- News
- Reviews
- Bikes
- Accessories
- Accessories - misc
- Computer mounts
- Bags
- Bar ends
- Bike bags & cases
- Bottle cages
- Bottles
- Cameras
- Car racks
- Child seats
- Computers
- Glasses
- GPS units
- Helmets
- Lights - front
- Lights - rear
- Lights - sets
- Locks
- Mirrors
- Mudguards
- Racks
- Pumps & CO2 inflators
- Puncture kits
- Reflectives
- Smart watches
- Stands and racks
- Trailers
- Clothing
- Components
- Bar tape & grips
- Bottom brackets
- Brake & gear cables
- Brake & STI levers
- Brake pads & spares
- Brakes
- Cassettes & freewheels
- Chains
- Chainsets & chainrings
- Derailleurs - front
- Derailleurs - rear
- Forks
- Gear levers & shifters
- Groupsets
- Handlebars & extensions
- Headsets
- Hubs
- Inner tubes
- Pedals
- Quick releases & skewers
- Saddles
- Seatposts
- Stems
- Wheels
- Tyres
- Health, fitness and nutrition
- Tools and workshop
- Miscellaneous
- Tubeless valves
- Buyers Guides
- Features
- Forum
- Recommends
- Podcast
TECH NEWS
Shimano 105 goes 11-speed
Shimano has launched a brand new version of its 105 groupset – the most popular road groupset worldwide – that features an 11-speed drivetrain and, says Shimano, improved braking power.
The new 5800 series 105 features technology that has trickled down from Shimano’s high-level Dura-Ace and Ultegra groups.
“The main thing about 105 is that it’s now 11-speed,” said Shimano’s UK brand manager Mark Greshon at the UK launch. “With it being 11-speed it brings many of the functions and features that you get with both Ultegra and Dura-Ace to a much wider range of riders.”
So, 105 follows in the footsteps of Dura-Ace and Ultegra (and groupsets from Campagnolo and SRAM) in going 11-speed. Shimano has redesigned the derailleurs and shift levers and included polymer coated cables to replicate the light shifting of its higher level groupsets – and, judging by the demo components available at the launch, it really is noticeably lighter than previously but still with a very definite click engagement.
Shimano says, “The shift levers have a compact grip which provides more comfort and control during a ride. The lever can be customised for different hand sizes with a 10mm screw-type reach adjust.
“The front derailleur has a longer link arm combined with a new spring mechanism. Also, the rear derailleur has a new spring mechanism and cable pitch, which provides robust adjustability.”
That’s the official line. The four-arm crank has trickled down from Dura-Ace too, with the uneven spacing between those arms that some people like and some people can’t stomach. Visuals aside, Shimano says that this gives the best transfer of power and balance between lightweight and stiffness.
This design also means there’s just one bolt circle diameter (BCD) for compact and traditional double chainsets. In other words, one crankarm fits all chainring sizes.
The standard chainset combos will be 53/39T, 52/36T and 50/34T. If you want to swap from 53/39T to 50/34T, for example, you can do that using the same crankarm – you can just change the chainrings rather than the whole chainset.
There will also be a non-series regular five-arm chainset.
The 11-speed cassette is available with 12-25 tooth and 11-28-tooth sprockets, as before, but there’s also a new wide-ranging 11-32-tooth option.
A short cage derailleur will handle sprockets up to 28T, but if you want to go to 32-tooth you’ll need the long cage derailleur.
Shimano treat the chain with a Sil-Tec surface-plating technology that they say makes it run smoother and wear longer in all conditions.
Shimano also say that they have improved the braking power by 10% over that of the previous 5700 series 105 groupset… and we love a statistic around these parts!
Shimano attribute most of that increased power to the new symmetrical dual-pivot brake caliper. Those calipers have a higher arch so they are compatible with tyres up to 28c – and there’s a general trend towards increased tyre size on the road these days.
