Groupset & Wheels?

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Moderator: robbosmans

Which Group Set

Chorus
36
48%
Ultegra
27
36%
Sram Force 22
12
16%
 
Total votes: 75

disneysland

by disneysland

Hello all, This is my first post, although I have been reading post on the site for years.

I'm building up a Ti Road Bike, non disc, and I have to decide on wheels, and a groupset. I don't have limitless pots, or want to spend a huge amount, the bike wont be raced, but I live in a very hill area, usually around 1000ft of climbing for every 10 miles.

The local shops all give me conflicting reports on groupsets, usually saying one is rubbish, that the other said was great.

I'm looking at Chorus 2015 model year, 2166g
Ultegra, so cheap at the moment, 2274g
Sram Force 22, 2081g
Or maybe, ultegra but with Dura Ace Chainset. (Just bacause I like the look over the dull grey ultegra one)

I have a press fit 30 BB, so might need the praxsis, type convertor.

Wheels i'm looking at are Shimano RS81 C24 1502g or Mavic Ksyrium Elites at 1550g ish.

I would really appreciate peoples thoughts, or alternatives that are better?
Last edited by disneysland on Fri Apr 17, 2015 4:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.

by Weenie


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peted76
Posts: 433
Joined: Mon Jun 23, 2014 10:30 pm

by peted76

No opinion on groupset, this is WW so lightest wins I guess... I use have Ultegra6800 and can't fault it though.

I can offer some advice on wheels though, as I was looking at the RS81 C24's not so long ago and decided on a set of handbuilt Pancenti Sl23's with CXRay spokes and DT240 hubs, they weigh in at circa 1450g and as they're a wider rim, the thinking is 'better' comfort and cornering, for less money.

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Stolichnaya
Posts: 2621
Joined: Wed Oct 06, 2004 6:55 pm
Location: Vienna, AUT

by Stolichnaya

You seem to be looking for value and quality.
If it is grouppo AND wheels, then Chorus and some Zonda or Euros wheels. You will not be dissapointed. It will be faithful, beautiful and still a joy to ride years down the road.

ross
Posts: 393
Joined: Mon Mar 14, 2011 10:59 am
Location: Oxfordshire UK

by ross

Ultegra 6800 with DA9000 C24 wheels, upgrade to DA9000 cranks later

eric
Posts: 2196
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 9:47 pm
Location: Santa Cruz, California, USA
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by eric

Ultegra unless you like the lever shape or shifting of Sram better. I have both Sram and Shimano bikes and the shifting on Shimano is more intuitive but Sram works ok for me. Campy has always seemed overpriced to me and thumb shifting is weird. If you don't like the Ultegra crank you could use some other crank. Sram cranks are nice.

I'll second the recommendation for hand built wheels. BHS has wheels built on Pacenti rims and BHS hubs for $550.

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tymon_tm
Posts: 3665
Joined: Tue Sep 05, 2006 4:35 pm

by tymon_tm

Ultegra with Eurus or Shamal wheels. or AM Classic 420 if you can get a set. IME one of the best day-to-day combos :thumbup:

why? I find Campy parts more pricy and hard to get. plus the thumbshifter isn't my thing. but their wheels are workhorses that seldom need any servicing.
Last edited by tymon_tm on Fri Apr 17, 2015 4:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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chayanat
Posts: 55
Joined: Thu Mar 20, 2014 3:09 pm

by chayanat

Ultegra + any nice wheel in budget. :D

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kgt
Posts: 8749
Joined: Sun Jun 18, 2006 10:29 am
Location: Athens, Greece

by kgt

Chorus works perfectly, is light and the sexiest groupset by far.

stormur
Posts: 1173
Joined: Tue Aug 12, 2014 3:50 pm
Location: FIN

by stormur

eric wrote: Campy has always seemed overpriced to me and thumb shifting is weird.


There's reason why Ultegra cost half of Chorus ;) And why Ultegra cost 55% of MRSP basically "everywhere" . same is with Volkswagen and Maserati. And you can say Maserati never won "car of the year" competition, there's much more VW on the roads, everyone heard about VW… but I still would choose Italian ;)

And only one weird thing in these two is same lever for shift and brake in Shimano.

Weird you say, so let your Ultegra shift 3 up at once ( from 17 to 14 ) ? Ooops :welcome:


To not mention zero serviceability of Shimano levers. And durability. And look.

Unfair , but Lance Armstrong used Shimano cheating on all TdF ! :mrgreen:
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Mark Twain


I can be wrong, and have plenty of examples for that ;)

rossjm11
Posts: 162
Joined: Tue Mar 03, 2015 8:09 pm

by rossjm11

Where are you planning on buying your groupsets? Campy has this really bad reputation of being more expensive, but when I assembled my Campy R11 Group (minus crankset) it was cheaper then my other options. I feel like it would be possible to assemble a Chorus group fairly cheaply...
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steventran
Posts: 176
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2011 7:31 pm

by steventran

What frame are these parts going on?

