...said Dusty Rhodes - and he's the American Dream.

Don't worry about the obscure song lyric reference. The real issue is that I have been assuming that if I buy a new bike, I would put SRAM Rival components on it. I like the way it works, feels and looks, and I like that the brake lever is just a brake lever, not a shift lever. I like that the shift cable is routed under the bar tape instead of out in the breeze like Shimano has done. I have had good experience with my SRAM x.9 components on my MTB.

But now that I am looking seriously at buying a new bike, I am having second thoughts about component choice, Shimano has released the new 5700 version of the 105 group which looks really sharp. The hoods have the same new shape as the newest Ultegra and Dura Ace groups and like on them, the shift cables are now routed under the bar tape.

Cost of the two groups is essentially the same and they are offered as same price options on one of the bikes I am strongly considering buying.

What has me leaning away from Rival and toward 105 is complaints I read about the GXP bottom brackets on SRAM cranks, short life of the chainrings and sloppy front shifting. Also I read a lot about noisy drivetrains on SRAM setups.

I know that many people are extremely happy with their SRAM components. None of the people I know who use it have any complaints. Internet user reviews often bring out a few vocal complainers while the satisfied majority remains silent.

I'm not sure what I hope to gain by posting this here, but I thought I'd let everyone know what is occupying my mind these days.

Weighty decisions, indeed.

I'm already starting to think about lunch. Will it be turkey? Or roast beef?

Kidding aside, I guess you've decided to replace your beloved, but injured bike?

My wife has SRAM red on her road bike and we both have SRAM cranks on our TT bikes. First, there is no trim on the front der to eliminate noise when crosschaining to use the small chainring and the smaller cassette gears but there IS adjustment when crosschaining on the large chainring to the larger cassette gears. Shimano has both trim adjustments. SRAM seem a little more noisy but we use Shimano chains which seem to eliminate the problem.

I have Shimano D/A on my road bike and it seems perfect for all shifting situations.

We are both able to drop our chain to the inside with SRAM and Shimano. I have to get preventers for both bike and the TT bikes.

I guess Campy Chorus is just not in the cards...

At least now you can't go wrong either way. My only experience with SRAM on a road bike was not a good one so I'm not a good one to offer advice. I was not aware of the routing of the cables being upgraded with 105. Good news there.

In the four yers I've been riding, I've not changed components other than to replace things that wear out, so I'm no help in deciding. Sometimes a change is good just for a change. Maybe one is better than the other, but more likely one is simply different than the other. And chnage is good. I'd say go the SRAM becuase it's different.

Just to throw another twist in, there is also the option (for a bit more $) to get Ultegra triple.

Not much help here but I have 105 and have been thinking of getting the new 105 just because I think it would look so cool not to see the exposed cables. The more I ride and the more I look at those cables the more my wallet yells at me.
I had thought of Ultegra too.

In terms of font end shifting I think Shimano has the strongest lineup on the market today. In talking to my favorite LBS mechanics there is almost universal agreement that new Shimano cranks shift better than anything Else. Get into discussions of rear shifting, brakes, etc. and there seems to be little consensus. One mechanic that I'm thinking of just dropped over $10,000 into the top of the line Madone and went with Campy. Even he concedes that the Shimano shifts better than anything else out there. Additionally, I can see very little difference between the 105, Ultegra & Dura Ace except price and weight. Hood shape preference is such a personal thing it's hard to offer advice there. For me, not worrying excessively about weight, it would be a no-brainer; I'd go with 105.

Ultegra SL FTW, baby. Lookit, you don't wanna be climbing some huge col w/ some smarmy furriner breathing down your back an' drop a chain, do ya??

My wife's bike has SRAM Red and the latest version does have a trim for the front derailleur on the big ring. Of course, if it was me, I'd get Shimano Di2.

Too much fixed gear riding. Have you forgotten how to shift? lol

I run a mix of 105 and Ultegra with Sram Cranksets. The Cranksets I have no problem with. They were a cheaper option than Shimano when I built up the bikes as the LBS had made a special purchase. But I walk into the shop for replacement parts and they only offer me Ultegra. As they say- It is the best deal around for price and quality so why fit anything else? Not much more than 105 but the quality is better.

When I was looking at bikes before I bought the Look, I tried the Specialized Expert and Tarmac out. They both had Ultegra on them and they really didn't feel that much different to me, than the 105. I call shift the 105 a lot smoother than the Sram, when I haven't rode the Look. The 105 is much quieter, than the Sram. One day while playing around with the 2 bikes, I put a Ultegra cassette on the Look and you wouldn't believe the difference. So when I'm ready to change the chain or the cassette out, it will have the Ultegra cassette and a KMC chain. After 3000 miles I have no issues with the front dérailleur or the front shifting at all. After I had the Look and read all the stories about the front shifting with the Sram, I decided to disconnect the cables and adjust them myself, to see if I would run into any problems. I didn't have at all. I really don't think one is any better than the other. The Sram was something different and I liked the way it felt and looked, so that's why I got it. I also like the brake levers being brake levers.