The brakes are also available in a direct mount version (BR-5810), direct mount being an increasingly popular choice on road bikes as well as time trial bikes.
The 5800 Series 105 groupset will be available in black and silver from June. We don’t have prices on any of the components yet.
Shimano have an 11-speed flat-bar shifter that you can use with the new 105 components if you like, or with Ultegra or Dura-Ace for that matter.
Shimano has also introduced road hydraulic disc brakes that you can use with an 11-speed mechanical groupset like new 105. Check out our other story for all the details on that.
If you were hoping that Shimano would roll their Di2 technology down from Dura-Ace and Ultegra to 105, sorry, but that's not happening – not for the time being, at least. Electronic shifting will doubtless filter further down the road groupset hierarchy at some stage, but not yet.
Shimano say that 5800 Series 105 will be available from June.
Mat has been in cycling media since 1996, on titles including BikeRadar, Total Bike, Total Mountain Bike, What Mountain Bike and Mountain Biking UK, and he has been editor of 220 Triathlon and Cycling Plus. Mat has been road.cc technical editor for over a decade, testing bikes, fettling the latest kit, and trying out the most up-to-the-minute clothing. He has won his category in Ironman UK 70.3 and finished on the podium in both marathons he has run. Mat is a Cambridge graduate who did a post-grad in magazine journalism, and he is a winner of the Cycling Media Award for Specialist Online Writer. Now over 50, he's riding road and gravel bikes most days for fun and fitness rather than training for competitions.
Latest Comments
- perce 2 min 8 sec ago
Oh god is he still here? Still not found a publisher for his stories?
- chrisonabike 1 hour 34 min ago
You've been quoted in the article as being concerned "about the safety of cyclist and vehicles”....
- S.E. 6 hours 16 min ago
My guess is that they sell mainly on the German market - feel free to correct me. That might explain why they are not "pushing" their products,...
- ktache 6 hours 41 min ago
Now Emily Chappell really liked the Lezyne , I have the HV version, good, but I find the handle uncomfortable in use. I've often wondered about the...
- biking59boomer 5 hours 48 min ago
What about this one!? Taken in Cardiff Civic Centre 1939
- Muddy Ford 6 hours 51 min ago
Charlie Alliston got 18mths and is the reference case (because there are so few cases) for all campaigns by anti-cyclists that 'cyclists are not...
- belugabob 7 hours 53 min ago
My local football practice pitches (all weather, in a fenced off area, are regularly the scene of inconsiderate parking, with vehicles blocking the...
- Spangly Shiny 8 hours 18 min ago
Assos ASOS anyone?
- chrisonabike 8 hours 31 min ago
Replace them all with Bromptons and they'd take up zero space within days or even hours, as they are all relocated elsewhere. To eBay or possibly...
- Andrewbanshee 9 hours 2 min ago
Where I live we are experiencing a lot of housing development on small and large plots of land. These developers don't seem to have problems...
Add new comment
88 comments
For some purposes, yes it probably was. Commuting to work on a fixed wheel with chain guard, toeclips and fat tyres means I can do it in normal clothes and shoes, comfortably, and cheaply. Maybe I could do the ride quicker on a carbon road bike with high-end Shimano shiny bits, but as a means of converting money into commute miles I reckon my nasty steel fixed wheel wins.
You want me to clarify? No problem. Forget about baggy shorts and all that, it's the chain I'm talking about in this instance. Transmission components in other industries seem to be designed not only for better performance, but for increased longevity too.
I think a lot of cyclists would prefer to change a chain perhaps every 5k, rather than 1.5k, and I think many newbies would be surprised at just how long chains lasted, not just in days gone by, but up until quite recently in fact.
This is exactly what I don't understand about modern bike components. Take a 3-speed auto-box on a car from the 70's or early 80's for example. You'd be lucky if you got 70k miles out of it before it started making (very) expensive noises. However a 6 or 7 speed box on a modern car, a vastly more complex piece of kit, is probably good for 200k miles without major intervention.
