OldRoadie54

I'm retiring next month, and my first retirement project is to build a new bike. I'm building a steel framed disc road bike that I can ride on dirt and gravel as well as pavement. There are so many scenic dirt and gravel roads here in Oregon that are rideable with a road bike, but are too rough for skinny tires. I've already bought or picked out everything I need except the groupset. I'm going with Shimano 11 speed, but I can't make up my mind between 105 and Ultegra. I haven't the best of luck over the years with 105, but I haven't used it since the 8 speed days. People are saying that the new 105 5800 has closed the gap with Ultegra, that it's mechanically the same but with different materials, the main difference being a few ounces of weight. I'm not a racer, and it doesn't seem worth $300 to shave off a few ounces. Durability is a bigger issue with me than weight. Does anybody have experience with these groups?

bt

yes. 5800 is very very good.

/thread

RJM

My 6800 has been great. I'm on my second year and I haven't really touched it since the first couple of weeks after installation to tighten the cable slack. Super smooth, responsive shifting and has a great feel to the hoods.

I personally think the Ultegra is a good looking group too.

tekhna

I'm primarily a Campy guy but I built up a bike for my dad with 5800 this spring. I'm pretty impressed by it. If I didn't hate the brake lever to shift mechanism so much I'd consider Shimano again.

Cafe

I have the 5800. Great group. Haven't tried the 6800 but the 6800 will shave seconds off on certain stages of the Tour.

Very light group and easy to install...crisp shifting and the all black look is nice.

rms13

5800 and 6800 are nearly identical in performance and looks. The only real difference is weigth and price. Since you are building a steel bike with discs it makes no sense to spend extra to shave a few grams.

SevenTwentyNine

Ultegra. I've owned both, get the Ultegra, it's not so much weight saving as it is just crisp, consistent, and more reliable shifting.... and congratulations on your retirement, I wish you many happy miles on the road ahead.

Dunbar

You can't feel a difference riding them back-to-back (or at least I couldn't.) That said, it's not a huge price difference so buy Ultegra if that's what your heart desires. I couldn't justify it myself so I ended up with 5800 on both bikes.

bt

I have both 5800 and 9000 and blindfolded I wouldn't be able to tell you which one I was on.

dtrain

Not the smartest way to ride a bike.

bt

• I cannot say that I do not disagree with you.

SevenTwentyNine

Okay, um like sure I guess, to each their own.

shelbyfv

I think the 105 in either shiny black or silver looks nicer than the matte gray Ultegra.

loimpact

Hey.......don't knock it til you've tried it!


Ahhhh......I see what you did there!

af2nr

What kind of disc brakes are you planning to use? I had 6800 on my Emonda and have 5800 on my CruX and don't notice any significant difference at all. I went with the 5800 because eventually I would like to go full Shimano Hydro and I'll need the same shifters for either set that way and can change the other bits if I find any reason to. I also had my own saddle and was upgrading wheels so the cost difference between the two models didn't make sense to me. Good luck!

loimpact

Actually, I'm curious on specific components within the families.......like.....

What's the difference between:

5800 & 6800 cassette (Maybe nickel plate on the 6800? But 5800's still shiny too so what...zinc?)
5800 & 6800 chain (really......what could be different here?)
5800 & 6800 shifters (Maybe carbon fiber bits vs plastic?)
5800 & 6800 derailers (I guess I see some carbon fiber on my 6800 but does a derailer need CF?)

I know 9000 uses mostly CF/Alum/Ti and thus the lighter bits tend to wear faster and I have no interest in 9000 anyway, but the 5800 vs 6800 stuff really has me baffled since they're so friggin' similar.

(shrug)

Ben I.

I have Ultegra 6800 on my road bike and love it. Very smooth and quick shifting and haven't had any problems with it so far. That being said, I've heard from many many people that 5800 is one of the best bang for the bucks groupsets available among Shimano. If you have extra money for it, I'd go with the 6800 but I'm sure you'll be content with 5800 if you want to save the money for other gear.

rms13

grams and fit and finish

OldRoadie54

I was going to go with Avid BB7, but the mechanic at my local shop talked me out of it, convinced me to get TRP Spyres. He says they're easier to keep adjusted, and have more sensitive touch. I couldn't really tell the difference on a test ride at the shop, but I have 0 experience with disc brakes, so I took his advice. Another option is the TRP HY/RD, which is a cable actuated hydraulic brake. It's a true hydraulic brake, but the master cylinder is in the brake itself, and it works with any regular road shifters. Apparently it's a step up from mechanical discs, not quite as good a full hydraulic setup, but it allows you to run any road group you like. It sounds like a cool idea, but they're about twice the price of mechanicals.

OldRoadie54

I'm a Campy guy too, but the new shimano 11 speed groups offer an 11x32 cassette. If I match that with a compact crank, I should be able to climb most anything on gravel roads. If I went with Campy I'd probably have to get a triple. I've learned the hard way you have to have enough gearing to stay in the saddle when you're going up on grave.

bt

you might be happier with caliper brakes.

af2nr

I have the TRP HY/RD on my CruX, along with the 5800 group. I would have like to have went with the full Hydro but couldn't justify the price difference at this time as I choose to get a second set of wheels instead, much more functional for now!

OldRoadie54

I ran across this video on Velonews that talks a little bit about this: Ask a Mechanic: Mixing Shimano components

The mix and match idea sounds good, but you get much better prices on a group set than on individual components. Right now I'm leaning toward 105.

loimpact

That was a great video! Very explanatory for why anyone should care about certain components. The only thing I'd probably disagree with is the rear derailer part. While I wouldn't hesitate to put a 5800 on my Ultegra bike if I had to......I can't agree that the RD is the least important part. The RD is a rather complex unit that moves in compound directions and I wouldn't snub the right deal on Ultegra of Dura Ace to abide on my rear wheel if the right deal presented itself.

Also interesting that they consider the shifters a 105 or Dura-Ace "either/or" situation. I'd have to do a lot of testing myself to trust all of this, of course.

And, then again, you have folks like bt who own both ends of the spectrum & can't tell the difference anyway so who knows.

(shrug)

KantoBoy

My 6800 works smoother than my Di2.

Since I'm a tech wh0re I wenti Di2 but looking back I regret doing it. Could've saved $.