Shimano CS-M5100-11

Quality:Japanese Shimano Quality, that means durable, well-engineered and precision. Appearance:Silver in color, packed in an easy to install mechanism. Performance:Perfect for front single and double MTB drivetrains, SHIMANO's M5100-11cassette offers Rider Tuned gear steps for maximum cadence control across the varied terrain of mountain biking.

Trail Riding mountain bikes all year round in all condition, about 125 miles a week is a sure way to wear out moving components very quickly. Buying ‘top of the range’ equipment does not, in my opinion, delay replacement day. Mud and water doesn’t respect £££s. These cassettes do the job as well as the most expensive ones (perhaps weighing a few grams more). The 12 speed (on the bike I reserve for when the mud has dried up) offer no real advantage over this 11 speed.

11/51 cassette happy

The 11/51 provides a wide gear choice. Makes the knees happy. Shifts are crisp and precise. You should run a steel freehub, as the cassettes splines will gouge a aluminum freehub, and ruin it. With steel freehub, no problem. The cassette holds up extremely well in all conditions. I run it on a Pivot Mach 429 trail, 2x11 drivetrain. Riding trails from Michigan to Colorado to Arizona. I have worn out 2 cassettes in 3 years, due to rocks in Utah and Arizona.

Excellent cassette; just wish it came in XT or black color

Like others who have purchased this cassette, I have not wanted to make the full investment into a 1x12 system as I'm very happy with my XT 1x11 otherwise. I love that there are 1x11 cassettes which give you almost as much range, with great gear ratios and (potentially) less weight due to having one less cog. I previously switched from the 11-46 XT cassette to a ZTTO 11-50 cassette to get a bit more range, with less weight (the ZTTO weighed ~350g vs. 619g for this one). Unfortunately, the quality was crap and I burned through 2 cassettes in a year. I went back to the drawing board, looking at all wide range 11 speed cassettes, and landed on this one. It's nowhere near as light as the Garbaruk, but it's also nowhere near the price. I figured 5-6 oz won't kill me in ... MoreLike others who have purchased this cassette, I have not wanted to make the full investment into a 1x12 system as I'm very happy with my XT 1x11 otherwise. I love that there are 1x11 cassettes which give you almost as much range, with great gear ratios and (potentially) less weight due to having one less cog. I previously switched from the 11-46 XT cassette to a ZTTO 11-50 cassette to get a bit more range, with less weight (the ZTTO weighed ~350g vs. 619g for this one). Unfortunately, the quality was crap and I burned through 2 cassettes in a year. I went back to the drawing board, looking at all wide range 11 speed cassettes, and landed on this one. It's nowhere near as light as the Garbaruk, but it's also nowhere near the price. I figured 5-6 oz won't kill me in the middle of my wheel, and the extra steel cogs may give me more durability. After 4 hard rides on it, I'm pretty stoked on its performance. It's night and day from the ZTTO from a shifting perspective, as Shimano does really play better with other Shimano components in the drivetrain. The construction does seem rock solid. If they made an XT version, or if this one came in black I'd certainly prefer those, but am otherwise very happy with this purchase. For what it's worth, I'm running with an XT derailleur with the regular cage and b-screw; still have plenty of clearance and responsiveness.

Fantastic Value Upgrade!

This review is about the Shimano M5100 group set as a whole. I made my first foray into mountain biking a few months ago with the purchase of a gently used Orbea MX50 mountain bike. It came with a Shimano Atlus 3x8 group set (3 gears/cogs in front, 8 gears/cogs in back for those as new to this as I recently was). This group set has been a HUGE upgrade.I switched everything to 1x11 which required buying a new crank, sprocket, chain, derailleur, annd shifter. I have plenty of gear range and it is SO MUCH more functional. This group set has really changed my bike for the better!Keep in mind you will probably need to buy some special tools, grease, etc. I did the upgrade myself and it’s pretty involved but if you’re mechanical, it’s definitely a job that can be done ... MoreThis review is about the Shimano M5100 group set as a whole. I made my first foray into mountain biking a few months ago with the purchase of a gently used Orbea MX50 mountain bike. It came with a Shimano Atlus 3x8 group set (3 gears/cogs in front, 8 gears/cogs in back for those as new to this as I recently was). This group set has been a HUGE upgrade.I switched everything to 1x11 which required buying a new crank, sprocket, chain, derailleur, annd shifter. I have plenty of gear range and it is SO MUCH more functional. This group set has really changed my bike for the better!Keep in mind you will probably need to buy some special tools, grease, etc. I did the upgrade myself and it’s pretty involved but if you’re mechanical, it’s definitely a job that can be done in a basement or garage. No regrets at all!