How come modern bike components are so much less reliable or at least last a fraction of the time of those from a couple of decades ago? I can only think that most bikes are sold/ridden as recreational 'toys' nowadays rather than the trusty means of transport that they once were. The obsession with saving weight appears to have trimmed components to the point where they have almost become 'disposable'. The strangest thing to me is that most cycling enthusiasts on this forum seem to welcome the idea of spending more money and more time with oily fingers replacing components than ever before. Hmmmph.
The answer is long, but short.
• People have more money than they used to.
• Cycling has become a leisure pursuit rather than a need.
• Leisure cyclists want the new new thing and can pay for it.
• Many young adults have no training in manual skills, so can't do bike maintenance.
• Making it easier and more attractive to upgrade than repair...
• ...and the bike industry isn't complaining about that!
I suspect there's plenty of people buying bikes mainly for transport. It's just that you don't hear about it so much. I mean, there's no such thing as "Cycle to Work" magazine, is there? And what if you enjoy cycling to work, despite being able to afford the bus? Does that count as business, or leisure?
Whatever the situation, as Tom Simpson once said, "We're all in the saddle".
http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/cycle-commuter-magazine
11 issues published to date.
Most magazines push cycling as a leisure pursuit / wannabe racer activity rather than A to B transport. It suits the advertisers. The association with performance is aspirational and helps them sell upgrades, accessories, clothing and helmets while simple utility cycling doesn't.
Not me mate, and not anyone I know, but perhaps you move in different circles than I.
Always has been up to a point, but the primary purpose of a bicycle remains to get from one point to another and that is what the vast majority of people use them for.
True of some, also some will be happy to get a cheap used 5700 gruppo, but most people just want their bike to work and spend as little as possible.[/quote]
The same is true of people of all ages, in fact a huge majority of people can't do bike maintenance, I don't know why their fathers didn't teach them, I can only assume it's because they couldn't do it either or didn't think it was important.
No, no they're not. I wonder whether they are motivated by dedication to providing their customers with the best possible products at a fair price or by $?
Best price I've seen for the 6800 groupset is £510, so it's already cheaper than 6700, which in my view was a step backwards from 6600 in shifter actuation, though the brakes were better.
I think it's great that people want 11 speeds and less moneys, that's why I just got a 5700 groupset for £300.
oh shit, you people dont like change do you.
yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn
bet you wish your car was running on carbs
and whats this new fangled remote central locking? nothing wrong with a key!
bey eck when i where a lad down't pit etc
no complaints from me about 6800 Ultegra or this new 5800 105 groupset
I'm currently riding 6700 Ultegra on my best road bike, and 5700 on my other road bike.
Have custom built many bikes for customers with 6800 and test ridden many demo bikes with 6800 and its a very impressive groupset in terms of shifting / braking function, and coming in at a great price
This news about the 5800 groupset is fantastic, its going to introduce a more "affordable" priced 11 speed shimano groupset
This means sub £2K 11 speed Shimano equipped road bike for the masses, and could herald a large takeup of hydro disc brakes with the mechanical shifting / hydraulic disc brake versions of 5800
Interesting comments.... not the only person to have a 'favourite gear combo' then!
I do like a triple (or is that a tipple?) But 11 cogs gets around most of the problems. Well it would if 34x32 was low enough, but it isn't quite low enough for grovelling at the end of an Audax. Guess that makes me not a real cyclist then.
Other than that, 11 speeds, hydro braking, sure why not? If you don't want it just don't buy it. Some of the comments above.... I mean no one's forcing you FFS!
I can see myself buying that disc-braked 11 speed Giant Defy with carbon mudguards in a couple of years. I won't be exclusive or cool but I'll sure be getting the job done
A
Apparently you can use 11-speed cassette on a 10-speed Shimano freehub.
Easy! Just leave the 1mm spacer on there, and leave out the 14t sprocket, and it fits perfectly well.
