old shimano 105 v new tiagra

shiznit76

Hi, my bike is approx. 10 years old and fitted with shimano 105. How does today's tiagra compare to that as thinking of changing my bike but 105 ones are a bit out my budget. Is it best just to stick to my old set or is today's Tiagra as good?

supermurph09

shiznit76 wrote:

Hi, my bike is approx. 10 years old and fitted with shimano 105. How does today's tiagra compare to that as thinking of changing my bike but 105 ones are a bit out my budget. Is it best just to stick to my old set or is today's Tiagra as good?

Ultegra 6700 to 6800 is like night and day, I'd be surprised if that isn't the same further down. Remember the new 5800 (105) is 11 speed as well I believe the Tiagra is 10 speed.

The_Wicker_Man

My Kinesis came with the new Tiagra 4700 groupset and compared with the old 105 5700 on my old winter bike, it feels so much better, especially the shifting on the rear.

shiznit76

The_Wicker_Man wrote:

My Kinesis came with the new Tiagra 4700 groupset and compared with the old 105 5700 on my old winter bike, it feels so much better, especially the shifting on the rear.

Thanks for that, I presumed it would be the way with the technology trickling down over the years

comsense

I got a bike 16 years ago with 105 and the groupset worked for over a decade before I sold it on on another bike. At a sportive this year it was pouring rain and I met the lad I sold the bike to and he was still using it ...

I had Tiagra 4700 on a bike for 3 years and it worked flawlessly and I have recently bought a bike with 4800 and that is even better. I even had a Ultegra 6700 partial group on a shelf but didn't bother swapping because I couldn't see the point. I don't really know what point I'm trying to make except that I'd happily ride a bike with any of those groupsets. For comparsion I have had bikes in that time with Ultegra and also Campag Chorus and Record.

thekooman

The_Wicker_Man wrote:

My Kinesis came with the new Tiagra 4700 groupset and compared with the old 105 5700 on my old winter bike, it feels so much better, especially the shifting on the rear.

same as... Tiagra 4700 on my Caadx and its sweet as a nut even compared to ultegra 6800.

wotnoshoeseh

I'd get the new 105 if you can stretch to it. I just got a 105 5800 groupset for a winter bike, and I reckon it's better than my old Ultegra.
The only issue with getting the new 105 is you may need to upgrade your rear wheel to take the 11 speed cassette.

If that is too much, then I see no reason not to get the 4700 Tiagra.

The_Wicker_Man

comsense wrote:

I had Tiagra 4700 on a bike for 3 years and it worked flawlessly and I have recently bought a bike with 4800

4700 only got launched the beginning of this year :?

iron-clover

This is a difficult one- I'm running both at the moment, with the old 105 (groupset bought early last year) on my road bike, and the new Tiagra on my cyclocross bike that I got early this year, and I have often ridden both in the same day (CX on the cummute and road bike for training in the summer evenings).

I don't have the brakes from either groupset on the bikes so I can only comment on the shifting.

Overall I slightly prefer the shape of the Tiagra levers, and the lever action is easier than 105 when going against the springs. It also has the ability to shift up 3 sprockets at a time, although the third is right at the very end of the lever throw and sometimes doesn't engage. It is useful to dump gears on sharp gradient changes though, especially combined with the good leverage. However, shifting to the smaller sprockets or chainring doesn't feel as good- the 'click point' seems a little more vague than with 105, but it's a close thing.

As for the 'precision' of the shifts- occasionally the shifts won't line exactly with the cassette and will 'grind' for a short time before the chain properly engages with the cassette. I've checked it on the stand and it's not an alignment issue, it seems to be inherent to either the groupset or the cables (but the cables are good quality Jagwire which have never done that on any of my other bikes).

Compatibility: Tiagra uses the same cable ratios as the new 11 speed groupsets to gain the easy shifts, meaning the shifters are only compatible with Tiagra derailleurs.
The old 105 are compatible with any of the old 10 speed shimano kit which is great for winter bikes that take a beating.

My final conclusions as to which one I'd go for depend on how the bike will be used, and how much you can get them for. If you are going to be thrashing the bike to bits I would go for the old 105 as you will be able to buy spare parts really easily.

Otherwise I would probably go with the new Tiagra due to the better shifting up the blocks, and is probably cheaper as a complete groupset. The chainsets are also gorgeous (but again more expensive to replace).

TLDR, I'd say Tiagra is the one to go for generally, but if you are going to be thrashing it I would go with the old 105.

Have fun!

mugensi

I had 105 5700 on a bike for 2 years and hated it, front shifting was crude and agricultural, the shifting on the rear was fine. I recently done a 100km on a Tiagra 4700 bike and its not far off the 6800 on my other bike. Rear shifting is precise and never missed a gear and shifting from small to big ring on the front is so easy and light compared to 5700.

If I somehow came into possession of a bike with 5700 (because I would never willingly buy a bike with that groupset again) then I'd remove it immediately and fit 4700.