Ultegra or 105

Shaun67

I hate having to post this but I'd really like to know the forum's opinion.

I'm currently looking at two bikes, one with 105 R7000 and the other with Ultegra R8000, but the colour of the bike isn't as appealing and it's £200 more !

Which one ???

bendertherobot

Which bikes? Are they otherwise identical?

timothyw

The cheaper one, obviously.

Very little difference in functionality between 105 and ultegra, and you prefer the colour.

You can always upgrade to ultegra later but you're stuck with an ugly colour.

kingrollo

Im going to go against the popular view. IME the jump to ultegra is worth it ...as if you shop around it can be had dor an extra £100 or so

Shaun67

Haha, no, not identical !

The bikes are a Giant Propel Advanced 1 Disc with Ultegra and it's black,
the other is a Giant Propel Advanced Pro with 105 and it's calipers. It's
£200 cheaper, I really like the colour and it's has the better fork.

I know it brings us to the disc vs rim debate !!!!

On more thing, the Advanced 1 Disc with no cables showing does look
good, really nice clean lines.

I know I need to just make a decision and just get on with it, I'm worse
than my wife and daughter cloths shopping.

pilot_pete

Shaun67 wrote:

I'm worse than my wife and daughter cloths shopping.

I know, I know, J-cloths, floor cloths, dish cloths....what’s a girl to do! :shock:

PP

Shaun67

Clothes.....I did hit an "e"....honest.

keef66

If it was me I'd go for the 105. R7000 is as good as I'd ever need, and being fairly light myself I've never found rim brakes lacking.

All you get with Ultegra is a bit of weight saving and pose value, but since in this case it also involves hydraulic discs the first point is moot.

Only you can make the decision. You say it's a better colour and has a better fork, but imagine yourself riding the 105 rim braked bike. Will you be constantly wondering if Ultegra would have been nicer or if you'd have benefitted from disc brakes?

Conversely imagine yourself on the Ultegra bike. Would you be pining for the lovelier colour / possibly lighter 105 bike? Moaning about the discs rubbing / squealing?

bendertherobot

So, is it:



v



Both are Overdrive 2 although, as you say, the Ultegra is hybrid.

mrb123

I'd say Ultegra plus hydro discs is well worth the extra 200 quid but obviously it's your call if you can't live with the colour.

Shaun67

Yes, those are the exact two bikes. I'm sure the guy in the shop told me the Advanced Pro
has a carbon steerer and the more expensive Advanced Disc is alloy ?

To be honest, I spent so long in the store on both Saturday & Sunday it's real. the blue is a
nice colour though don't you think.

Shaun67

Keef66, you could be right.

I'm also quite light at 64 Kgs and never had a problem with
stopping on rim brakes.

The clean lines and clutter free appearance of the disc bike
is very appealing though.

shiznit76

Blue looks way nicer and ultegra is not that much better than 105 these days

bendertherobot

Giants do tend to look better in the flesh:

keef66

Shaun67 wrote:

Keef66, you could be right.

I'm also quite light at 64 Kgs and never had a problem with
stopping on rim brakes.

The clean lines and clutter free appearance of the disc bike
is very appealing though.

Must admit the disc braked bike looks very neat and tidy, but as a dyed in the wool DIY spanner monkey, all those internal cables and hoses would be a concern for me.

Although the blue looked nicer in the CAD pics, I prefer the grey ultegra one in Benders photos. I'm voting Ultergra disc now...

timothyw

I'd get neither, the TCR that Bender just bought ;-) Blue & Orange & Discs.....

Just me or is that stem/steerer interface ugly as hell? It's fatter than the downtube FFS.

keef66

Looks OK on the grey bike for some reason.

Shaun67

Yes, the picture of the blue one that Bender's has posted is ugly.

I'm looking at an aero bike as I'm now taking my duathlon racing serious,
marginal gains and all that.

I know what you're saying about the stem spacers and the hydraulic hoses,
the Giant Store guy tells me that for ever 15mm drop you need to cut the
hose by 15mm.

I think it's going to be the Ultegra Disc.

Thanks for the comments.

joey54321

I'd go for the discs, just because of the discs. Even if they were the same groupset i'd spend the extra £200 to get the discs.

bendertherobot

The blue is nice but the addition of the brake track makes interrupts the wheel look ever so slightly and the colour doesn't quite have the pizzaz of a 2018 TCR Advanced Pro 1 disc

lettingthedaysgoby

Another vote for the Ultegra disc. Discs are just better.

Is it me, or do mismatched depth wheels front and back look awful?

vegas76

+1 for discs

kingrollo

actually this thread isnt about 105 v ultegra much. more black v blue v disks v £200

Shaun67

you are absolutely right, I was going to get to the colour and disc questions later.

pilot_pete

I’d go Ultegra based on the pictures as well as the tech differences. Especially as that blue one looks to have the saddle set ready for a Giant...! :shock:

PP

me-109

That blue combo looks shockingly bad.

singleton

I've got 105 5800 on my winter bike and Ultegra 6800 on my summer bike and there's not a huge difference TBH.
The decision probably comes down to other things.

redvision

lettingthedaysgoby wrote:

Another vote for the Ultegra disc. Discs are just better.

Is it me, or do mismatched depth wheels front and back look awful?

Not as bad as disc brakes look on a road bike

kingrollo

If you don't like the colour then don't buy it.

Shaun67

A quick update....I'm didn't purchase a Giant in the end.....

Tomorrow I will be collecting a Merida Reacto YC Edition !

alanparsons

kingrollo wrote:

If you don't like the colour then don't buy it.

Or paint it.