So you won't have to throw out your 10-speed wheels, and if you are really exercised by 11 speed, you can enjoy the refinements of the 5800/6800 groups and still keep your 10-speed.
Anyway, here's hoping they keep the 12-27 105 combo, I find that perfect as it moves the most-used cogs further to the right for big ring riding, plus you get a bail-out cog.
Oh, and I still have a 10-speed steel frame downtube-shifter bike in the shed, it's glorious, love taking it out now and then, but never in the wet.
Ah yes, this had not occurred to me, good thinking! I have two sets of Shimano 10-speed clinchers that I very much do not want to throw out.
At the same time, I do buy in to the merits of the new group, the least of whose benefits in my opinion is the extra cog...however I use 39 x 14 a lot, and would have to shift up to 52 x 19 instead. Can live with that.
Which 'end' of the shifter lever do you adjust out, high or low?
Damn... might explain why the 10 speed 105 groupset I just bought was so cheap LOL, still means I can buy spares really cheaply as well.
Been playing with 6800 lately and I have to say that I am very impressed.
The design of the new lever and the gear change is a significant improvement over 6700. However in saying that I have to acknowledge that 6700 was a step back in performance over 6600.
So... I guess what I am saying is that I expect the shifting of the new 105 to be significantly better than the 5700 version. That has to be a good thing.
Also, with regards to ratios, I think 11 speed is the end game of the more is more mentality. It is not efficient to go smaller than an 11tooth sprocket, and even that is taking the piddle a bit, so we can't really go further that way...
Looking at the other end of the spectrum, will roadies go for bigger than a 28t sprocket, or more commonly the 25? Either way, with an 11speed set up you get a good, close ratio block across the range, so there is no advantage. Indeed a 11-25 can include an 16t sprocket... after 19t, you need to go up in 2 teeth at a time as the percentage of gear increase gets too small.
What I am saying, with 11 speed there is no longer a gap in the ratios as there potentially was with 10 speed.
No... actually thinking about it... there may still be an argument for a 12 gear set up... damn that 18t sprocket.
awww yeah for hydro/mech STis
yah boo sucks for 11 speed, but that part's easier to macgyver into a cheaper/more practical set-up (after letting the first cassette wear out).
I like 11 speed as you can have a really wide range of ratios that are still sensibly spaced. If you want to run an 11-32 (and in Wales I'm not too proud to admit that I needed to in order to keep a decent cadence) 11 speed means you can have the spacing of an 11-28 cassette with an extra emergency bail out cog. I think that has real value to those who don't insist on riding up hills in that agonising, knee-detonating, slow motion 30rpm grind you often see on sportives.
Does 11sp require a different freehub to a 9 or 10?
Ehhh...?
I think something has to give when cramming more gears into the same space. Partly achieved by making the wheel dish worse for 11 speed hubs.
If the durability of 10 & 11 speed chainrings & sprockets has been maintained by extra hardening and other innovations, could this be then applied to make 9 speed more durable?
Not going to happen I guess...
Very pleased about this, and especially with the hydro/mech shifters announced too, I'm not sure the weight of the groupsets really adds up to that big a difference, especially if you can get some lighter wheels by saving on 105 over ultegra etc, probably makes a more noticeable difference.
Glad they still do the shiny silver colourscheme rather than going down the grey ultegra route, it may look a bit modern compared to say the silver Athena chainset, but I like it, hopefully the prices come in at a reasonable level (plus the cost of 5700 shifters dropping as a result would be good to upgrade the tiagra ones too)
I run 9sp. I use about, say, 3-4 gears...when riding/training...
10/11sp. blocks have reduced the choice of sprocket combo's of consumers of Shimano...
Do Manu.s not offer 42 rings on their chainsets...I dont live in Wales or Scotland.
Whatever happened to 170mm cranks ??? - instead of; compact cranks - another money making idea.
Compact cranks are a con - well and truly - ok you spin but they wear out faster - KMC recently done research that backs this up.
