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nllsam.
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March 5, 2018 at 7:44 pm #28209
road
When you are looking for a groupset, be it an upgrade, build or new bike, how do you decide on which one to go for?
Are there pros / cons to each brand or are they all pretty much the same and you just pick the right level of spec?
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I’m old school so Campagnolo
I’m old school so Campagnolo it is for me. It didn’t stop me buying a Sram groupset, second hand, for use on a frame I’d bought,
As most people have said, once up to mid-range they are all good but the enormous power of Shimano does mean most people use that as it is what comes on the majority of bikes these days. Try the different groupsets and see which fits/feels better for you.
Oh, I almost forgot, the best group set I used was an old Dura-Ace one on a second hand purchase. Lasted until LBS shifter broke on a ride, I was very disappointed that I couldn’t source a replacement and had to go down to Ultegra. Ok guys, it’s only one of my many first world problems.
Anonymous
I’d go Suntour late 70’s to
I’d go Suntour late 70’s to late 80’s, you can forget the rest …
Shimano for me, though I had one sweet Campag set up, 3*8, 48/40/26 + this all alloy ‘special’ 13-30 cassette, shifting and gear choice was just lush. Had it on an old British racer that escspes me.
I do think shimano aesthetics have gone to pot though, ugly as these days. Give me 7400/7700 in a 11 speed version and I’d buy it immediately gloss black or high polished ‘silver’.
700c
Like others have said really,
Like others have said really, I prefer and use Campag but Shimano is more readily available, Campag is possibly more ‘repairable’.
I’m kind of stuck in a legacy Campag 10 Speed set up but as availability decreases and prices go up I will have to make a decision on changing to 11s Campag or Shimano.
If getting a bike from scratch now I might be pragmatic and specify Shimano, TBH
Crampy
My choice would be Campagnolo
My choice would be Campagnolo, all the way. I’ve tried quite a bit of their stuff; from first gen 11 speed Super Record, through new 11 speed Athena (re recently discontinued one – not the vintage stuff), second gen Centaur and the new 11 speed Centaur stuff – even bargain bin 10 speed Xenon. It all just works – you do need to stay on top of the cleaning and maintenance, though.
My CX / winter bike has a mixture of 10 speed Centaur shifters, 11 speed Centaur cranks, 10 speed Xenon rear mech, an Ambrosio Shimano spline / Campag pitch cassette (Wiggle Cosine Disc wheels with shimano freehub were just TOO cheap not to buy) and Athena 11 speed front mech, just a collection of bits I had laying around / bought cheap – winter bikes tend to be fairly knackered after a couple of years in Norway (I killed a set of Avid BB7s in one wonter season through lack of cleaning. When trying to remove the rear caliper, I found that the bolt had welded itself with road shit to teh calpier body, which subsequently cracked and broke off at teh bolt hole… They use strong shit on the roads here in Norway…).
It just works – but I really need to keep on top of the cleaning and maintenance – I take two full bidons on my commute – one for drinking and another for rinsing all the road salt and diverse shit from the mechanical bits once I arrive.
My Mtb has Shimano XT throughout and it is still going strong with very little mainenance after 7 years of commuting, gravel and general off road tomfoolery. So I would guess Shimano road stuff is fairly bomb proof. It just doesnt woo me the way a Campag set up does, though…
matthewn5
Pick the one that you like.
Pick the one that you like. They’re all great though each has their own foibles.
I’ve found Campag very durable for commuting. Chains and cassettes seem to last twice as many miles as the Shimano Ultegra kit I was using on the bike before. YMMV.
graybags
I’ve got all three on three
I’ve got all three on three different bikes and boy do I wish I’d stuck with just one brand, in all liklihood Shimano, just so I could interchange parts. If I chose all over again I’d just stick with Shimano, better availability, reliable and cheaper. I’ve gone off SRAM, just don’t like the double tap shifting and seems to go out of adjustment really easily.
srchar
bechdan, to answer – “how do
bechdan, to answer – “how do you choose a groupset?”:
There’s not much you can do before you buy other than a bit of research and some test rides. Unfortunately, with a groupset, a test ride won’t be anywhere near long enough for you to evaluate it properly, sussing out all its foibles and discovering its advantages; you’ll only be able to tell if you like the ergonomics or not, and even then only over a short ride.
What I and most people seem to do is to start with whatever’s on your first bike, which you probably chose because you like the colour. Then, go through a potentially expensive multi-year process of buying and selling bike bits on eBay before you realise what you like to ride. Once you know which manufacturer you prefer, I suppose it’s a case of “which level can I afford/justify”.
