Groupset shopping
 

OK guys I'm a total noob so please be patient. I'm trying to bring my r400 into this century with some newer components and I'm browsing eBay. I'm noticing that brand new sets from China are only asking for 40-50 USD while used local sets are bringing closer to 300. Are these Chinese knock offs?

check the seller rating. if it has 0 feedback then its often times a scam. not always, but often.

What groupset(s) are you looking at? Overseas is a great place to go too- ribble/chainreaction/merlin/bike24/etc.
Ebay is sporadic for groupsets with a good deal. Ive gotten a couple from Ebay thru the years for great deals which were new pulloffs from a bike. So the bike came with Shimano 105 and the rider wanted SRAM whatever, for example. Not technically in the box new, but new for all intents and purposes.

Kind of leaning towards ultegra, but really not picky. Just trying to get away from downTube shifting.

R400 - so this is a Cannondale i presume?

Yes

I've consistently found the best groupset prices at Ribble, particularly if you intend to use the entire group. Often there will be a piece or two you can't use for one reason or another (generally the brakes), but the groupset price is usually good enough to buy it and resell the bits you don't want.

Ultegra is good stuff, but 105 is also very good at a much lower price (and available in silver). Even the new Tiagra and Sora groups perform pretty well.

+1. Shop Ribble or Wiggle, or one of the other UK based web retailers.

rx100 is the same as 105 correct? Just a slightly different finish? I keep reading conflicting stories about it being sti compatible. I think I need at least the FD to make it work.

Good advice from Andy_K. Bought an 11 speed Shimano105 group from Ribble and put it on an '87 Raleigh. Very impressed with the performance of 105. Paid around ~315 at the doorstep. I think they're a little more expensive now but still a bargain.

Well, RX100 is last century. ;)

I don't think they're the same, but the shifters and derailleurs should be compatible through 5700-series 105. They changed the pull ratios with 11-speed (and 4700-series 10-speed Tiagra) so once you go there everything has to be upgraded.

So if I understand you correctly at a minimum I would need the shifters and both derailleurs?

Changing to more modern components might not be as straightforward as you hoped. Your bike likely has a 7 speed cassette, which means you probably need a new wheel to fit an 8 or 9 or 10 speed cassette, and that new wheel will likely have different axle spacing than your 7 speed wheel, so it won't fit right in your aluminum frame. You can just jam the wider hub in (I am currently doing this with my alu touring bike) but this can put extra stress on the frame or the axle. Plus it is a nuisance when removing and reinstalling the wheel.

You can just get a set of 7 speed STI levers (like https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...2&category=162). These will bolt on and should index with your exiting parts without a problem (provided your derailleurs are index-shifting compatible). The cable pull between gears on a 7 speed is very similar to that of an 8 speed, so you can also get a set of 8 speed STI levers (like https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...0&category=162), which are nicer shifters.

The RX100 RD will be compatible with new shifters, and the minimum you need is just the shifters
VeloBase.com - Component: Shimano RD-A550, RX100

Agree, if you have 126mm rear axle, you are stuck with 7-speed rear.
You can't spread rear triangles on a Cannondale.

A new shifter will still work - you just limit the RD range.

I have 8 speeds on the rear.

Yes, Ive read that RX100 was 105 with a different finish. The RX100 bike I refurbished last year was flippin sweet and that group was impressive for being almost a quarter century old.

As mentioned already, 5800(current) 105 shifting doesnt work with anything prior components below 11speed.
If you want new 5800 shifters, you need 5800 derailleurs and and should go ahead and get a crank which is 10sp or 11sp. The crank's speed designation is not life or death.


Something like this- Shimano 105 ST-5800 Groupset (Almost complete) | eBay
and then get a chain and cassette and you are gold.
Shimano 105 5800 Road Bike 11 Speed Groupset | eBay here is a more expensive BIN listing. use your current brake calipers.



Get an older 105 groupset and all you most likely really need is shifters and a new chain and cassette.

130mm? - you're good for anything - buy whatever cassette you want that matches the new shifter

you only need a new RD if you need greater chain wrap or largest cog capacity

All Shimano index cable pull is the same except for Dura Ace and new 11-speed

Not sure. I need to measure. Bike came this way and I've never dug into it besides general maintenance.

THIS

the RD doesn't have anything to do with the indexing cable pull. the shifter defines the cables pull steps, the RD moves independently. as long as it has enough "throw" to reach all the cogs, you just match number of cogs on cassette with the shifter.

I built up an 80s Maruishi Roadace with modern components. I'm running a Tourney TX 6/7 speed RD with integrated hanger ($12) on an RS10 wheelset with 11spd hub with an 8 speed cassette with a spacer and 8 speed microshift STI shifters. Tourney 'low-normal' clamp-on FD with an FSA Omega compact crankset and BB4000 threaded BB. works like a charm.

I have shimano r540 wheels and Google says it's a 130mm OLND

This is incorrect. The geometry of the rear derailleur needs to be matched to the amount of cable that the shifters pull to make indexing work correctly. Shimano kept the geometry of their road rear derailleurs the same from 6-speed SIS through 10-speed so it gave the impression that the rear derailleur didn't matter, but it does.

Details here: Art's Cyclery Blog » Science Behind the Magic | Drivetrain Compatibility

I didn't realize this was an aluminum frame we were talking about. I'd verify the rear spacing before I did anything else. Even if the previous owner managed to squeeze a 130mm rear wheel in there, if the frame isn't spaced for 130mm it could cause trouble in the future. Or it might just keep working. Who knows? The thing is, aluminum isn't as tolerant of this sort of thing as steel. At the very least putting a wider wheel in there would be keeping the frame under stress. Someone with more knowledge of metallurgy than I have can comment on had bad (or not) that is, but my understanding is that it isn't recommended.

If you do have 130mm rear spacing, you'd still need new shifters, derailleurs, rear wheel and cassette to switch to 11-speed. Ideally, you'd also upgrade the brakes too. Older brakes will work with the latest Shimano levers, but the new brakes work better.

Measure the frame.

Bicycle Frame/Hub Spacing

welp, you learn something every day! I guess you're right, it has always worked for me, so I assumed it didn't matter, but I suppose I haven't tried any truly crazy combos. thanks for the info!

Was not a member here last year taking a gamble on one of those too good to be true from Asia deals?

I wonder how that turned out.

In general if its too good to be true there is a dangerous reason.

I too think an r400 may not have the required spacing, test, don't guess.

Starting to think this bike may stay in 1994.

Measure the rear spacing and post some pictures of what you have now. If it has a 130mm rear wheel now and that wheel isn't difficulty to get in and out then an upgrade to 10-speed probably isn't an unreasonable thing to do. An 11-speed upgrade will definitely require a new rear wheel, but 10-speed might be possible with as little as new shifters, cassette and chain. You can still get 5700 105 and 6700 Ultegra shifters new online and 10-speed cassettes and chains are fairly cheap. We just need to know what the ruler says about it.