MADRONE JAB DERAILLEUR REVIEW

October 28, 2026

The aftermarket mountain bike derailleur market is going strong, with multiple players entering the scene with high-quality alternatives to SRAM and Shimano. Ashland, Oregon-based Madrone Cycles is one of these players, delivering its highly customizable, adaptable, and downright sexy Jab derailleur.

We have been logging the miles on the Madrone Jab T-Type MTB derailleur to assess its performance and compare it to the SRAM Eagle 70 and 90. Let’s dive into how it stacked up, and whether it shifted our perspectives.

ABOUT THE MADRONE JAB DERAILLEUR

After their entry to the market a few years back, making SRAM AXS derailleur parts, Madrone Cycles applied their knowledge of the intricacies of the rear derailleur to the production of their own complete unit. Tired of the inevitable obsolescence and minimal rebuildability of the most common derailleur units at the high end, Madrone delivered the Jab as a rebuildable and adaptable derailleur. Designed to improve shift quality, and guaranteed to leave their customers stoked (seriously, this is something Madrone promises), the Madrone Jab could be the last derailleur one ever needs to buy.

MADRONE JAB FEATURES

The Madrone Jab is a mechanical, cable-operated derailleur built primarily from CNC-machined aluminum and stainless steel alloys, giving a robust yet lightweight construction. This highly adaptable rear mech is made with a modular construction, giving compatibility with regular derailleur hangers or SRAM UDH/T-Type direct mount.

The Madrone Jab features two user-adjustable clutch options for either gravel or mountain bike use. The friction of these clutches can be adjusted by the user, using shims to tune the effects and balance the rider’s preference of chain stability and suspension performance. The mountain bike clutch features a strong unidirectional clutch, designed to offer stellar chain stability when pushed forward, but a quick and smooth return.

Madrone paid particular attention to reinforcing critical areas for strength and precise shifting, and minimizing system friction to deliver the smoothest, lightest, and most accurate shifts. The linkage design uses two return springs to create snappy downshifts with less degradation compared with the single spring design more commonly found.

Recently, the design of the Madrone Jab derailleur was updated to use cartridge bearings across all pivot points. This was implemented to further decrease friction and “slop” which can lead to poor shifting accuracy on a bushing-based system. Not only should this improve shift quality initially, but it should maintain this improved performance over the long haul.

MADRONE JAB COMPATIBILITY

The main components of the Madrone Jab are compatible with a wide range of 1x drivetrains from mountain bike to gravel, in 11 or 12-speed. Using different cams (available aftermarket), the Madrone Jab can convert between SRAM or Shimano 11 or 12-speed drivetrains, and with some extra parts it can work with SRAM T-Type. Different cage length options are offered to suit close-ratio or wide-ratio cassettes.

The T-Type conversion requires the purchase of a T-Type hanger, fitting the SRAM UDH mounting standard and spacing the derailleur out the necessary 2.5mm to ensure compatibility. This design uses a T-Stiffener plate to give the sturdiest mount to the frame.

Standard derailleur-mounted mechs mounted to a UDH-equipped frame can be equipped with the UDH stiffener plate to further boost shifting precision.

The modular design of the Madrone Jab allows users to convert between all compatible drivetrain standards and hopes to ensure future-proofing.

MADRONE JAB OPTIONS AND PRICING

There are some standard options available to purchase on the Madrone website, allowing riders to quickly grab the required mech for typical mountain or gravel bike setups. Madrone offers a range of colorways in these mechs, with pricing from $298 / £272 / €310.95.

The T-Type MTB Jab setup we tested comes with the stiffener plate and UDH hanger for T-Type mech cassette compatibility, with a retail price of $339 / £309 / €353.95. The weight of the T-Type setup is 328g, shaving 67g over the SRAM Eagle 90 derailleur it replaced for the test.

For riders with a unique setup, Madrone offers a custom build option to mix and match all available components as required.

Madrone is growing a worldwide network of dealers, and your closest can be located on their website.

THE MADRONE STOKE GUARANTEE

Madrone Cycles stands by their products with the Madrone Stoke Guarantee. This promises that they will support the derailleur for life with maintenance parts, and offer all customers the same level of performance with backwards compatibility on any system upgrades. If the customer isn’t stoked, they can return their derailleur for a refund.

Madrone offers a rebuild service, where customers can mail their derailleur in for a service or upgrade with free labor. They provide a 50% discount on upgrade parts to these customers.

The Wolf’s Last Word

In short, all the testers who spent time on the Madrone Jab loved it. While the difference in performance compared to a SRAM 90 wasn’t earth shattering, it was notably better than a SRAM 70. Where I would say the investment starts to make sense over Eagle 90 or 70, is in the long term performance and reduced maintenance.

The Madrone Jab kept on running smoothly, shifting precisely long after we’d be reaching for barrel adjusters, or getting behind the bike to see if things were still lining up right in each gear. The frame of the Madrone derailleur was tight, it shifted crisply, didn’t deteriorate, lag or stutter, no matter how many miles, how much gunk, pumice dust, or mud we got in there. The SRAM units would have long developed play and been problematic while the Jab still felt new.

If you’re a rider who loves the look of a CNC-upgrade, wants to buy one derailleur to keep around for a long time and move to your next bike, this unit is well worth the investment. If however, you’re a rider who’s regularly bashing mechs into rocks or snapping them off, this won’t solve your problems and will likely just make for an expensive mistake rather than the cheaper 70 replacements for your bike bashing good times.

Price: $339 / £309 / €353.95
Website: Madronecycles.com