STi units smaller - thats a retrograde step if ever their was one.
Shimano chains are well known for being BAD/Failing.
They also used to index GREAT but now they are machined to such tolerances that when they wear after NOT LONG its 'replace time'..
Lastly; when are Shimano to do electric shifting on 105 = thats when its'll be MEGA-HEADLINE time !
> 10/11sp. blocks have reduced the choice of sprocket combo's of consumers of Shimano...
really? currently you can get 11-23, 11-25, 12-25, 11-28 and 11-32 in ultegra. 105 will probably be the same. i guess if you *must* have a 26T or 27T big sprocket you're out of luck, but they seem to be covering the bases okay to me
> Do Manu.s not offer 42 rings on their chainsets...I dont live in Wales or Scotland.
Generally no, and haven't since the late 1990s, at least not as standard. Pros left the 42t behind a long time ago
> Whatever happened to 170mm cranks ??? - instead of; compact cranks - another money making idea.
you can have 170mm cranks in the new four-arm spider if you want
> Compact cranks are a con - well and truly - ok you spin but they wear out faster - KMC recently done research that backs this up.
no-one's forcing you to buy a compact, least of all shimano with the four-arm design that allows you to swap rings without changing the spider
> STi units smaller - thats a retrograde step if ever their was one.
i don't agree - i find the new shape much better, and i have hands like shovels. and they're certainly better for people with smaller hands.
> Shimano chains are well known for being BAD/Failing.
have to say, i tend to buy other brands when i'm replacing. I don't like the snap pin joining method either, i find split links much better
This doesn't make any sense.
An overly critical person might say that smacks of either poor training or a very dull parcours....
Not massively, and the extra gears can actually increase the usability. You can still pick and mix individual cogs for the top 7 (10-speed) or 6 (11-speed) on Shimano, use SRAM (10/11 speed) or even Miche or Campagnolo (11-speed).
....
170mm cranks are still about, as are 165mm to a lesser degree. What, pray, was the point you were trying to make here ?
A con ? Seriously ? What are you on about..... and as for wear, yes - because each tooth gets more use as cadence increases the wear rate goes up. Is that a reason to choose a groupset ? Average cadence appears to be going up these days anyway - perhaps you could ask folk to pedal more slowly ?
Rubbish, entirely horses for courses.
Not really - there are better chains out there to be sure, but Shimano aren't "BAD".
Yeah... whatever... probably a government plot under mind control of the aliens....
That would actually be a nice thing, modulo price, particularly for the casual users, commuters etc.
Very interesting. Riding Ultegra 6700 at the moment. If I buy a new bike I would want a groupset as good or better than the current one I am riding. Ignoring the 11 speed element, is there much to choose between Ultegra 6700 and 105 5800?
I doubt it. I have run 6700 and 5700 side by side and other than weight mine performed identically. I've said it before but I defy anyone to tell the difference in a blind test. I'd be amazed if 5800 was a leap forward over 5700. But I'm happy to be amazed.
having been using 11spd ultegra over the winter, i'm interested to know why an 11spd groupset is 'more hassle' - it's been no more hassle than a 10spd or a 9spd groupset, that I have on other bikes. no harder to set up, no harder to maintain.
As for 'expensive', 11spd Ultegra was cheaper than 10spd Ultegra. I wouldn't be surprised if the same was true here. As of now, we don't know, so the point is kind of moot.
Pointless? If you like. I don't think innovation is pointless, because I see groupsets getting better and better for less and less money. I kind of like that. Your mileage may vary.
Triple chainset: we've had no indication that there will be one, in terms of range a compact and wide-range cassette is the same, i know some people prefer a triple for the closer ratios. We'll ask.
Please do. 5700 still has the triple option and, as you say, Dave, it's handy if you prefer close ratios such as a 12–23 with the useful 18T middle. Some just find the 16T gap between rings too much; others want the 39T ring come what may.
Pages