Which 8 speed group would you prefer, Dura Ace 7400 or Ultegra Tricolor and why?

Intereating question. The low hanging fruit answer is the DA of course due to it being the upper group.

I assume you mean both groups in the 8 speed, dual pivot brake brifter phase.

All else being equal, the DA is more attractive and slightly lighter.

These days I like to gain range of gears and go with bigger cassette and swap the rd for xtr. That puts me to Tri-color

Well, I assume this question is in reference to your Davidson. If so I've been looking at the same decision on mine for years. The bike rides so exceptionally well with the Tricolor stuff that I wonder how much better D/A or Record would make it feel. And then I ride it again, marvel at the pure perfection of how it is now and don't upgrade. I've been having this conflict for 6 years and it's still running the Tricolor/600 stuff.

How's that for no help?

Good Luck!

Silly reasoning on my part as I have a DA 7400 and three Tricolors (one on the shelf) and can't differentiate them functionally, dual pivot brakes, etc., but on some frames with their coloring the grey parts of the 600 seem to work where on a sparkly red Italian no way.

Yes, I’m referring to the Davidson. I’m having the same issue, the Tricolor is flawless. That and I’d have to build another set of wheels for the Dura- Ace hubs. If I end up switching it will be when the snow starts to fly.

Yep, this is one thing I didn't mention above. The grey just goes so well with the pink bike in my opinion.

As others have noted, it's mostly a question of finish and which group will visually compliment a specific bike better or not. That said, personally I always prefer Dura Ace over 600 / Tricolor just based on the premium associated with DA. When I see a fancy bike with 600, I feel like it cheapens it. When I see a lower-end bike with Dura Ace, it improves the overall build, in my opinion.

Yeah, if I want something performance oriented, I'm going with XTR 8 or 9-speed or an Ultegra RD with medium cage (which can handle a fairly large cassette). I really do like DA, but too many limits, whether it's RD capacity or 7400's lack of compatibility with later versions of DA.

Dura Ace 8 speed brifters did not have a corresponding long cage where the indexing would play together. If you plan to index an xtr rear derailleur to a “tricolor” 8 speed shifter, I believe this should work.

My main issue is I’m not giving up my 28t cassette. I know the 7400 r/d is rated at 26t, but I’ve heard tales of people using 28t with no problems.

I've owned both. If you want something to ride, then definitely go Shimano 600. Perhaps a slight downgrade in materials and weight, but you won't notice it. The shift quality is indistinguishable. I don't like the shifter hood shapes of both, but your hands may differ.


But the big big issue is compatibility. 7400 was built around derailleurs with a 1:1.8 (approx) actuation ratio, which makes the shifters and derailleurs in no way compatible with anything else in Shimano's lineup before and since. The 740x rear derailleur can handle a 28 tooth cog max. if you set it up carefully. Maybe. 740x cassette hubs are totally orphaned due to the unique freehub.


In contrast, 6400 shifters can be mated with later gen 8 and 9 speed derailleurs (including MTB versions) to allow wider range cassettes.

Dura Ace is nice, but the oddball RD with its oddball pull ratio means there is no interchangeability with other groupsets. The other issue is the oddball hub with the spin-on small cog which is also incompatible with anything else. The FH7403 does have a regular HG freehub body. But it is a screw-on freehub body, which is incompatible with other Shimano HG hubs. If you are running the Dura Ace BB- it is asymmetrical with the right side sticking out more than the left side. That is just weird.
The wonderful thing about the tri-color groupset is its versatility. You have non-aero brake levers, aero brake levers, aero brake levers with short reach, single pivot brakes, dual pivot brakes, brifters, barcons, DT shifters, 6,7 and 8 speeds. the rear hub comes in both 126mm hub and 130mm hub, ad can be easily interchanged. The FD actually has two clamp position- for either brifters or DT shifting.

7410 for me. Among other things, I think the crankset is one of the, if not THE most beautiful crankset ever made. And the combination of silver anodized and polished alloy is stunning. It's the group that was on my first serious road bike, a Ritchey Road Logic I bought in 1997 (on sale because 7700 DA had just been introduced). I rode that bike all over everywhere for 10 years. It set the standard for me for shifting, braking, ergonomics. I had the loan of a friend's Trek 5200 with 8 speed Ultegra, and it worked okay, but it was more utilitarian looking. And I preferred the look and feel of the ST-7400 STIs.

I updated the STIs and RD on the Ritchey 5 years ago when I realized I was limiting my riding on it - not doing much climbing, what with the lowest gear being 39x25. But I kept the STIS and RD. Along the way, I acquired a set of the BR-7403 dual pivot brakes, so I had about half of a 7410 groupset. I built up a 1995 Litespeed Ultimate frame I got on Ebay with it, acquiring another 7410 crankset and BB, and the FD. I ended up replacing that with R8000 Ultegra for the extra, and lower gears, but I kept the whole groupset in a box, carefully cleaned and bagged. I was itching to do something with it, so earlier this year I acquired a 1997 LeMond Zurich frame in excellent condition, and built it up with the full 7410 groupset - even a 7410 headset. I also rebuilt the wheels from the Ritchey, using Velocity A23 rims, and of course overhauling the hubs.

Tri-color only on days ending in “y”

I am certainly not an expert and probably have no business commenting here. By 8 speed everything was hyperglide so no compatibility issues between freehub and cassettes. Someone please verify this! The 6 & 7 speed versions required special dura ace cogs for first and second gear in uniglide. 7 speed hyperglide was same across levels I believe?
It is all a bit confusing & I never could get a straight answer. For my 7 speed bikes 600 ultegra seemed to be the safe choice.

The answer is, simply: yes.

Probably the best one. Both are bomb proof solutions for different applications.

I thought it was, yes get another bike for the DA

Top shelf race frames deserve top tier Dura Ace, but not always the rule. Concur with what's already been mentioned in differences of mechanical capabilities and limitations but my dilemma is with cosmetics for those aged parts.

Ratty scratched Tricolor just stands out and not easy to correct. Where as Dura Ace sometimes have a chance in bringing back its luster.

Anyways, the Shimano site has a nice history about the 600 and targeted market.

I think you've answered your question. I went an looked at the Davidson pics again, it looks so nice and balanced, i would not change

For me it would come down to aesthetics first. That aside, I would go with DA for perceived performance and street cred.

On my Schwinn Circuit, I run a 12-28 Shimano HG Hyperglide cassette with an RD-7402 rear derailleur and KMC X8.99 chain. No extra effort required to “dial it in”. Shifts and pedals smoothly through all the gears.

Actually, 8 speed DA is more complicated. The first 8 speed freehub was Uniglide, and I think it requires the smaller diameter first cog, maybe second as well, that 6 and 7 speed Uniglide 7400 Dura Ace used. HB-7403 is Hyperglide, but Uniglide compatible, but with the larger diameter first cog.

EDIT: This is why you have to be careful, buying 8-speed DA hubs and wheels - HB-7402 won't work with any Hyperglide cassette, and there seem to be no remaining HB-7403 freehub bodies not already attached to hubs, and no other freehub bodies will fit. So treat them gently if you have one!!

Thank you for your input. Again that is one advantage to the 600 freehubs, standard cassettes just fit. If I were going the DA route I would probably opt for a freewheel at 7 speed. My bikes are all 126 spaced. Still not a simple problem to solve.

I run both groupsets on multiple bikes.
a few tricks: longer b screw or Woolftooth extender . Non dura ace cassettes, 32t or 34t, modern wheelsets: mostly dura ace c24 or easton ea 90 slx. smaller chainrings: i run 47, 48 and 50 tooths
flawless operating groupsets