Is Shimano 105 all the groupset you really need?

when it comes to group sets if money were no object most of us would clearly pick dual race super record or red the flagship top of the range group set from the three big group set suppliers they're reassuring and expensive they use exotic materials and they're used by the pros but when i actually come to buying a group set when price and value become key factors there's one group set that stands out that many people choose shimano 105. [Music] over the years i have ridden hundreds of test bikes with dual race old tegra and one of five group sets i know it's a tough job etc and one thing they all share in common is exceptional performance they all share the same fundamental design as well the only real difference is the materials used to keep the weight lower and durate and ultegra but apart from weight you're getting the same performance the same ergonomics all the same functionality when it comes to shifting and braking the only difference is in weight and that is reflected in the higher price of dual race and ultegro 105 is shimano's third tier group set beneath dual race and ultegra this latest version r7000 was launched in 2018 and inherits pretty much all the technology first introduced on dual race and integra but at a fraction of the cost it retails for 799 pounds for disc brake group sets i'm featuring here but a shop around and you can find it for much much less as little as 600 pounds in some places for comparison dual race retails for three thousand pounds but actually cost closer to two thousand pounds old tegra meanwhile retails for eleven hundred pounds but cost closer to eight hundred pounds so dual race is clearly in another league but the price gap between old tegra and 105 is very very close close enough that might be tricky to justify the extra money when it comes to buying a bike with 105 which is most likely for people watching the video you're looking at bikes costing from 1 000 pounds up to three thousand pounds depending on the frame material and the level of finishing kit carbon or alloy wheels and so on so a clear price difference and a clear difference on the scales as you would expect too now for clarity i haven't actually weighed groups of myself but several websites report difference between 105 and ultegra being between 200 and 300 grams one of five mechanical disc brake groups that weighs two thousand four hundred and seventy eight grams of tegra 2 314 grams while dual race is the lightest for the bunch at 2076 grams so a clear price and weight difference but there's so much share technology that if you remove price and remove weight it's really hard to tell apart the main difference is in the materials used so you don't get carbon fiber levers on 105 for example and there are differences in some of the internals so bushings instead of bearing to save money you could argue durate and obtain look better but maybe if you swap the logos around you wouldn't be saying the same thing when it comes to your main contact point with a group set the hoods there's almost no difference between 105 old tegra and durate in terms of ergonomics they share the same hood design lever shapes which means excellent probably best in class ergonomics really easy to hold the hoods really easy to reach your brake levers from the drops just almost perfect ergonomics from this group set light ultegra and duras you can get rim brakes or hydraulic disc brakes these here are the hydraulic disc brakes and the fact they've got the hydraulic gubbins and the mechanical shifting components inside such more hoods it's very impressive indeed so ergonomics is the same and the leader feel is the same the only difference is in the quality of materials with ultegra and jurors using carbon fiber levers which is nice and bling and just standard alloy levers here and 105. there's perhaps a bit more refinement in how ultegra and duration shift a bit nicer feel perhaps but really splitting the hairs here for the most part when you're shifting up and down the hill it works the same when it comes to changing gears you're really getting the best of shimano's current technology and blindfolded you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between this ultegra and duras if you really look for it there's a slightly smoother more refined feel higher up the groupset range but for the most part this groupset offers exceptionally good shifting performance so up front we have the same forearm alloy crank design at on druids giving massive stiffness and really good power transfer and the new compact front mech which increases rear tyre clearance shift quality at the front is flawless it never drops a chain never misses a beat you can change on the load as well so front mech performance is really good and it's easy to see why shimano has hung on to the front mech longer than most when they got the shifting so dialed so nailed as they have with his design and then moving to the back of the bike we get the same shadow design rear derailleur as ultegra and duras which basically creates a more compact low profile rear derailleur design it's compatible with direct mount as we see here a new way of connecting it to the frame which creates a stiffer interface and then you get all the same ramps on the cassette which ensures the chain moves smoothly across the cassette it's such a smooth quiet efficient shifting group set you can change it under load in any situation cross-chaining it works so well all the time and never misses a beat ever it's such a reliable quiet group set you wonder why i spend more really and you don't because you get all the performance of old tegra and druids the hydraulic disc brakes on this one of five group sets are excellent with plenty of power and control you get the same flat mount calipers but these are painted rather than and dies on old tegra and jurors and the leader feel is almost the same there is one small difference though it's called a survey wave a technology borrowed from their mountain bike division which creates a non-linear lever travel put simply when you first pull a brake lever the pads move much more quickly and get closer to a disc brake rotor which gives you more control over the final phase of the pads moving in contact with the disc brake rotor the idea is to give you more sensitivity more refinement more control over the brakes which should give you a better and nicer brake feel but when it comes to riding and i've been riding 105 back to back with ultegra on an avatar spike it's really really hard to tell the difference if you really look for it in some situations you can feel a bit more control a slightly nicer lever travel but for the most part both brakes offer exceptional performance loads of control and power as i said earlier so it's not a big separator it might be on paper there's one small difference worth pointing out but it's not something i'm really missing using this 105 group set you get all the same chain set and cassette options as old tegra above it so 50 34 52 36 and 53 39 on the front if you want it and different crank arm lengths and all the cassette options on the back up to 11-34 so plenty of options if you're racing or you're doing a ground fondo and you want all the help in the heels you can get and a choice of two rear mechs short cage and medium cage to two different cassette options is there any difference in terms of durability and long-term reliability with one of five versus ultegra and druids in my experience no i don't see you getting any less durability with 105 compared to the more expensive group sets what you're really gaining from a more expensive group set it's better quality materials which contribute to a lower weight and slightly more refined shift quality but in terms of durability long-term reliability i don't think you're getting any less for your money so there we go then shimano's 105 group set is arguably hard to beat unless you're a weight weenie you're into your margin of gains you must have the same as a pros ride or you want the absolute pinnacle of technology then 105 offers all the performance that most of us really need it's good weight good performance durability great ergonomics it's really all group set that anybody needs but those are my thoughts and opinions now time to hand it over to you so let me know what you think of this group set down in the comment section below that's all for now thanks for watching as ever make sure you keep liking subscribing and watching my videos and i'll see you again soon

Channel: David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes

Views: 94,419

Rating: 4.9561882 out of 5

Keywords: cycling, bikes, road bikes, gravel bikes, mountain bikes, tech, reviews, bike reviews, cycling reviews, bicycles, cycles, shimano, 105, groupsets

Id: FK322k0U-rw

Length: 8min 19sec (499 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 26 2020