Shimano 2300
the playing mantis
Posts: 2,129
Lookign at a cheap bike for winter, one has shimano 2300's. my question is, are these terrible (bear in mind this will just be used for short distance commuting)? do they have a strange changing mechanism? how much would it cost to upgrade to sora, would it be worth it for a bike that wont be used too much?
thanks
thanks
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My wife has it on her bike and it works absolutely fine.0
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I have 2300 on my Trek 1.1. It is absolutely fine. Changing is great, just has the thumb to change down the cassette, which you cant reach from the drops like Sora.
I can't see any reason to pay a lot more to get Sora. I think it's 9 speed instead of 8 but no big deal.
Many thanks,Current bike: 2014 Kinesis Racelight T2 - built by my good self!0 -
the thumb thing 'button' was what i had heard about, seemed a bit odd, guess its easy enough to get used to...so its only used for changing down?
anyone know the cost of putting sora on after market if i asked my lbs to do it, if i didnt get on with the 2300?0 -
My gf has these on here Dolce, they seem fine. No problem with indexing and gear shifts are not noticeably different to my 105 shifts.
As others have said, the main difference is that the down shift is performed by a thumb operated trigger which can only be accessed when on the hoods, but I think Sora is the same so you would have to upgrade the brake lever/shifter to Tiagra. This looks to be about a £170 upgrade, but i have no idea about compatibility Tiagra/2300, also you could recoup some cost by selling the 2300 levers, but I don't know what you would get for them.0 -
thumbshift is much easier when you're cycling in winter with thick warm gloves on...0
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Done about 2000 miles with mine and They work for me too...0
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If you wanted to change to Sora 8 speed they shifters are exactly the same, if you changed to Sora 9 speed you would also need to change the casette to be 9 speed and the chain (it is thinner than an 8 speed chain).
To be honest the cost of doing this you might as well buy a 10 speed Tiagra or 105 bike in the first place.
There is nothing wrong with 2300 it is a good solid groupset that does what it says on the tin, it changes gears.0 -
thank you for the comments, seems the 2300 is fine for my needs. didnt realise sora was the same though. interesting stuff.0
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For a cheapish winter bike I don't think you can go far wrong. I have a giant defy 4 which comes with them as standard. If I continue to improve and still have the bug next year I may 'upgrade' but for now I'm well satisfied with bike and mechanics0
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I have the 9 speed version of Sora on my Spesh Secteur and the thumb button moves you into a higher gear (i.e towards the 11 tooth cog rather than the 25 tooth one). Pushing the brake lever inwards puts you into a lower gear.
When in the drops if you want to go faster its awkward as you have to shift your hand back onto the hoods to make the shift, but as long as you're in top gear (or high enough for what you're doing) you can easily shift into an easier gear as you reach the bottom of a climb or if a descent levels out.
I should add that I'm more than happy with it and I've done loads of sportives (inc Fred Whitton, Etape du Dales, Peak 100 etc etc) and a London - Paris ride with that bike and the gears change fine.0 -
im new to road bikes, but the one i have has 105/tiagra mix. tbh i probably couldnt tell the difference between the shiftings, the only concern was the thumb button thing, but seems only a mild inconvenince but shouldnt be an issue for commuting and gentle winter/wet weather riding.0
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When I had 8sp Sora I had no problems shifting up (not down - you're going to a higher gear) from the drops using the thumblever.
I guess if you had small hands, stiff thumbs or very deep drop bars you wouldn't be able to reach.0 -
When I test rode a spesh allez sport with sora I hated it - my hands kept sliding into the thumb shifters (which hurt) and I couldn't reach them from the drops...
Then after much faffing i test rode a Bianchi Via Nirone with sora...and I loved it. I can reach the thumb shifters from the drops and its perfectly comfortable unlike the spesh...it may have simply have needed proper adjustment for me.
Anyhow, sora and thumb shifters are fine - at least for some people, better try it first though!0 -
I've had both, 2300 and Sora on different bikes in the last 18 months, and I can't really tell the difference to be honest.0
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andy_wrx wrote:When I had 8sp Sora I had no problems shifting up (not down - you're going to a higher gear) from the drops using the thumblever.
I guess if you had small hands, stiff thumbs or very deep drop bars you wouldn't be able to reach.
one of my bikes has 8 speed sora and when set up correctly it works really well, I have never noticed an issue but then rarely change gear while in the drops. One thing you can do with Sora that you cant with tiagra/105/ultegra is change up with your hands on the bars (you have to be on the hoods/drops with the others), I found that if just leisurely riding i can reach the thumblever with my index finger when I want to be lazy.
TBH my other bike has 105 and while smoother/lighter to change it also seems harder to get a good set up than sora/2300 but given the choice I would go for tiagra or better just because the actual shift feels nicer and multiple changes are easier using the paddles.0 -
must admit i prefer the thumbshift and still use it now, ive got small hands and spend most of my time on the hoods so it is perfect for me, all down to personal preference........and budget!0
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The new Sora 3500 groupset has similar shifting to Tiagra/105 etc, but still 9 speed. Worth a mention as this is different to previous years.0
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Sprool wrote:thumbshift is much easier when you're cycling in winter with thick warm gloves on...
Easier than simply sliding the entire lever to the left? If anything, it'd be easier to use a thumb shifter with less padding than not, and easier to shift the entire thing with more padding, as there's less precision required.0
