Giant Defy 0 Upgrades
FatCycleRider
Posts: 58
I'm about to get a Defy 0 which comes with Ultegra 11 speed but not the full groupset.
The parts on the bike that are not Ultegra are;
* Front derailleur (Shimano 105)
* Chainset (Shimano RS500)
* Brake calipers (Shimano R561)
* Cassette (Shimano 105)
I'm not sure whether or not I should do the following;
1. Upgrade the above components for Ultegra 6800 (except the cassette until it wears out) for c£220 and sell the unused bits taken off the bike.
2. Buy a 105 11 speed groupset for c£325 and sell all the components on the bike.
3. Do nothing.
The parts on the bike that are not Ultegra are;
* Front derailleur (Shimano 105)
* Chainset (Shimano RS500)
* Brake calipers (Shimano R561)
* Cassette (Shimano 105)
I'm not sure whether or not I should do the following;
1. Upgrade the above components for Ultegra 6800 (except the cassette until it wears out) for c£220 and sell the unused bits taken off the bike.
2. Buy a 105 11 speed groupset for c£325 and sell all the components on the bike.
3. Do nothing.
0
Posts
Swopped the BR-561 non-series brakes for Ultegra 6700 calipers and swisstop blue BXP pads as I felt the BR-561's were ok in the dry but not so much in the wet. Did not bother swopping the FD-5700 105 front derailleur as it was function correctly and did not see the point, though will upgrade to the Ultegra FD-6700 when the 105 is worn/developes excessive play.
Did not swop the Tiagra CS-4600 cassette for the Ultegra CS-6700, as the Tiagra works fine.
Don't see the point of buying a 5800 groupset and swopping all that out with what's already on the bike. If the mix bothers you, just buy the 6800 chainset and brakes and change the FD and Cassette when worn. Sell the unused parts you take off the bike.
As for the chainset, the bike comes with a 50/34 and is mated with a very low ratio 11-32.
I current have a compact 50/34 on one of my bikes and a 50/39/30 on the other both with a 12-25 on the rear. The 50/34 always feels too much of a jump whereas 50 down to 39 is great but 25 on the rear is sometimes not low enough.
Do I go for the 53/39 Ultegra, the 52/36 or the 50/34. I'm thinking with the 11-32 on the rear, the 53/39 would be fine but seeing the newer 52/36 I'm tempted by that.
As you haven't given us any compelling reasons to do the contrary - just do this ^^
I don't like the mis-matched components so would like to try and get it as complete as I can but don't want to waste money unnecessarily. If the components were too expensive I would have waited for them to wear out and replace them then (although that may take many years).
Sorry, but you are contradicting yourself. Matching up the components would effectively be wasting money unnecessarily. But if you are determined to do it, then carry on.
I know. Maybe I'm just trying to find an excuse by asking fellow cyclists.
2nd vote is Dura Ace pads.
3rd. Swisstop Green's.
Kool Stop Salmon pad (with Dura Ace style holders) for me followed by swisstop greens.
Maybe I mis-read this - but it sounds like you are recommending a product that you haven't actually tried yet..?
I have been using the older blue BBB pads with no issue for the past couple of years.
I have two road bike currently. One is my training bike and the other my 'race' bike.
The Defy 0 will be replacing the training bike but has a better groupset than my race bike.
I'm now thinking I should swap the groupsets over and put the Ultegra 11 on the race bike and put the 105 10 speed on the Defy. The only faff is that my Easton Aero wheels are not 11 speed compatible so I'd need to get an 11 speed freehub.
Your thoughts?
Fixed TT 2015-2016