Worldwide shortage of...

Ben6899

teisetrotter said:

You can get some great deals on Campagnolo 11 speed at present, Ultegra and Centaur are the same in capability, but obviously different design. so I'd probably choose Ultegra for ease, parts etc.. But Chorus is a step up in capability. The upside on Chorus is the better shifting performance i.e. the multiple shifts (3 and 5 instead of 1 and 2 on Ultegra), ability to co-ordinate the rear and front mech so you never have any cadence blips as you do on Ultegra, better-shaped ergo hoods, easier to use gear change when your hands are on the hoods or with chunky gloves. I've used Campagnolo rear cassettes on my Ultegra bike and vice a versa with zero issues as I have wheels for both. Certainly, as I ride both Ultegra and Chorus, the Chorus is a step above Utegra in capability.

Down-side is that parts are more expensive as you are dealing with a small European cycle stuff + effing expensive corkscrew engineering company rather than a large manufacturing company who are leaders in a lot of areas ....... Shimano is my personal favourite fishing reel manufacturer.

It almost heresy to say one groupset is better than another these days. But forget the manufacturer brand Chorus is a better groupset, if you want to you can pay more for exactly the same groupset in Record and even more for Super Record and save a few grammes and get ceramic bearings ..... but that would be for bike tarts only ...... which is why I have one coming on my new Italian steed a) it's the best mechanical groupset and b) I am a bike tart so need those words Record on my bike.

I can certainly understand the Ultegra safety play and there is nothing wrong with it at all. But if you want a more flexible groupset that is better by just enough to justify a couple of hundred quid, then do it. I certainly never regretted it and it is now my go-to higher-end mechanical groupset.

Interested to know where you've seen Chorus 11 for sale.

darkhairedlord

bryanm said:

Trying to put together a parts bin bike from stuff I have lying around and can’t get the other bits that I need, particularly at lower prices points - this is going to be a commuting bike, so nothing expensive needed. Short of a cheap 2 x 10 165 or 170mm chainset, Tiagra level if anyone spots one for a good price. Front mechs also seem in short supply.

Try decathlon. They had tiagra for around £50 over the summer. Kn 165mm too.