ph4nt0mf1ng3rs

Im doing some investigating regarding building a road bike. Nothing pro, not gonna race, its gonna be a commuter bike to replace my ss commuter.

I assume that Shimano 2200 or Sora or Tiagra will be sufficient?

Anyone know what the MSRP on the groupsets is? Can't find much at the moment.

I am considering building off the LD 722R frame.

Any suggestions regarding groupsets and choice of frame?

operator

Leader = cheap piece of crap.

Sora will do you just fine for a commuting group. 7 or 8 speed will keep consumables cost down. Very down. Chains are about $10 and cassettes in the $20 range. Good luck.

metabike

I would recommend going with Tiagra 9-speed. True, the initial costs are higher but having had both Sora & Tiagra, Tiagra shifts significantly better. A few months ago I upgraded my commuter bike to (lightly used) Tiagra shifters, 105 RD, & Tiagra FD that I got on Ebay, found a lightly used cassette & new Sunrace chain there also and ended up investing around $200.

You might also do a search for threads about Leader frames. The feedback that I had heard and read was that Leader wasn't a bad deal for the cost. Basically, don't expect perfect welds or paint and you won't be bitter. You might also consider Nashbar as they sometimes have their house-brand frames on special and with one of their coupon deals, that is a pretty inexpensive option as well.

Have fun with your project!

ph4nt0mf1ng3rs

Thanks man. Ftw, as much as Ive heard bad things about Leader, which I can deal with, I haven't exactly heard perfect reviews about Nashbar as well, but considering that I recently saw a Nashbar build, I will look into it more. Thanks for the opinions and advice.


But yeah. Leader might = cheap peice of crap, but supposedly, they are improving on their products. Ive heard fairly good reviews on the track model of their 722, and their alum track frames are getting better and better, so I would expect that this new steel frame is also getting better.

Nashbar...thanks guys lol.

2ndGen

Of those 3 consideration, I'd go with a full Tiagra set up if that's as much as you want go spend.

Can be had for $363. shipped (full groupset).

https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/DoContents.asp

A full Sora groupset can be had for as little as $272.

https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/DoContents.asp

A $100. difference, but just the shifters and derailleurs alone are worth the upgrade.

2ndGen

Holy wow...you can get a full 105 5600 Groupset for only $95. more at $458.!

That's an incredible deal and it'll be a set that you can easily transfer from bike to bike.

https://www.merlincycles.co.uk/Bike+S...5600-GROUP.htm

cooleric1234

If you're in a cold weather place there is an advantage to the 2300 or Sora shifters. I find the thumb levers a LOT easier to use when I have thick mittens on than Tiagra levers.

kmoy2002

On the other hand, my first road bike was a '08 Sora equipped road bike. During the winter months, the shifters would refuse to switch gears. The bike was only ridden on clear roads during the winters so grime could not have been the culprit.

Since then, I've ridden '09 105 equipped bikes and shifting has been flawless during the colder months.

Brontide

Tiagra shifters as a minimum and 105 RD if you can find it. I just can't stand the thumb shifters on Sora and lower.

2ndGen

Sora has way more plastic parts.
I'd say that had something to do with it.
105, more metal parts=mucho better.

TnDiamondback

I started with Sora and mover to Tiagra, no difference in shifting, I personally liked the thumb shifters, if everyone will be honest more people spend more time on the hoods than in the drops, I've looked around on group rides and MOST were on the hoods and the flats, taken care of Sora will provide many miles of use, mine did, I changed for the closer range gearset.

agarose2000

Sora all the way FTW.

Most of the folks (a lot) on these forums who gripe about Sora don't even own it and have never tried it.

I ride Sora a lot - my Cervelo Dura-Ace is on my bike trainer, and my Giant Defy3 Sora/2200 mix is my "go-to" bike for commuting and training. I hammer the heck out of it on a regular basis, and it's excellent. I have to abuse it to make it misbehave. It's not as "crisp" as the DA, but it's not lacking at all, and I routinely train with competitive roadies who rock $5k bikes. The thumbshifter is very easy to get used to as well - has never been remotely a problem.

Plus, parts are WAYYYY cheaper if you're in the mood to replace things.

I think the only real potential drawback is that it doesn't play well with 105 and up components, if you want to mix and match. It's also pretty tough to find a Sora gruppo on sale other than ebay - they tend to be sold on bikes.

If money was at all an issue, I'd skip Tiagra+ and just go Sora. I have no intention of even upgrading my current setup - after riding DA vs Sora, I'm more than perfectly happy with my Sora stuff.

And the best part - if you use the bike as a commuter, there's MUCH less risk of someone stealing your parts. I would be unable to use my bike as a commuter if I had 105+ parts on it for the theft risk alone. (Yes, parts are stolen off bikes around here - enough folks ride bikes in Norcal that they know the resale value of hi-end parts.)

cooleric1234

+1

The replacement parts cost are the main reason I went with that for a commuter. I can beat it up and if something happens it's cheap to replace.

