Brand
SRAM
An American component maker from Chicago, founded in 1987. It made the 1x mountain drivetrain mainstream and owns RockShox, Zipp and Quarq.
Also known as: SRAM Corporation
Key facts
- Country
- USA
- Founded
- 1987
- Headquarters
- Chicago, Illinois
- Founders
- Stan Day, Scott King, Sam Patterson
- Known for
- Grip Shift, Eagle 12-speed, Eagle Transmission
- Website
- https://www.sram.com
History
Stan Day, Scott King and Sam Patterson founded SRAM in Chicago in 1987 — the name is made of their names. Its first product was Grip Shift, a twist shifter built into the grip. It later bought RockShox, Zipp, Truvativ and Avid and became a full component maker.
What it changed
- XX1 in 2012 made a single front chainring practical — the 1x drivetrain.
- Eagle in 2016 brought 12 speeds and a 50-tooth cassette.
- Eagle Transmission in 2023 mounts the derailleur directly on the axle, without a hanger.
Older SRAM brakes — Guide, Code, Level — run on DOT fluid; Maven and the newer ones run on mineral oil. The fluid is printed on the lever: check it before a bleed and never mix the two.
Related articles
- RockShox — An American suspension brand founded in 1989 by Paul Turner. Its first fork, the RS-1, brought front suspension to mountain biking; since 2002 the brand has been part of SRAM.
- Shimano — A Japanese maker of bicycle components founded in 1921 in Sakai. Its drivetrains and brakes are on more bikes than any other brand's.
- Drivetrain — Everything that turns your legs into forward motion: cranks, chainring, chain, cassette, derailleur and shifter. A modern mountain bike runs one chainring and twelve sprockets — 1×12.
- Disc brakes — Brakes that squeeze a steel rotor on the hub instead of the rim. Hydraulic disc brakes are the standard on mountain bikes: strong, controllable with one finger and unbothered by mud.
- Chain care — A clean, lubed chain shifts better, runs quieter and saves the cassette and chainring. Clean and lube it every few rides and replace it before it wears out everything else.
- Brake bleed — Replacing the fluid in a hydraulic brake and pushing out the air bubbles that make the lever soft. Once a year, or whenever the lever feels spongy or pulls to the bar.
- Boost — The hub-width standard of most modern mountain bikes: 110 × 15 mm at the front and 148 × 12 mm at the rear. Wider hubs make stiffer wheels and leave more room for tyres.