Bicycle Mechanics - Shimano 2200 Brifters

How much "worse" are these than Sora brifters? Wife and I went to a bike shop today, and really liked the sales woman, so we are going back when they get the Specialized Sequioa in my wife's size so she can take it for a spin. Me, while I liked the look (and price) of the Trek 1000, the Trek 1.2 I sat on felt pretty good. I was giving the Treks a bit of a nod over the Specialized (for myself, not her) as they had more clearance for fenders--I plan to ride more often than her, and if I upgrade next year, this would become a rain bike.

Anyhow, wasn't until I got home that I found out that the 1.2 uses 2203 brifters instead of Sora. I'm pretty sure that Sora will work just fine for me; but 2203? I'm planning on 2k miles this summer. I really don't want to go past the $900 mark, and I am specifically after a beginner's bike.

[The 1.2 has a higher head tube than the 1000. That, and the closest 1000 was 2cm smaller than what I *think* I want. Sitting on both the Specialized Allez and the Trek 1.2 gave me good feelings; am waiting for some trial rides; but the Specialized has almost nil for fender clearance.]

IME, 2200 series is crap.

Since this will turn into your beater within a year, I'd say maybe. If you really want something to ride, buy up to Tiagra shifters and leave the other components as is. Tiagra has a front derailleur trim feature that neither 2300 nor Sora have, and you'll wish you had it very quickly.

These lower units have a cheesy thumb shifter (in a lame attempt to denegrate Campy). I like and use Campy's thumb shifter; you may not like Shimano's version.

Thanks for the input. I'm planning on taking some test rides and seeing just what they feel like. I haven't committed to either bike yet, still doing research.

I think 2200 is the same as sora. They cost the same.

I just don't understand why people run down Sora. I use Sora on my commuter bike that sees all kinds of bad weather and gets infrequent adjustment. The Sora brifters perform flawlessly. I have bikes with Dura Ace and Campy Record and of course they are much smoother and precise than the Sora. I don't think you will be disappointed with Sora.

Sora is 3xxx, and is now 9-speed and has a trim function for 2008. I'm not knocking Sora, but 2200.

I haven't come across "good" reviews of 2200, although I haven't come across much about them period. I wouldn't have looked had I realized it--the salesperson was apparently misinformed, and called them 8 speed Sora--that Trek was using 8 speed Sora as a cost cutting measure for 2008. I glanced at the shifter and I coulda sworn it said Sora too, but it must just look really similar. That's a real shame, it'd be a done deal if it had been. Oh well, still got some more time before summer.

It does beg the question: is there an even lower 1100 series?

If there is it's not listed on the Shimano site for road components.

Also, is it possible they stuck Sora on the bike when they built it for some reason?

I guess I must be awfully dense. I use the trim function on my 2006 Sora brifter quite often, never realizing it doesn't have a trim function.

Sora moved to 9 speed for 08. In order to keep costs low, a lot of firms have used 2200 8 speed this year. It is essentially the same (as far as I can see) with 07 Sora, but painted black instead of being silver. 2200 has been around a while. You'll probably find that the rear mech is Sora btw. I would not worry about it. Btw, it is on the Shimano website, just not in much detail because the parts are not available in shops.

http://bike.shimano.com/catalog/cycle/products/group.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302053458&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181785&bmUID=1205289292032

seems to me that you should have little trouble finding tiagra shifters & drivetrain for $900...

It appears they pretty much use the same parts?

http://techdocs.shimano.com/techdocs/index.jsp

No real knowledge... However based on what I read in the forums and elsewhere, I would say that unless you feel a difference when riding it, there is no issue.

Durability along the Shimano line is pretty good, and if you like the functionality, then all is well.

They do have last years Pilot 1.2, which I'll look at too, now that I realize they have it. Tiagra drivetrain, not too much higher--but doesn't appear marked down yet. Will look at 'em all.

Durability may be good, but it's hard to look past all the negative comments here about Sora--which should mean 2200 is even less desirable. I might just let myself get sucked into the "for only a few hundred more" type of shopping.

If I can throw in my .02 I think that you could find a better deal online. Buying from a shop is not the most cost effective way of making a purchase. You are paying for their overhead. (I am going to h*** for saying that).
If you check out the link for bikesdirect on the right side of your screen they have a bike on there (second down) for 899.00 with an Ultegra drive-train.
Making sure that you know what size bike you are looking for is important. I am comfortable on all the bikes I own and never got to check them out first.

Yeah, I'm leery of online buying, at least at the moment. Maybe the second bike I will. Sitting on the bike quickly showed that I'm definately not the size I thought I was; and online bikes have little data. In the LBS, I could see that the Specialized's that I was looking at do not have proper fender clearance, while the Trek's do.

They do have last years Pilot 1.2, which I'll look at too, now that I realize they have it. Tiagra drivetrain, not too much higher--but doesn't appear marked down yet. Will look at 'em all.

Durability may be good, but it's hard to look past all the negative comments here about Sora--which should mean 2200 is even less desirable. I might just let myself get sucked into the "for only a few hundred more" type of shopping.

Whether it's marked down or not, it's on sale if it's last year's bike. Make an offer a couple hundred (I'd even go more) below what they've got it marked at, and throw the savings down on pedals, bottle cages, pump, etc...

They do have last years Pilot 1.2, which I'll look at too, now that I realize they have it. Tiagra drivetrain, not too much higher--but doesn't appear marked down yet. Will look at 'em all.

Durability may be good, but it's hard to look past all the negative comments here about Sora--which should mean 2200 is even less desirable. I might just let myself get sucked into the "for only a few hundred more" type of shopping.

Ride it first and let your own mind make the decision. There are a lot of quiet and happy Sora users out there to counterbalance the rather vocal critics.

For all practical purposes, 2200 is the equivalent of the 8 speed Sora that has been sold for years. Shimano decided to move the Sora family up into the 9 speed range to help fill the void left when 105 and up moved to 10 speed. When set up properly it works fine. The group is somewhat heavy for purists as its intended purpose is sport riding and much of the group uses steel where other groups use aluminium (chainrings for one)

Sora is fine if you are not riding in a pace line. The upshifts are easy as you accelerate from traffic lights with you hands on the hoods. When you are cruising at speed on the drops it isnt hard to left you hand for the occasional upshift.