How big is the difference between the different levels of shimano comps?



Bolo Grubb

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Apr 26, 2004
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How big is the difference between the different levels of shimano comps?


Here is what my bike currently has.


CRANK TH RPM 52/42/30T
FRT DER SORA
RR DER TIAGRA
SHIFTER TIAGRA STI
BRAKESET TEKTRO W/ TIAGRA LEVERS
Rims ALEX DOUBLEWALL CNC SIDES
TIRES KENDA KONCEPT 700x23C

Is there a bigger difference between Sora and Tiagra or Tiagra and 105 or between 105 and Ultegra?

Mostly just curious as I have ridden a bike with full ultegra and was impressed with its smoothness, but overall pretty happy with my set up.

Do different brand brakes work better then others? Or is the difference mostly in the brake pad?

Since the front Der is a Sora is that the first piece I should replace?

Thanks for you input and educating this newbie cyclist
 
Bolo Grubb said:
Mostly just curious as I have ridden a bike with full ultegra and was impressed with its smoothness, but overall pretty happy with my set up.

Do different brand brakes work better then others? Or is the difference mostly in the brake pad?

Since the front Der is a Sora is that the first piece I should replace?
If it works why throw money away?
 
Front derailleurs are cheap enough to make such an upgrade super painless; it's probably also the least meaningful drivetrain switchout you can perform. Front derailleurs don't have to do a whole lot.

Boudreaux makes a pretty fair point -- you've stated that you're impressed with the smoothness of your current setup, which would suggest that any upgrade you do is going to be more for the hell of it than for practical gains. Fair enough -- bikes are 60% jazziness and about 40% raw utilitarian purposefulness; we all bling-a-fy our rides -- just be sure you know what you're getting into.

The cost/benefit scale dividing these groups (Sora through Dura Ace) can spawn great debate... something some of us have learned first hand. Given as much, perhaps the best thing to do is recommend that you get out and ride a few examples at your local shop, or borrow a friend's ride for a little groupset comparison action. Between groups, there are distinct differences in shifting feel and lever action -- but those differences are far less dramatic between adjacent groups (105 and Ultegra) than between bigger steps (105 and Dura Ace), so how worthy the price increases are is muddy territory.

All the more reason for a little hands-on experimentation.
 

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