Great 1x11 upgrade

I upgraded an old bike that used to have a 9-speed free hub cassette with this one along with the matching RD-M5100 derailleur and M5100 crankset plus the M5100 shifter. Everything works together very smoothly. I don't even hear the usual chain whirr. Gear shifts are effortless and quick, though they do take a bit more time with the lowest gears.Be sure to set up the derailleur correctly. Without a spoke protector behind the lowest gear, the chain could fall off and get stuck between the cassette and the spokes damaging them if the limit is not set up correctly. Also, since the 51-tooth sprocket is gigantic, there is very little clearance between the derailleur pulley and the cogs so setting up the B screw is also super important.The 51T sprocket is more than ... MoreI upgraded an old bike that used to have a 9-speed free hub cassette with this one along with the matching RD-M5100 derailleur and M5100 crankset plus the M5100 shifter. Everything works together very smoothly. I don't even hear the usual chain whirr. Gear shifts are effortless and quick, though they do take a bit more time with the lowest gears.Be sure to set up the derailleur correctly. Without a spoke protector behind the lowest gear, the chain could fall off and get stuck between the cassette and the spokes damaging them if the limit is not set up correctly. Also, since the 51-tooth sprocket is gigantic, there is very little clearance between the derailleur pulley and the cogs so setting up the B screw is also super important.The 51T sprocket is more than enough for climbing, or for easily doing wheelies like my son likes to, even with the 1x11 setup that we have now.

Great cassette!

This is great. I didn’t know cassettes came this big. It looks like a comically large hubcap back there but it works like it came new from the bike store. I did a 26er conversion….1999 Litespeed Ocoee HT, to a 1x (44 narrow wide/11-51 cassette) with…. Deore 11 speed rd-5100, SRAM NX 11 spd grip shifter, old RaceFace turbine cranks(4 arm), ISIS - 73mm/113mm spindle w spacer (2.5 or 3mm) - shell is 68mm and kmc 11spd chain. I haven’t dropped a chain yet since my first shake down ride since spindle is perfectly centered. I still need to fine tune the shifting but the weight loss and loss of FD complexity really makes this one of the best upgrades/mods I’ve ever done and I’ve been cycling since 1990s. Great for hilly areas like my area.Competitive Cyclist should have ... MoreThis is great. I didn’t know cassettes came this big. It looks like a comically large hubcap back there but it works like it came new from the bike store. I did a 26er conversion….1999 Litespeed Ocoee HT, to a 1x (44 narrow wide/11-51 cassette) with…. Deore 11 speed rd-5100, SRAM NX 11 spd grip shifter, old RaceFace turbine cranks(4 arm), ISIS - 73mm/113mm spindle w spacer (2.5 or 3mm) - shell is 68mm and kmc 11spd chain. I haven’t dropped a chain yet since my first shake down ride since spindle is perfectly centered. I still need to fine tune the shifting but the weight loss and loss of FD complexity really makes this one of the best upgrades/mods I’ve ever done and I’ve been cycling since 1990s. Great for hilly areas like my area.Competitive Cyclist should have most of the parts you need at the best prices! Thanks Competitive Cyclist!

Great upgrade - required extra spacer

I purchased this as a part of the complete Shimano M5100 drivetrain. I upgraded to this from the stock 2x8 drivetrain that came stock on my Cannodale Trail 7 (also purchased from REI). So far I have put 165 miles on the M5100 drivetrain - all on dirt XC trails.Overall, this was a great upgrade and really improved my entry-level trail bike. Between installing this 1x11 and a dropper post, I'm getting a lot more enjoyment out of my Cannondale Trail 7. This drivetrain is WAY quieter than my old 2x, and I don't think I've had my chain come off even once. The gearing is also much better for the kind of XC riding that I do regularly.I will note one important caveat with this drivetrain. Apparently, there is some kind of compatibility issue with this cassette and some ... MoreI purchased this as a part of the complete Shimano M5100 drivetrain. I upgraded to this from the stock 2x8 drivetrain that came stock on my Cannodale Trail 7 (also purchased from REI). So far I have put 165 miles on the M5100 drivetrain - all on dirt XC trails.Overall, this was a great upgrade and really improved my entry-level trail bike. Between installing this 1x11 and a dropper post, I'm getting a lot more enjoyment out of my Cannondale Trail 7. This drivetrain is WAY quieter than my old 2x, and I don't think I've had my chain come off even once. The gearing is also much better for the kind of XC riding that I do regularly.I will note one important caveat with this drivetrain. Apparently, there is some kind of compatibility issue with this cassette and some rear hubs (mine is WTB). Basically, the independent cogs on the cassette aren't held firmly into place and will rattle around once you ride for a while. This becomes extremely noisy, and can actually cause damage and imprecise shifting. Other people have noted this issue on forums - and I saw two issues speculated as the cause. One was that stock Deore cassette lockring does not have enough threads. The other is that the cassette needs an additional spacer between the hub and cassette. I troubleshooted with a lockring, as well as an additional 1.85mm spacer between the hub and cassette. I found that the issue was indeed a need for an additional spacer. Adding this resolved the issue with loose cogs on my WTB hub.Apart from that initial problem with loose cogs, I give this cassette a thumbs up. For me, this was a very cost-effective upgrade/