My “road groupset journey” went (IIRC)
Ultegra 6600 (loved it)
105 5700 (hated it – every new version of 105 is touted as “just as good as Ultegra, but heavier”; this was nonsense IME)
Ultegra Di2 (bit nonplussed – hated the mouse-click buttons and their placement so close together)
Campag Athena aluminium (shiny – liked it a lot!)
Campag Chorus (carbon bling and Ultrashift – marriage material)On the commuter, I’ve dabbled with Alfine and singlespeed but ended up on Athena. A bit more work to maintain than the other two, but worth it.
So, umm, yeah, that’s how you choose a groupset :-/
Tjuice
mike the bike wrote:One seldom mentioned advantage of Campag becomes apparent in winter when you wear thick gloves. Their system of separate levers for up and down changes makes it less likely you will end up in the wrong gear. It’s a small thing but ……….This is a good point.
I have Shimano Ultegra (mechanical) on my race bike, but SRAM Rival on the winter training bike.
With the thick, warm lobster gloves I wear during the winter, I find shifting the Ultegra a bit fiddly, whereas I have no issue with the Rival.
I do find the Ultegra a smoother, lighter shift though.
cool, all good advice and
cool, all good advice and interesting stuff. Ill give SRAM a go next time I ‘need’ to change something, or decide to build n+1
mike the bike
One seldom mentioned advantage of Campag becomes apparent in winter when you wear thick gloves. Their system of separate levers for up and down changes makes it less likely you will end up in the wrong gear. It’s a small thing but ……….
Jimmy Ray Will
Hmm, I’m another one that say
Hmm, I’m another one that say its all about the eye of the beholder.
All three make good gear.
SRAM is the choice if weight is your focus, although I’d argue they are generally a little behind top end performance wise and its resistance to the weather less than the others.
Campagnolo is the choice if style is your focus, especially for the top end groups. They work beautifully and look beautiful
Shimano is the choice if you go for function over all else. It works, it lasts well, its balanced between cost, performance, longevity, weight.
The other thing I’d say is that the spacing between shimano / sram and campagnolo cassettes are not identical. The are incredibly close… to the point that they’ll work OK, but campagnolo is a smidgen wider in real terms. I know this because I was running bikes with both campag and shimano last year and swapped a powertap wheel between the two. If I was being sensible, I’d swap the freehub and cassette over (take 10seconds) but I was often too lazy. It works, but its not perfect.
Jimthebikeguy.com
This is fairly easy to sum up
This is fairly easy to sum up. Stay away from campag unless you are loaded and a bit obsessive. SRAM make everything under the sun but the quality is always a bit suspect and it breaks. That puts Shimano in the middle, wherein the prices are reasonable and the engineering is really good from 105 upwards.philhubbard
wellsprop wrote:fukawitribe wrote:wellsprop wrote:philhubbard wrote:I use a Campag drivetrain with an Ultegra cassette and Sram chain. I know it’s sacrilege but you can use any 11 speed wheels and it shifts just as well. My Athena carbon was cheaper than 105 at the timeI guess you are using Shimano or Sram levers for that to work?
It’ll work with Campag levers – cassette spacing is the ~same for SRAM/Shimano/Campagnolo 11-speed.
Every day is a school day!
Yep, should have been clearer. Athena Carbon shifters, cranks and deraileur. Only works on 11 speed though. The KMC chain is slightly better than the Sram to be honest but last time I swapped it it was the only one I had to hand
LastBoyScout
Nearly everything I’ve got is
Nearly everything I’ve got is a flavour of Shimano – both MTB and road. It works.
When I bought my best bike, I wanted an Italian frame with an Italian groupset. The only concession is Shimano pedals, for compatibility with shoes and because they are fool-proof.
I have SRAM cassettes on the mountain bikes. I haven’t avoided their groupsets, I just haven’t yet bought a bike with that already on it.
Canyon48
fukawitribe wrote:wellsprop wrote:philhubbard wrote:I use a Campag drivetrain with an Ultegra cassette and Sram chain. I know it’s sacrilege but you can use any 11 speed wheels and it shifts just as well. My Athena carbon was cheaper than 105 at the timeI guess you are using Shimano or Sram levers for that to work?
It’ll work with Campag levers – cassette spacing is the ~same for SRAM/Shimano/Campagnolo 11-speed.
Every day is a school day!
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