Advice on shifters and set ups

tom3

Hi Guys

I am after a budget first road bike up to around £500-£600. However, the brand and full bike spec will probably play second fiddle to the shifters and set up. Am I looking at this wrong?

My trek fuel mountain bike runs 27 gears, so i can lose the granny ring no probs on a road bike.

I keep seeing Shimano STxyz shifters, sora, tiagra etc etc. If im honest im getting a bit lost in it all and could do with some guidance.

thanks

nochekmate

Look to get Tiagra groupset minimum at your budget if possible (may not be that easy if buying new where Sora will more than likely be predominant)

Sprool

I think Shimano shifters start at 2300 basic model, then its soras on entry level road bikes and then tiagra, while they all do a basic good job a lot of people dont like sora cos of the little thumb button to change to smaller cog. The tiagras have a silver and black lever inside it to change up and down. I prefer these but they can be a bit more awkward in the winter with thick gloves on. Above tiagra (and please correct me if I'm wrong) there's 105 and then the high end Ultegra and Dura-ace stuff.
Best get down your local bike shop for a chat with the man.

tom3

brilliant, thank you for your help.

drlodge

I'm using Sora 8 speed shifters, they work great and I quite like the little thumb levers, its like having Campag!

JamesB5446

I use Campag (obviously) and was wondering how the Sora shifters compared. Are they pretty much the same or do they feel quite different?

MichaelW

Sora is more plasticky and less precise than higher end Shimano or any Campag but it seems to work OK and is esp good for riders with small hands. My Campy Ergolevers feels much more solid and positive than my Tiagras.
Personally I think 8 speed is an improvement over 9/10/11 speed and if I could buy a quality 8 speed setup, I would.

fgaffney

A little bit of smart shopping will get you a 105 groupset... the Sensa won this month's group test in Cycling Plus magazine when it was up against 5 other bikes including a Scott and a Boardman. Although it's slightly over budget it's an absolue steal at £680.00.

http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/b ... -2013.html

If you can't stretch that far you could get the same bike as mine for £608.00 which is basically the Sensa frame with a full Tiagra 10 speed groupset...

http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/b ... -bike.html

tom3

cheers for that, used merlin before on an old commencal mountain bike.

liked their service so pretty much sold on that bike.

ta very much!

simon_masterson

Don't get too hung up on the groupset. There's only so much difference between one derailleur and another.

It's worthwhile getting a 10 speed rather than 9 for upgrade purposes, and some people don't like the Sora shifters, but I would consider the rest of the bike to be far more concerning at your budget if it has nice components: the pennies have to be pinched somewhere!

phiadad

Sora 2013 shifters are losing the thumb shifter,ie becoming in effect a 9 speed tiagra shifter.

g00se

2300 and older Sora thumb buttons are quite different to Campag buttons. On Campag, they're much larger and towards the back of the shifter body - on Shimano, they're smaller and much further out front. This means that you can reach the campag thumb levers when you're on the drops, but not the shimano ones.