has a bike with Tourney derailleurs, but it is, for all intents and purposes, her backup bike.

fietsbob

Buy Dura Ace & XTR if that makes you happier. some people are not as willing to spend the money you have, on their bikes.

TreyWestgate

Well I pushed it and tested it hard and it feels strong and able to handle my strength so far....

how it does a month or so later well......

guess I will mention if that changes

ramzilla

I've got a set of Tourney 2 x 7 speed brifters on one of my old Centurions. They work pretty well. Had to take the Tourney RD off the Centurion though. It just wouldn't hit the target and, chain was constantly skipping off the cogs. That cleared up immediately once I installed a Deore RD.

frankenmike 

My all-weather commuter currently sports a tourney RD. The salt crud from winter use destroys pretty much everything, and I decided that low price is the proper tact in this case. Had an older xtr I threw on for awhile, but it seized up eventually as did its predecessor, a deore level. The tourney functions fine, FWIW.

GolfRideVa

Just want to say thx for the great info posted here. I read a lot of bike reviews but I never see specifics on what actually makes one bike better than another. Sure I see general things like higher end bikes are generally lighter - and I realize carbon vs aluminum or steel is a big difference, but when it comes to chains, derailleurs and Shimano types / that’s what I want to know - what’s the difference - anyhow , thanks a bunch

shelbyfv

Welcome to BF! Trey has some more good ones if you search. Also check out Dreamrider for similar.

PdalPowr

All I can say is my tourney rear deraileur broke.
When replacing it I looked it over and was really not impressed with the quality.
I know there is a lot of junk out there. That Tourney is just very poorly made.

WGB 

I have a Tourney GS triple crank set which was made for Shimano by Takagi. Quality seems very good and while mine is a used set the finish is still excellent. Someone (can't recall who) posted once on here that just as 600 led to 600 Ultegra which led to Ultegra, Tourney GS somehow led to 105. I don't know if any of that is true but as I said I am impressed by these cranks. Having said that I have had Tourney derailleurs and wasn't impressed by those.



Opps - Believe you are speaking of Tourney mountain bike components and is so - ignore my input!!!

alcjphil

Shimano has used the Tourney name many times over the years, sometimes for very good quality components. However, in recent years the Tourney model name has fallen on hard times and now denotes a low end product

Wilfred Laurier

The primary difference, and I do't know if this was described above, is that the 'lower end' stuff wears out faster... a brand new properly adjusted Tourney shifter/derailleur set will work very well, but after a season of use you will notice it is getting sloppy and hard to keep perfectly adjusted, while Alivio, Deore, etc. will last longer.

And while Tourney is near the bottom of Shimano's line, it's better than a lot of non-Shimano stuff you find on inexpensive bikes. Tourney is the best of the cheap stuff.

tcs

I've got a Bicycling magazine here from May 1984 with a Frank Berto measured performance test of 39 rear 'touring' derailleurs in it. I think a 2019 Tourney would probably win that test and be declared 'best derailleur'.

Phil_gretz

I updated a Centurion Elite RS with 2 x 7 Tourney A070 brifters for a friend of my oldest daughter. I used older indexing Shimano alloy derailleurs, maybe LX or something. I'll admit that I was impressed how well they shifted. So much so that I used them on another project bike, 1990 Fuji Ace that had had Exage Sport light action stuff swapped onto it. Worked a charm on that bike, too.

The biggest challenge with Tourney stuff is that you lose street cred and bragging rights on bike forums, where you will be marginalized as a crank or a wannabe. Perhaps shunned, even. So beware...