How important is STI shifting to you?
im in the middle of updating a bike of mine from 8 to 9 speed but im finding sourcing 9 speed shifters to be a complete b!tch at least locally, and even used ones go for 200 bucks on craigslist....but, i can easily find bar end shifters in all sorts of configuations. ive never used them but they are the trusty choice of many folks. so whats better. a 9 speed bike with sora shifters or the same bike with ultegra or dura ace bar ends??