I have built up a Ridgeback Flight 05 from components, and been riding it on and off over the past few months, but now I have the itch to finalise some of the compromises I made. Notably the drivetrain.

I run the bike 1x8 at the moment, with a Surly single chainring at the front (46t) and an old Megarange cassette, LX rear derailleur & 8sp Grip shift (all taken from an old bike). The LX mech has been better days, the megarange cassette is a little annoying too, my regular (MTB) commuter uses the SRAM PG 950 11-32 but I was looking to go a little more road orientated.

What I'd like to do, on a budget, is look at something like a Sora short cage mech, a Tiagra 12-25 cassette and shifters to suit .. and that's my current puzzle, which shifters (flat bar) would work best in this setup? I like gripshift for the clean lines and simplicity, but wonder if I'd be better with thumbshifters like the Deore 9sp M590 - assuming they'll work with the chosen rear derailleur?

The bike in question:


Any help appreciated

Thanks

Jon