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Thinking of upgrading my groupset

by joc
Sun, Mar 23, 2014 11:25
12

I bought my bike (cannondale caad 8 sora) last November an I've done about 5000km since then. I'm getting itchy feet to upgrade, I think the frame is excellent but was thinking of upgrading my groupset... Any suggestions where I should go next? Or should I upgrade other areas before the groupset?
Thanks

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12 comments

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Charliegr555 | 10 years ago
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I agree that wheels are the best upgrade you can make but if you want to change the groupset merlin have 11 speed ultegra for £500 this link

http://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-ultegra-6800-groupset-oem-69564.html...

Or a 105 groupset for 300

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morethansonglyrics | 10 years ago
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As above: discount ultegra would be the way I'd go if I was in the market.

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Gareth W-R | 10 years ago
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Dependant on budget you could do a lot worse than Campagnolo Veloce, or if you have a bit more spare cash Chorus. I know they have the thumb shifters but they allow you ( on the chorus at least ) multiple up and down shifts. May not seem like a big deal but in using them you will love the option. Shifting is fantastic too, cannot comment on Shimano shifting but friends of mine love the Ultegra 6800. Find a bike dealer and try them out.

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Miles253 replied to Gareth W-R | 10 years ago
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Gareth W-R wrote:

Dependant on budget you could do a lot worse than Campagnolo Veloce, or if you have a bit more spare cash Chorus. I know they have the thumb shifters but they allow you ( on the chorus at least ) multiple up and down shifts. May not seem like a big deal but in using them you will love the option. Shifting is fantastic too, cannot comment on Shimano shifting but friends of mine love the Ultegra 6800. Find a bike dealer and try them out.

Though I use Campag, I think bang for buck wise, it's too expensive. Chorus is ticking on at about £800 from what I see, I can't see it being better than £500 Ultegra, I grant that they are different, but still.

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Gareth W-R replied to Miles253 | 10 years ago
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Miles253 wrote:
Gareth W-R wrote:

Dependant on budget you could do a lot worse than Campagnolo Veloce, or if you have a bit more spare cash Chorus. I know they have the thumb shifters but they allow you ( on the chorus at least ) multiple up and down shifts. May not seem like a big deal but in using them you will love the option. Shifting is fantastic too, cannot comment on Shimano shifting but friends of mine love the Ultegra 6800. Find a bike dealer and try them out.

Though I use Campag, I think bang for buck wise, it's too expensive. Chorus is ticking on at about £800 from what I see, I can't see it being better than £500 Ultegra, I grant that they are different, but still.

I always used Shimano on my MTBs without problems, I just cannot get on with them in their road setup. I think if you looked around you may get the Chorus cheaper? I built my bike on a mix of chorus, Athena and centaur brakes, works great.
Your right though in terms of performance I assume they would be very similar.

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bubbles_jonnybravo | 10 years ago
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I agree that wheels makes a massive difference, if you can afford a reasonable set. If you really do want to upgrade the groupset look at Pro Bike Kit they have 50% off the new Ultegra 6800 and they have discounts on others.

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Simon E | 10 years ago
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10 speed isn't compulsory, more gears won't make you faster, so don't despair if you can't stretch to a 10 speed groupset. 9 speed Sora (essentially rebadged Tiagra) works very well, it's good value without those pesky thumbshifters. Mind you, the current 8 speed Claris hasn't either:
http://road.cc/content/news/77271-shimano-unveil-new-claris-groupset

If you decide on wheels then choice depends very much on budget but they do make quite a difference (as do nice tyres). Plenty of recent threads about wheels if you scroll back through the forum.

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bashthebox | 10 years ago
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I reckon an improved groupset makes as much psychological difference as the extra speed you'd get from better wheels. It's so, so much nicer having the sort of shifting you get from Ultegra or Dura Ace (or even 105, I reckon, from what you're on). Far less effort to shift, trying to find the right gear, etc. Ace.

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gbscot1975 | 10 years ago
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The new Sora has the same shifting as the more expensive group sets no more thumb shifters.

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d_chew replied to gbscot1975 | 10 years ago
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gbscot1975 wrote:

The new Sora has the same shifting as the more expensive group sets no more thumb shifters.

So does the Claris.

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jmaccelari | 10 years ago
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The rule of thumb is that the biggest bang for your buck is generally the wheels. I'd look at thrm first.

Past that, if you're looking at upgrading your groupset, you can start off with just the shifters and cassette. Then rear derailleur, front and crank set.

My personal favourite is Shimano Ultegra. It has the shifting of Dura Ace for a lot less at a little more weight.

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joc replied to jmaccelari | 10 years ago
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jmaccelari wrote:

The rule of thumb is that the biggest bang for your buck is generally the wheels. I'd look at thrm first.

Past that, if you're looking at upgrading your groupset, you can start off with just the shifters and cassette. Then rear derailleur, front and crank set.

My personal favourite is Shimano Ultegra. It has the shifting of Dura Ace for a lot less at a little more weight.

hmmm, interesting...it's the shifters that really grind my gears (pardon the pun) those thumb shifters on the sora aren't great.

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