Do 8 Speed Shimano Gears Actually Work Properly? I recently refurbished a 24 speed MTB with new cables, new chain and a proper clean. No matter how much I tried I could not get the shifting to be as smooth as a 9 speed system. It had a certain clunkiness to it that wasn't present in Shimano 8 speed systems from 20 years ago. I have experienced this before with 'Alivio' and other modern 8 speed parts which made me wonder, do these 8 speed parts actually work properly?

Also, if anyone knows, are they deliberately engineered to be borderline clunky so that there is a reason to buy the better 9 and 10 speed parts?
All my four bikes with deraileurs use shimano 8-gear cassettes. Although I have never had a 9 or 10 geared bike (I think it is too many gears, no need for that), I could say it works properly or not depending on many factors, mostly these:


If the cassette is worn, shifting gets worse, because the engagement points are not the same anymore;
If the deraileur has lateral play, same way: shifting gets a little less precise, although I would say this is not the worst problem, see ahead;
If HANGER IS BENT, then no matter what you do, shifting is terrible, as @user2839 said. If you set the upper gears to be right, the lower ones will be offset, and vice-versa.
Finally, if cable is not running smoothly inside the housings, there will be problems too.


But I would never put the blame on the cassette being 8-speed.

Hope it helps!