Originally Posted by
Chombi1
Seems like everybody seems to love DA 7400 group....except me......
I don't really hate it, but I just can't love it.
It certainly works really well and is pretty much one of the most reliable and best functioning groups ever made for bikes, but it's perfection to a fault that it becomes something almost boring to have on a bike for me. Plus the aesthetics of things in the group, like the 7400 series crank for example, just looks too "cleaned up" and pretty much featureless and blah to look at..
That's why I think I'm glad that Suntour died before they fully followed this "Toyotaesque" design philosophy that Shimsno embraced in the late 80's, and I'd rather build a bike with Superbe group than with a DA 7400 group, any day. I'd even choose a Campy NR or SR group over it, without hesitation.
......JMOs....
7400 Dura-Ace is a very efficient looking groupset, indeed. I think that is what, in combination with how well it worked, made everyone else sit up and take it seriously. The "iced" violet/blue anodizing on a number of pieces, while very well done, made it a tough match to a lot of bikes, IMO. 7400 cranksets (though not 7410) are very professional and clean looking, but there is beauty in that, to me. Superbe Pro, Sugino ATs, and early Specialized "flag" cranksets all have an exquisiteness to them. I wonder if part of that is the non-squared-off designs. I swapped tripleized 7400 cranks onto my Expedition (from ATs) and the look of the bike went from quite, svelte, yet capable to all business/we are about to do some serious riding and we have the chainrings to prove it.
My best "7400" groupset is 7402 cranks, brake levers, brake calipers (for single pivot), 7700/7900 shifters, 7800 derailleurs, and 740x hubs. All the classiness with all the silver.