Jarrett2

I'm trying to get up to speed on the new 11 speed stuff.

I'm familiar with the Shimano 105 5700/10-speed stuff, I have that on my Roubaix and had it on my Secteur.

I'm familiar with the SRAM Force/Rival 10-speed stuff, I have that on my Jamis.

Based on that experience, I prefer my SRAM setup to the 5700/105 stuff. It shifts a lot smoother and the double tap is preferable to me compared to the 30 degree movement and the separate shifters on the Shimano side of the house.

The more I read about the 11-speed options, the more I realize that it wasn't just another gear that added to these groupsets, there are some subtle, but dramatic changes in there.

I didn't realize that Force 22 had a carbon crank for example. I've never had a carbon crank before and a little leery of them being a 275 lb. rider. Any 250+ folks riding carbon cranks?

I also didn't realize that the 5800/105 brakes are dual pivot. My TRP RG957 dual pivot brakes are considerably better than any caliper brake I've used in the past. I assume the new 5800 105 brakes are a solid step up as well.

I've also talked to folks that said the gap between 105 and Ultegra shifting has dramatically closed when moving from 5700 to 5800. Lots of Dura Ace trickle down tech. Also, I'd that if you use the new Dura Ace shifter cables with the 5800 drivetrain that shifting rivals that of the latest Ultegra stuff.

I've read that Rival22 and Force22 are lighter than 5800/105 and possibly lighter than 6800/Ultegra.

Has anyone seen a good article that lays it all out or can someone give me a summary of pros and cons between these four groupsets?

TrojanHorse

Force 10 speed had carbon cranks too.

I believe the zero loss benefits from Red have fully trickled down to Force now, so you'll get that over Rival. I'm not sure you'd notice unless you're really fussy, but there's no "take up" when shifting, if that makes sense.

I'm pretty sure all four of those groups you mention use dual pivot brakes, so no real gains there.

gjhsu

Zero loss is also on Rival22, along with the 1:1 actual actuation, or whatever their marketing department calls it. The difference between the two is weight and a slightly more solid shifting feel from Force. The yaw front derailleur is what I like most from the Sram setup, and being able to use any gear combination with (minimal) noise. I have Sram on both of my bikes and love it. Curiously, I like the brifter hoods on the Rival more, but the paddles and levers of Force.

They are louder in operation than any of the Shimano setups, though, with a more definite "clack" when the chain goes to the next cog. Lets you know it's there, for sure.

jsigone

I like the ergos of shimano but love the shifting of SRAM, on SRAM

dr_lha

I have a 5700 and a 6800 equipped bike. If you prefer double tap, the new 5800/6800 shifters will not change your mind. They're great - for Shimano shifters.

That said the 6800 brakes are really excellent.

sstorkel

I don't think any of the changes from 10-speed to 11-speed drivetrains are nearly as large as the manufacturers would like you to believe. I recently upgraded from SRAM Red 10-speed to Shimano Ultegra Di2 11-speed. Other than the electronic shifting, everything else is pretty similar...

Upgrade to Yokozuna cables and any drivetrain will shift dramatically better. I'll admit it: I used to think that fancy cables were the bicycling equivalent of snake oil, but the Yokozuna cables do make a dramatic difference. When I installed them on my SRAM Red bike I, quite literally, had to learn to shift all over again: the force that normally would have moved the RD up 1 gear now sent it rocketing 3 gears up the cassette!

FYI, one other thing to consider: 11-speed wheels require more dish than 10-speed wheels. When I built new 11-speed PowerTap wheels, I was surprised by just how little tension there is on the non-drive side spokes! I borrowed a trick I learned here (from chriskmurray?) of using a lighter-gauge spokes for the non-drive side. Even with spindly DT Swiss Revolution spokes (2.0/1.5mm), there's very little tension on the non-drive side spokes. Dunno if the lack of tension will have any long-term impact on wheel durability... but I'm definitely keeping an eye on these new wheels.