Allez Upgrade/Service Advice

Yep, good work. 

You should make a few quid selling on the Sora stuff on eBay once it's nicely cleaned up.

I would strongly recommend getting the Man in the Shed to use upgraded cables on the install. I've Jagwire Road Pro on my bikes and it's super slick.

But, nevvy's still going to be spending the best part of £350 installing Tiagra. Is the bike worth it?

Not a rhetorical question, am serious.

e.g. https://www.rutlandcycling.com/318562/products/2016-giant-defy-1-road-bi...

That's 11 speed 105 for £600 - and whole second bike.

I was in this position, fancied 105 but my wheels were only 10 speed compaible. Went for Tiagra and was very happy with the resultant "new" bike. Changed its feel having moved from Claris. Then I went and got me a new bike as well with 105, and except for the extra cog the shifting is just as good, but I would say that the brakes are far better with 105. So if the wheels only take 10 speed get Tiagra as others have said above.

Yepp, another vote for 4700 Tiagra.  It is a very good quality groupset and can be had for as little as £250.  That really is a steal.  As for the BB, if it feels/sounds rough then simply swap out with an Ultegra one (assuming you don't get one with the groupset), very cheap and and excellent quality (but you won't spin any quicker!).  Other that, some dcent tyres, like Schwalbe One or GPS4000IIs.

Are your wheels 11-speed compatible? If not, stick with Tiagra

Constant maintenance!

My 2014 Allez sport came with Claris groupset. Until last summer I used it to commute 15 miles each way year round.

its had two new wheel sets, currently on fulcrum Quattro. I changed to Sora mechs front and rear which meant it's still 2x8 but changes smoother. It's also had a new BB and regular cleaning lubing of BB. A new cable set, several new sets of pads and new bar tape. New crankset was about £50 but only changed because I damaged a crank. I tended to change chain and cassette in spring so it felt good for summer. Still runs like a dream and is nearly as fun to ride as my 105 equipped TCR.

conclusion, if you 'want' a better bike then buy one as you won't be happy settling for the upgrades. You will still want a nicer bike. But the Allez CAN still stick with the fast group even without the upgrades, you just need to upgrade the rider.

I had an Allez as my first road bike for many years (my first was a Dawes Firefly).  Assuming you keep the bike you can go for cheap ugrade.

1/ Replace the bottom bracket - it sounds like it needs it.

2/ Re-cable the bike with some decent cables (I used Jagwire Racer Pro) 

3/ Replace the brake blocks with Swiss Stop or Cool Stop blocks.

I re-cabled and upgraded the blocks and it made a massive difference to the ultimate stopping power and the modulation. 

Or you can replace the whole groupset. I ended  up doing this after a crash did for my right shifter. I used the new Tiagra (4700) and it was a massive improvement over the 2300 groupset I had.  You get the concealed gear shift cables and the chainset looks a lot better than the 4600 dinner plate.  The chains and cassettes are a bit cheaper than the 11 speed versions but its not a lot.

The brake blocks on the Tiagra are OK performance wise but really bad at shedding grit and ended up turning part of one of my rims into tin foil do I replaced those

Oh and if you do it yourself don't go cheap on the cable cutter

Gavin

Personally I'd just change the bottom bracket, chain, cassette and possibly chainrings.

For Sora you're probably looking at under £50 for all of it.

Get a basic bike toolkit for about £30 and you can do it all yourself.

If you change all those it will feel like a brand new bike.

I recently changed my bottom bracket and chain on my winter bike, it rides so well now and the upgrades cost me about £35.

If you want to upgrade your brakes it may well be worth splashing on 105s or above, most reviews I've read say that they are noticeably better than Tiagra and below.

1. Fix it - Take it to your LBS and get a quote. Hopefully, the chainrings aren't as bad as you think. (If you've worn the chainrings too far, that's a more expensive repair than chain and cassette. May as well buy a new crankset, and that's when you get into bigger money.)

