UKC

Having foolishly signed up for a triathlon in September i need to fix up my road bike. Basically it needs a new groupset. having looked about im torn between a shimano 105 groupset for £300 and a Tiagra groupset for £230.

Any views on the difference between the two of them? is going for the 105 going to make that much difference?

For what it's worth the bike is a specialized allez from 2011 and I've upgraded the wheels to Mavic ones.

In reply to doz generale:

Not an expert but in discussions with various people the prevailing view seems to be that 105 hits the sweet spot for price vs performance value at the moment. Got it 10 speed version on my bike and very pleased, latest 11 speed is supposed to be even better.

In reply to doz generale:

New tiagra looks good. Theyve changed it so the shifter cables run under bar tape which is probably the biggest noticeable change.
Not sure £70 is worth 11 vs 10 speed

In reply to doz generale:

Definitely go for the 105 - you won't regret it.

Worth the extra £70 for the better shifters, rear mech and BB bearings alone - you'ld be upgrading the Tiagra ones before too long.

In reply to doz generale:

Strangely enough I have the same bike, and I'm considering the very same upgrade. Its currently running a worn and rather shoddy 9 speed sora groupo.

AFAIAA the main difference is 10 vs 11 speed. They both look very similar, and probably perform pretty similar too. Tiagra now runs 11 - 34 cassette, which is good if you need that sort of gearing.

I'm sort of erring on the side of the 105, just because its always so well rated, and I know the brake hoods are super comfy. But in reality there probably isn't a massive difference.

In reply to doz generale:

I have went from Tiagra to 105 in December. 105 is obviously nicer. Shifters are better quality and switching is more precise. Lighter as well.

But if you are getting it just for one race don't think that you will see a big difference.

In reply to doz generale:

105 is definitely worth the extra, it shifts better, stops better and lasts longer although the chain is still crap! Just be sure your wheels are 11 speed compatible!!

In reply to doz generale:

What they all said - 105. Do not underestimate the psychological boost of knowing that you went with the better stuff and you're starting to feel weedy and go backwards. One less excuse......

My LBS retrofitted the 105 to my roadbike and I'm very happy with it. Being the kind of LBS that gives good advice, if they thought it was the wrong choice they would have told me.

In reply to doz generale:

I'm a bit biased, as I'm a Campag man, but if I had to choose between Shimano groupsets at that price point, it would be 105 over Tiagra every time.

In reply to doz generale:

Go for 105 its bomb proof and all the bits are cheap to replace. The derailleurs and brakes are exactly the same design as the top-end Shimano mechanical Dura ace but the 105 is just made of heavier materials. The one bit of advice I would give is to upgrade all the cables to Ultegra which has a PTFE coating and makes shifting super silky smooth. I have a bike with mechanical 105 and another with Dura ace. The rear derailleur and brakes on the 105 are about 95% as good as the Dura ace, the front 105 derailleur is not quite as crisp as the Dura ace but its still damn good.

In reply to doz generale:

105 = £285, if you don't mind the black scheme: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-105-5800-groupset/

Go via TopCashBack and get another 3.15% off the (pre-VAT) price.

In reply to doz generale:

Thanks All, 105 it is to be then!

In reply to doz generale:

Good decision, I work in a bike shop and agree that the 105 will feel and perform better. Also correct is that you are unlikely to get any noticeable performance benefit.

In reply to Crofty:


A bit contradictory no?

I'm hoping to get a significant performance benefit seeing as my bike currently has no chain and the brakes/ and shifters have seized up !¬)

In reply to doz generale:

Also take a look at SRAM groupsets - the wife has an 11 speed 11-32t set up on her Planet X road bike and she finds the wider range cassette great for the Peak and has had zero issues with the groupset (I'm nearly all SRAM on my MTBs as well).

In reply to doz generale:

Perform mechanically better is a better analogy, not make the bike faster. The shifting on 105 does feel slicker/quicker and smoother than Tiagra and Shimano lower end products.
In defence of Tiagra it is a bit more sturdy.

In reply to ChrisJD:


I'm quite taken by the idea of one of their Force 1 set-ups - no more shifting between chainrings would be nice. Anyone tried it?

In reply to nufkin:


I just bought a CX bike, I was looking at a few options and this was one, as the CX will just be a bit of a play thing, I couldn't really justify the pretty significant price uplift over 105.