Do you have an ergonomic preference among the groupsets? They all work well, but they all feel different. Shimano has super light action, SRAM has more positive action, and Campagnolo is on the lighter end. They also all use different shift mechanisms. Some people don't like Shimano because the brake lever is also a shift lever. Some people don't like SRAM because the same lever is used for up and down shifts. Some people don't like Campagnolo because of the thumb shifters. The hoods on shaped differently as well. Like I said, they all work well, so go with what feels good, under your hands, on your scale, and on your wallet.

For the price of those wheels, I'd consider the BHS C31w + White Industries Build Kit. Wide, medium depth alloy wheels on good hubs.

disneysland

by disneysland

rossjm11 wrote:Where are you planning on buying your groupsets? Campy has this really bad reputation of being more expensive, but when I assembled my Campy R11 Group (minus crankset) it was cheaper then my other options. I feel like it would be possible to assemble a Chorus group fairly cheaply...


Thank you to all the posters and voters. There is some very interesting stuff to research a bit further.

Stans, pacenti and H plus rims seem popular, as well as open pro, the BHS stuff and Flo doesn't appear to be on sale here in the UK?

The Ultegra Groupset is around £450, the Chorus £750 and the Sram in between at £600. The Ultegra is so cheap, I could upgrade the shifters and Chainset to Dura ace, and still be cheaper than Chorus. The Voting seems to suggest that sram may be 3rd on the list.

The frame is a titanium No22 Great Divide (1450g), Enve fork (350g - steerer not cut yet), Chris King headset (inset 8, Weight?), Thomson Bar (200g), X2 stem (141g) and seat clamp (27g). I have a Selle SLR saddle (165g), and will be buying either an Enve (190g ish)or Masterpiece (190g ish) seatpost, as I like things to match.

The last road bike I had as teenager (mountain biker since) had downtube shifters, so I'm sure I can get used to which ever brand I try. Chorus do seem a bit more ergonomic to me though.

Thanks again for the information so far, and any suggestions are welcome over the weekend, as I hope to order the group set and wheels next week.

steventran
Posts: 176
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2011 7:31 pm

by steventran

If I were building up that bike, I'd go with SRAM, but mainly for the North American theme rather than any objective reasons so take that with a grain of salt. At the same time, I like SRAM's Double Tap, and this is WeightWeenies.

Irish
Posts: 788
Joined: Mon Jul 26, 2004 8:57 pm
Location: Ireland

by Irish

I personally don't rate Sram, just don't like it so this would point towards Ultegra or Chorus, both of which I have used. 11 speed Chorus has been me group of choice since 2009 but this year I decided to try Ultegra. So here's my 2 cents.


Chorus, Is very well made and thought out, works flawlessly and towards Ultegra is lighter, I have never had an issue with it or a part (bar chains and cassettes) wear out. I am amazed at the condition this groupset is still in, except for some lacquer flaking from the bottom of the brake levers it looks and performs like new, this groupset lasts. Chains and cassettes are expensive towards comparable shimano items

Ultegra, Price was one of the factors which convinced me to try it, it's cheap at nearly half the price of Chorus, so far I have been disappointed with some aspects, the derailleur cable pull through the lever looks overly complicated and the bulge at the side of the lever to acommadate it is badly executed in my opinion. However as of yet this has not been or caused a problem and the groupset has performed well (front derailleur trim needs more adjustment, but this could be my doing). It has been good enough to convince me to equip all my bikes with shimano....this brings me to my next point.

105, having installed this on my training bike I'm perplexed, this seems to perform as good as Ultegra but with a slight weight penalty, which for the price is astonishing. I could buy 3 of these groupsets for the price of my Chorus, this is truly a bargain for the price.

So..........if I had a choice, pick the one that makes you smile, they both work very well and look good, if Chorus had Ultegra costs it would be a no brainer, but when costs are worked in you either pick Chorus if you want durability, and Ultegra if you want current value.

by Weenie


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tymon_tm
Posts: 3665
Joined: Tue Sep 05, 2006 4:35 pm

by tymon_tm

I've done like 50-100k on 4 generations of Ultegra.. Ok, I made that number up, but still it's probably somewhere in between .. anyway, this is a rock solid groupset. IMO Campa's supposed better longetivity is a myth - I've done like 30-40k on my first 2x9 Ultegra and it still worked when i sold the bike. so I think I've a good sense of how this groupset works. IMO choosing between Campa and Shimano was always a question of individual preference... and price... and availability. the nonsense from few posts above about Maseratis and VW (???) is IME typical for people who have some serious riding deficites that cause the exaltations and grouchiness. oh, and SRAM's good too, don't worry if you end up with a Force or even Rival - been there, rode them, can't say I ended up harmed in any way.

as to 105.. I can't agree it's the same. tried two generations of 105 and they did fall short to Ultegra.. nothing drastic but noticeable - IMO not worth saving 100 or 200 $ or whatever the difference is and whichever currency you pay.

if money isn't the object - Campa's got that 'boutique' feel about it. ride mates may be jealous. but if you pace your spendings, get Ultegra and get some better wheels - that way you'll make a difference.
kkibbler wrote: WW remembers.

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