Chain, cassette, new cables, new BB - £70-80 on parts, plus labour - this'll be your minimum. About £150?

Chainrings - if both need doing, it'll certainly be cheaper to get a new crankset. £50-80 or more.

Brakes - £40-ish. I have to mention though, it's sometimes about the brake pads and cables more than the brakes themselves. Decent pads, filed every now and again, clean rims and smooth cables can make shit brakes much better.

2. Allez upgrading - Is the frame worth upgrading? Seeing as it's the same frame as they use for higher specs, it could take it.

a) You're talking minimum £350 for a new groupset (unless you find something lightly-used on eBay). Flog the bits of your Sora which are still OK (probably only the shifters are worth anything) will get you something back. New cables too. LBS charge to fit it all, you're approaching £450-500. I don't think it's worth it, personally.

b) DIY option - Find some decent groupset parts on eBay, you're still going to be forking out £200-300-odd.  Less if you go for used. You have to be aware of compatibility issues though - some newer Shimano parts won't work with older ones. Buying a set of tools and teaching yourself via YouTube is another £50, and a lot of time. You could spend as little as £100, but how valuable is your time?

3. New bike -  Would you be better off finding a decent bargain? There are some massive ones out there - I recently bought a CAAD8 from Rutland for £350. That's a whole new bike instead of just a groupset. Stick your wheels on there (changing the cassette and redoing the limit screws) and you're good to go. Plus, you have your old bike to flog off or rebuild at your leisure.

To me, #3. is your best option. Especially if the LBS quote from 1. is approaching that kind of figure.

Another option, what do you think your bike would fetch on Gumtree etc and how much have you set aside for upgrades? Add these 2 figures together and have a look what's out there.

I got very lucky twice (steady). Found a little used Specialized Allez and paid £250 for it 3 years ago, 9 speed sora as well. Sold it recently for £300 (ha) and picked up a Carbon Cannondale Synapse 105 (immaculate) for £600.

Couldn't ever justify full price for either bike but climbed the ladder nicely...

I did Similar with my Caad 8 Sora. Replaced it all with 105 and stuck Campag Zondas on it.

To be honest I possibly would have been better off doing another bike on the Cyclescheme and would probably have spent less and ended up with a bike a kilo lighter. You can get Cannondale SuperSix Tiagra and Boardman Road Team Carbon for £720 to £800, so a bit more and you are talking a 105 bike.

Then again - I have a mate who has an Allez- Tiagra - He bought it on cyclescheme so it was only about £450 paid monthly. Hes upgraded it with Campag Zonda Wheels, 105 brake callipers, S-works Carbon Seatpost and Toupe Carbon saddle. Its dropped a kilo of weight off and it absolutely flies.

Depends how much you are attached to the current bike. If you love it... Upgrade.

If you don't- flog it and buy another, better, one.

Bike shop = $$$

What does your heart tell you, we can come up with a whole bunch of financially sound ways to keep your bike road worthy, but if any part of you wants a shiny new bike then that's a different story.

Personally, I'd do the bare minimum to keep that bike ticking over. Change the bottom bracket, change brake pads, change chain. Done. £50 on eBay, including tools. 

Then I'd set aside a little fund and every week stick a few quid in it. When the time comes, build yourself a fun little carbon machine just for good stuff, and keep your Allez for commuting. Yes now you've got two bikes, but it's so much better. For say £1200 to £1400 you can have an Ultegra carbon fibre bike these days when deeply discounted. Specialized, Giant etc. Just need to shop smart. 

That's me though, I prefer to wait, even years (lol really) to get what I really desire. 

If you generally feel the frame is that good, fit a 105 groupset and save yourself a ton of money. My winter bike has Sora and I recently replaced it with 11 speed 5800 105 and it's awesome. I did it myself so was able to do it on the cheap. If you factor in buying the groupset from the shop, or even just paying them to fit a groupset you bought from the internet, it may affect the economics of your decision.