Sounds like a decision to me. Move along, nothing further to see, its over and done, call again in a decade !!

(Enjoy)

Not by a long shot. I'll be kicking this decision around for another month or two before I make up my mind for the final time.

No....but..... It is normally not a problem but the time to drop a chain is in a road race on a flat section as you approach a climb. Everyone is in the big ring but in a lower gear. When we hit the hill, the tendency is to drop directly to the little ring and sometimes the chain drops.

I promised 5703 levers to my Portland for our upcoming anniversary. Just to keep the cables out of the the way of the headlights. I hope to have them by Standard Time.

Currently it has 5603 levers, a 6603 FD, and a Bontrager-branded GXP triple crank. I got 10,000 miles out of the middle chainring. But of course, that's 10,000 miles of commuting through snow, rain and what have you. A replacement ring was $42 at the LBS.

As for shifting, it's not quite as crisp as my full Sora triple, and of course the standard double has it hands-down over both. It's the upshifts that need finesse--small to middle and middle to big. Downshifts are perfect. On the other hand, there is zero chain rub in the middle ring. I can use all 10 in the rear without a single peep from the FD. It does rub in big-big and small-small though.

Thanks for the inputs. It always helps to hear what others have experienced. I don't think I could go wrong with either choice. It's hard for me to believe that I have strayed so far from my retro-grouch roots to the point that I am now deciding which 10 speed brifter group to choose for a carbon fiber bike. A few years ago I was lugged steel/friction/Brooks all the way, no plastic bike with automatic transmission for me. I think the full suspension MTB started the journey. A couple of test rides on a Roubaix Expert Compact Ultegra last year made a big impression. But I think the couple of incidents of being forced to confront mortality played a big part in encouraging me to let go of my stodginess. Life is too short.

I think if I had to decide today, I would get the Roubaix Comp Compact Rival. But there is part of me that still wants to go with a triple crank over a compact. That would call for the Roubaix Comp Triple Ultegra. But then, if I could find a way to stretch the budget another big step, that blue and white Roubaix Expert Compact Ultegra with the upgraded frame and wheels sure would make a nice tribute to Ribby.

Last night I started putting some wider Nitto bars on my touring bike for my C&O/GAP trip. People who use bar end shifters don't have such problems. You should know that.

Is Ribby dead?

I had triples on hybrids, road bikes and mountain bikes. I have owned 2 compacts. I have no interest in ever owning a triple again. With my 11/28 cassette, I have almost as much range as a triple. I love the trim on the Ultegra. I can primarily use the 34 chain-ring for all situations. I haven't found a big enough downhill to spin out the 34 with the 11 sprocket. I was spinning out a 12 sprocket with the 34.

I was quite pleased with the 105 also on my previous bike. The only thing I can complain about the 105 is a short chain life.

I know you like the idea of the shifter not being part of the brake lever. There is a steep short twisty hill on a trail that I use. I can brake and down-shift at the same time with my Ultegra.

I forgot to mention that the Expert is so light that you may never need the really low gear inches. I am amazed that it climbs so well. I think you are a little lighter than I am; so, I suspect the compact will be fine for you.

Realistically, yes. It is technically possible to have the bent frame tubes replaced and repainted etc., but it just doesn't feel right. It would be expensive and hard to coordinate and I don't know how well it would turn out. Maybe I'll feel differently some day, but for now, I think she will move on to being wall sculpture and I'll move on to a modern bike.

I may have abandoned some of my principles, but I'm not going so far as to condone cross-chaining! I'm fine with going to the next to last cog either way, but big-big and small-small is forbidden territory. Shame on you. Shift that thing onto the big ring.

If I do get a compact, I am thinking I'll switch to a 12-27 cassette. I don't like the steps on the 11-28 and I can't use a 50/11 gear.

I have Ultegra on my Calfee, with a triple, and while I have no real complaints (never drops the chain, lots of trim adjustment with the Ultegra brifters), I do prefer the SRAM Force, with a compact, that I have on my Ti GT.

On my next bike I'm hoping to get the best of both by equipping a Calfee Dragonfly (essentially the same fit spec. as my GT) with SRAM Red. The other mod. I had to do to get the gearing as low as the Ultegra bike was to install a SRAM XX rear derailluer with an 11 - 32 cog. Works great.

So far this year I've ridden three doubles on the Calfee and two on the GT. This coming weekend is Knoxville Staff Ride Double, and I'll be on the GT!

Rick / OCRR