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Want to replace a few things, thinking of just upgrading the whole group, worth it?

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Want to replace a few things, thinking of just upgrading the whole group, worth it?

Old 07-05-12, 07:39 AM
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Want to replace a few things, thinking of just upgrading the whole group, worth it?

I have shimano 105 9speed 5500 group on a 2007 trek 1500. I love the frame and have the fit dialed in near perfectly.

But Im approaching some maintenance needs and want to change out some things and thinking of just replacing the group. For starters, its got a 53/39 crank which I would like to swap out for a compact. Its also got a 12-25 9speed cassette which I would like to swap out for an 11-28. The chain and cables will also need replacing. The shifters and derailleurs work well, but the hoods have been torn up by the previous owner and they're all scuffed up and missing the flight deck caps. They work fine, but are a bit unsightly.

Anyway, it seems that my options are to throw a few hundreds dollars at some maintenance and upgrades, or I can get a brand new 5700 105 group on ebay for $639 and basically overhaul the entire drivetrain.

I may also be able to sell the old the group and offset the cost by $100 or so.

N+1 is not an option right now. What would BF do?
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Old 07-05-12, 07:51 AM
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Originally Posted by JustinNY
What would BF do?
As a guess, BF would tell you to get Tiagra, or Dura Ace, that you are too fat for the sport, and then spend three pages arguing about the meaning of the word "are" as used in this sentence.

Just a thought.
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Old 07-05-12, 08:04 AM
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Get Campy Centaur from one of the UK sites and you will solve all of your problems and look cooler doing it!
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Old 07-05-12, 08:14 AM
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I just went through that exact same decision. Ende up getting a whole new group set. Don't know if it was "worth it" but I'm happy.
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Old 07-05-12, 08:19 AM
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Replace the whole goup, you'll be happier.
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Old 07-05-12, 08:26 AM
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Wow, everyone but me is being nice.

Buy a groupset, but take the time to look at other comparable groups from other manufacturers. I actually went the Campy Centaur group, but with Veloce shifters, Miche cassette, and KMC chain, and the whole thing was under $500 from England. Required different wheels, but I am thrilled with the change. Make sure you try SRAM doubletap too, to see how you like that vs. Shimano, and then there is no wheel issue.
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Old 07-05-12, 08:28 AM
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Tagaproject6, the bike I built was a Cinelli Xperience. Just noticed yours in your sig. What a fun ride.
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Old 07-05-12, 08:30 AM
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Originally Posted by RollCNY
Tagaproject6, the bike I built was a Cinelli Xperience. Just noticed yours in your sig. What a fun ride.
Awesome bike and not too many of them around
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Old 07-05-12, 08:35 AM
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Originally Posted by RollCNY
Wow, everyone but me is being nice.

Buy a groupset, but take the time to look at other comparable groups from other manufacturers. I actually went the Campy Centaur group, but with Veloce shifters, Miche cassette, and KMC chain, and the whole thing was under $500 from England. Required different wheels, but I am thrilled with the change. Make sure you try SRAM doubletap too, to see how you like that vs. Shimano, and then there is no wheel issue.
I actually have been looking at SRAM rival. What I find a bit frustrating is that I cannot seem to find a video that demonstrates the double tap method. Having only used Shimano, I cannot wrap my head around the fact that you press a lever beyond the upshift point to get to the downshift point.

It seems like people are generally thrilled with there changeover to SRAM from Shimano, but one underlying complaint I read is that Shimano has much smoother and quieter shifting than SRAM. This is one of the things I love about my current group. With the exception of going from the big 53 ring to the 39 ring, every shift is dead quiet.

How does the campy mechanism compare to Sram and Shimano? Does the brake lever pivot or just the shifter?
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Old 07-05-12, 08:50 AM
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Originally Posted by JustinNY
I actually have been looking at SRAM rival. What I find a bit frustrating is that I cannot seem to find a video that demonstrates the double tap method. Having only used Shimano, I cannot wrap my head around the fact that you press a lever beyond the upshift point to get to the downshift point.
I don't have SRAM, but here's a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIOqabbTcCM#t=04m30s
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Old 07-05-12, 08:54 AM
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Originally Posted by RahTx
I don't have SRAM, but here's a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIOqabbTcCM#t=04m30s
thanks, not sure why i was having so much trouble finding this.
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Old 07-05-12, 09:17 AM
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Originally Posted by JustinNY
How does the campy mechanism compare to Sram and Shimano? Does the brake lever pivot or just the shifter?
Campagnolo is a fixed brake lever, a lever behind that to move to bigger cog, and a thumb trigger to move to smaller. The thumb lever is in a spot you can get to even from the drops (caveat being I have big hands). The hood ergonomics were what sold me, and they are very comfortable. Also, was building my mid-life crisis all Italian bike, so Campy was a no brainer.

