Shimano FD-M310 Aultus Front Derailleur (28.6-34.9-mm 3x7/8 Speed Low-Clamp)

Exactly what I expected with

Easy to install, works great on 2x8 configuration mtb. Used this to replace my Shimano Tourney FD-TY710, which had lots of chain rub and trouble shifting on half the gearings. This FD works with 2 or 3 speed chainrings. The cage is much more precise than tourney, so no chain rub even when crosschaining, and can still shift to a smaller chainring under load (going uphill), where my tourney would fail to shift.Install is easy for 2x8. Remove your chain and old FD. Place new FD on the post and tighten so it can move a bit. Twist it so the FD cage is parallel to the chainrings. Raise/lower it so the clear sticker template lines up with your largest chainring's teeth (~2mm). Shift to smallest chainring and middle sprocket on cassette, connect chain. Loosen barrel adjustment knob on your handlebar shifter. Thread shift cable through, snug it, and tighten clamp. Now just set your min limit screw so the chain does not rub on any gear on the small chainring. Then switch to the largest chainring, setting max limit screw so it will shift without overshooting. Play with the min max screws a tad on each gearing, and fine tune with barrel adjustment so there is no rub.

An older relative of mine had a Next Power Climber, couldn't stand how it shifted and asked me if I could tune it. Unfortunately, no matter what I did with the stock derailleurs and shifters on the Next, it wouldn't shift consistently.I swapped out the rear derailleur for an old Tourney I had laying around, put Microshift grip shifters on it and got the rear shifting working perfectly. But the 3 speed front chain wheel was still a train wreck and my relative wasn't going to spend anymore money on the bike.I did a little research and found that this Altus should work on the 2003 21 speed GT Palomar that I was restoring and that it should be an upgrade to the stock Tourney that was on the bike.So, the Next got the Tourney from the GT and my GT got this Altus.Win/win. My relatives Next now hits all 18 gears perfectly and I've got a heavier built, better shifting front derailleur on my GT.The first picture is the stock Tourney TY-32 and KMC Z chain. The second picture is the Altus and X8.99 chain. As you can see the Tourney is noticeably longer and slimmer. The Altus is thicker, and has a sturdier feel.The Altus arrives in the stock Shimano box, with spacers for 31.6 and 28.6 installations. Mine was a 28.6 and the installation and set up was easy.Will your bicycle suddenly become a fast shifting, performance machine? No.Will you notice a difference? I did. This Altus has been a noticeable upgrade from the stock Tourney.My GT has Microshift shifters and the Altus hits the front chain wheel gears more smoothly than the Tourney did. It will also shift easily the first to the third chain ring in one twist of the grip shift.Like all derailleurs, it doesn't like to be under full load when changing gears, but performs better than the Tourney under a light load.When I made the derailleur swap, I also went from the stock Z to a KMC 8.99 chain which made an unexpected improvement in the drive train and shifting on my GT as well. I never figured a chain would be a big deal, but this one is noticeably smoother shifting.If you've never changed a derailleur or adjusted one, do a search and watch one of the many videos. Park Tool has an excellent video about front and rear derailleurs. That video helped me dial in these two bikes so they ride better than when they were new.Hope this helps and ride safe.

I replaced my no name front derailleur for my Mongoose MTB with this Shimano Altus. This unit is a dual pull system, so it can be setup for top or bottom pull. The routing for top pull is fairly simple to setup but there are manuals for this derailleur in the internet. Pairing this derailleur with a good shifter like Shimano rapid shifter or Altus shifter makes for really smooth shifting. Now my adventures and rides are fun and less troublesome when having to shift before climbing a hill or needing speed.

This front derailleur perfectly replaced a totally worn-out front derailleur on an old Specialized Crossroads. One thing to keep in mind is that it's not just the largest chainwheel you have to worry about spacing the derailleur away from (1 - 3mm, they say). In my case, if I spaced the derailleur from the largest wheel by 3mm, I was still hitting the middle chainwheel when I tried to shift to the largest one. I had to move the derailleur-to-large chainwheel spacing to 5mm to make this work...and work perfectly it does now. TL;DR: The 1-3mm spacing from the largest chainwheel is not writ in stone. Make it larger if you must...just as long as your chain doesn't go off of the other side of your largest chainwheel and wind up wrapped around the crank arm. Works great.