The downside to the thumb shifters is you can't shift from the drops. For commuting I'm on the hoods almost always and that doesn't really matter.

mtalinm

I rented a Trek 1.2 with Sora yesterday and was pleasantly surprised. I usually am on the hoods, and it was easier to upshift with my thumb than to reach down with a forefinger. still have 105 on my road bike, but I can imagine being quite happy with Sora (i'm no racer)

ConradNaff

My dad put together a bike to ride with me, and his FD is 2200. It works fine, and it shifts just as well as my 105 bike. It seemed like at the beginning of every season it would have a hard time shifting to the biggest chainring, so he needed to adjust the screw on the FD (no big deal, a two second job), although his shifter cable broke inside the shifter about a month ago, so we think it may have just been a problem with that. Apparently it was just a bad cable that came with his bike. His RD is Sora, and that also works fine. It doesn't shift as quietly or easily as my 105 as it tends to snap loudly from one gear to the other when shifting instead of smoothly transitioning like my 105 and you have to push on the thumb shifter with more force before it pops, but he has never had a problem with it actually shifting. The thumb shifters may bother some people, but if you aren't really concerned about shifting in the drops, I wouldn't worry about it.

cooleric1234

That pretty much exactly sums it up. Shifting works just fine. It's a bit slower and clunkier, but who cares for a commuter bike? By slower I mean a fraction of a second. Unless the bike isn't adjusted well it's not like you're waiting seconds for a shift. Perhaps slower isn't even the right word, like someone else said it's just not as smooth as nicer Shimano stuff.

ph4nt0mf1ng3rs

Thanks so much guys. Im very close to picking and Im honing in. but wont say which! haha. Im not going to be racing anytime soon, unless its the traffic that I enjoy weaving in every day during my commute. And even if I did intend to race, Id prolly just hop on with 2200/sora/tiagra anyway jus to see what the pros would have said lol.

But yeah. Its just a commuter bike to replace my ss/fg. The hype is still high and any ss/fg is a hot target. Around my area, people dont know **** about groupos. Not enough roadies around and not enough people that care to give a **** about groupos anyway.

I also looked at SRAM, but their lowest groupo for road was..........for entry level racing?

Looked at Campy........and I preferred to stick with Shimano.

as for shifting from the drops, I have no problem coming out of the drops to shift. Coming from SS/FG, im used to just knocking out a gear no matter what the terrain is...downhill or uphill, I have to pound it out =p.

So I assume that the groupo with 8spd cassette is hard to mix and match parts with?

2ndGen

Go FULL Sora for what you want.

But, if you're going to upgrade from Sora,
I'd skip Tiagra and go full 105 for the extra $95.

Only issues with Sora...cables will stretch within first 100 miles and front derailleur can get finicky.
Will take more time to dial it in and to hold their adjustments.

Other than that, Sora functions perfectly fine for commuting.

I'm getting out of it and going full Dura Ace because I just need more from my groupset.

Besides, you can buy a Sora bike for the cost of a 105 groupset pretty much.

dualsport

I'm riding a Sora/Tiagra mixed bike. Sora FD and shifters, Tiagra RD. Aside from the initial cable stretch adjustment it has shifted pretty consistently and reliably over the past couple thousand miles. Of course, I don't know what I am missing with the better groups and things could become troublesome with my current group sometime in the near future, as it has covered relatively few miles and is only a year old. Shifting from the drops can be a chore, but shifting from the hoods is a breeze. I've found the thumb levers especially convenient for shifting while standing. While I would certainly love to upgrade, this stuff seems to be doing its job pretty well.

ph4nt0mf1ng3rs

Haha i just realized after reading the second post up from this one, that it seems that a large part of the price of some bikes is the groupset. A sora equipped buike for the price of a 105 groupo? Thats insane! Haha. BETTER be worth it =p.

Hmm...Got a question that doesn't really affect my choice though. Why do some shifters have the shift cables come directly out of the hoods, while other shifters have teh cable routed along the handlebars side-by-side with the brake cables?

Is it a matter of production cost? Functionality? Aesthetic?

Ftw, I might just pull trigger on a Sora groupo =p

clarkgriswold

In 18 months I've gone from 2200 to Sora, to Tiagra, to Ultegra on shifters; the same on front derailleur, and up to 105 on rear derailluer.

As others said Sora does work, but shifting is more 'accurate' and crisper as you move up the line. I would stay away from 2200 as they feel very plastic and do not feel like they will last. Shifters are not rebuildable.

I have been going for Ultegra on the front derailleur lately just because they are relatively cheap used ($10-$15 if you catch them).

From what I understand, the higher level parts are also more durable than the lower end. They also have more resale value.

As far as # of gears, a modern hub can accept 7 speed (with a spacer), 8, 9, or 10 speed cassettes. 7 and 8 speed parts are cheaper in general.

To throw another thing out there, Sram introduced Apex this year, which is lower than their other lines. I've enver owned Sram except chains and cassettes but they have a good following around here.


The shifter cables under the handlebar tape is for supposed aerodynamics, and for cleaner looks.

2ndGen

Yeah! FTW!

simonaway427

I've ridden close to 2000 kms on a 2300 equipped bike with no problems at all. The only adjustment I had to make was a 1/4 turn on the RD barrel adjuster - my god the horror!!!

Otherwise the components have been bulletproof so far.