Lots of people talk about Shimano being buttery smooth and quieter than SRAM or Campy. That has not been my experience. For me, SRAM and Campy give you a very positive feeling shift, a bang and your there kind of thing. The Campagnolo stuff shifts great under load.

On a SRAM vs Shimano thing, my flat bar bike is all SRAM X9, and it is quiet and smooth shifting. I owned a bike with 105 for about 30 days, and it was tuned and worked fine, but it was not as quiet or snappy shifting as the X9. Many people talk about SRAM chains and cassettes being the loudest part of the system, and I can't say whether that is true or not.
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Old 07-05-12, 09:20 AM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
Awesome bike and not too many of them around
Three out of the four bikes in your sig made up my list of what I wanted in my mid-life crisis road bike, and I'm glad I picked what I did. You clearly have excellent taste (since it matches mine.. haha)
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Old 07-05-12, 12:59 PM
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Pull up ribble in the U.K and save about 100 bucks
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Old 07-05-12, 01:13 PM
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or save yourself tons of dough and just fix what you have. a, dont bother with a compact yet larger cassette, you are reinventing the wheel. b, cables and housing are cheap. c, here is a link to the faceplate for your shifters. 11 bucks. the lbs may have the hoods also but you can get those from universal cycles too. shop around and you should be able to get all the mechanicals up and running great for under 150 bucks. https://www.universalcycles.com/shopp...s.php?id=31583
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Old 07-05-12, 01:16 PM
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I just orderd a Campagnolo Centaur groupset + a Khamsin wheelset from Ribble, yesterday. Cost about $654...depending on the Sterling to US rate. We'll see how long it takes to get here.
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Old 07-05-12, 01:17 PM
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Originally Posted by VELOGLOCK
Pull up ribble in the U.K and save about 100 bucks
about $10 cheaper before shipping after conversion for the 5700 group
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Old 07-05-12, 01:21 PM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
I just orderd a Campagnolo Centaur groupset + a Khamsin wheelset from Ribble, yesterday. Cost about $654...depending on the Sterling to US rate. We'll see how long it takes to get here.
how is this possible? The group alone is listed for 460GBP and the current rate is 1.55 last i checked
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Old 07-05-12, 01:22 PM
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full rival might be worth doing over apex, maybe.

apex is definitely worth doing over 105. assuming you like the shifting and shape of the hoods. look at the prices of used apex vs 5700 105 and you get some idea about the market's perceived value.
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Old 07-05-12, 01:32 PM
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Originally Posted by JustinNY
how is this possible? The group alone is listed for 460GBP and the current rate is 1.55 last i checked
Discounts. It is cheaper to buy the groupset piecemeal than to actually buy the groupset. The price I have does not include the brakes.
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Old 07-05-12, 01:34 PM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
I just orderd a Campagnolo Centaur groupset + a Khamsin wheelset from Ribble, yesterday. Cost about $654...depending on the Sterling to US rate. We'll see how long it takes to get here.
Did you order wheels and parts on same order? Wheels are subject to tariff, 5.5% or 11% depending on what you look at, parts are 0%. I was looking at Scirroco wheels when I got my stuff, but was nervous tariff would be applied to all (not that that would be bad, still way cheaper than stateside parts)
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Old 07-05-12, 01:38 PM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
Discounts. It is cheaper to buy the groupset piecemeal than to actually buy the groupset. The price I have does not include the brakes.
This. Their piecemeal prices stack up to almost identical to group, at least with Campagnolo, better if they are doing 25% off on parts. If you sub in Miche cassette and KMC chain, you can knock $60-100 off any group. I went with Veloce shifters because I wanted silver. Bike as fashion accessory. Whole thing was between $400-500.
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Old 07-05-12, 01:57 PM
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Originally Posted by RollCNY
Did you order wheels and parts on same order? Wheels are subject to tariff, 5.5% or 11% depending on what you look at, parts are 0%. I was looking at Scirroco wheels when I got my stuff, but was nervous tariff would be applied to all (not that that would be bad, still way cheaper than stateside parts)
Yes, I ordered it on the same order. They tacked on $54.25 delivery charge for the wheels, and the rest is free shipping. I have ordered from the UK before and have never had any issues with tariffs or import duties. I believe that bicycle parts are exempt.
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Old 07-05-12, 03:11 PM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
Yes, I ordered it on the same order. They tacked on $54.25 delivery charge for the wheels, and the rest is free shipping. I have ordered from the UK before and have never had any issues with tariffs or import duties. I believe that bicycle parts are exempt.
Cool. Thanks. I have ordered many parts from them without issue, but never tried wheels, frames, or bikes. Paranoia mainly.
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Old 07-06-12, 10:35 AM
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C11 shifters will shift Shimano 9 drivetrains perfectly. Get some Athenas from Ribble for ~$160. If you want a bigger gear range put a new 12-28 or 11-28 S9 cassette on, and a new chain. That's all I would do.
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