# Which Shimano groupset



## Wingnuts (3 May 2013)

Hi,

I'm about to join our work cycle scheme and have been given £1000 to spend on a bike and equipment.
I have decided to go for a Bianchi c2c Nirome 7, but I have three choices of groupset, Shimano Sora (£810), Tiagra (£1050) or Campangnola (£1000).

Can anyone advise me which is the best option from the above, and why, or, as reconmended by a friend Shimano 105, if the 105 what price do you think it would come in at?

Or any advise you may think important.

Thanks in advance,

Wingnuts


----------



## AndyRM (3 May 2013)

Sora is Shimano's basic groupset, Tiagra is a step up, and then 105. With each, you'll get an incrementally improved performance in shifting (and cachet).

Assuming it's a Campag Veloce groupset as that's what was on mine and I never had any problems with it. As it's an Italian bike, it's really the only option!


----------



## AndyRM (3 May 2013)

Also, I'm not sure that you're allowed to breach the £1,000 limit on your voucher, so Tiagra would be out of budget. 

Another tick in the Campag box!


----------



## Kestevan (3 May 2013)

It's a Bianchi so anything other than a Campag setup would just be wrong......

If yo do decide to break with tradition and go Shimano, personally I'd go with Tiagra, being 10spd it will allow an easy upgrade path with 105 and above compenents as required.


----------



## Wingnuts (3 May 2013)

Thanks guys,

I spoke with my lbc and he's fine with me making up the difference, happens all the time apparently. Is it worth trying to knock him down on price, or is it a no no on a cycle scheme, last thing I want to do is put their nose out of joint from the get go?

What do you think would be the price if it were the 105?


----------



## 4F (3 May 2013)

It is against the law to fit Shitmano on a Bianchi.


----------



## Kestevan (3 May 2013)

I'd imagine you'd be looking at adding a couple of hundred quid to move to 105.

Personally I'm not sure it would be worth it. Tiagra is a very decent set of kit, 105 is maybe a bit smoother and lighter, but I suspect 90% of people wouldnt be able to detect a difference in a blind test. I doubt it's an option, but I'm a recent convert to SRAM gearing..... the change mechanism works differently and it suits me much better than anything Shimano can offer.

Doesn't matter anyway - it's a Bianchi. The law demands a Campag setup and a slightly dodgy shade of greeny blue 
( I actually like Celeste - honest ). Anything else is verboten.


----------



## TonyEnjoyD (3 May 2013)

Campag even tho never used it. It's a legal requirement on a Bianchi, ask Coppercyclist 

Gotta say, an extra £230 to go Tiagra seems a tad steep!
A full new Tiagra Groupset is only £80 more than a Sora and shouldn't take more than 2-hours for an experienced mechanic to fit.


----------



## Cycleops (3 May 2013)

As everyone says Campy on a Bianchi is a requirement, but that is just the purists talking! Shimano would a bit like spaghetti with suchi. Anyway I think there is an element of the 'Kings new clothes ' with better Shimano or other groupsets. As Kestevan says you probably wouldn't notice any difference in a blind test.


----------



## joebingo (4 May 2013)

Veloce is somewhere in between 105 and ultegra by most accounts, so I'd go for the campag.

But I just bought a bianchi with veloce on it, so I'm a touch impartial.


----------



## Easytigers (4 May 2013)

Agree with everyone above going for the campag option!


----------



## Pedal Bob (4 May 2013)

I have 2 road bikes- a cheapish Moser from Merlin with full 2013 Sora, which I like and a new (to me) Wilier Gran Turismo with full Campag Centaur which so far I'm not so keen on. Reasons for me are as follows-
Hood shape on Sora is better and more comfortable to grip, Campag seems really narrow with a strange profile
Shifting down on the drops is far easier I find with Sora, as the thumb shift on Campag requires you to contort your thumb back quite a way to reach it.
It is almost regarded as blasphemy to say anything against Campag with some cycling purists, especially when talking about Italian bikes, but for the time being, I think I am preferring the Shimano shifting method. I do hope to be converted though, as I spent quite a lot on the Wilier!


----------



## derrick (4 May 2013)

Campag every time, i had it on my Bianchi and i have it on the Cervelo.


----------



## smokeysmoo (4 May 2013)

Bianchi is just a brand name these days, (like most others are), so that frame will have been mass produced in the Far East, (possibly alongside other brands as well in the same factory), as opposed to hand forged by Giuseppe Italiano whilst wearing a full length leather apron in his workshop in Turin, so therefore the Campag argument is totally lost on me TBH.

I stick to Shimano as I know it, I like it and I've never had an issue with any of their groupsets either.

I did once fit a new Veloce groupset on a winter bike I built, but I hated it TBH. It felt agricultural in use, and the power torque bb is simply ridiculous in terms of tools required to remove it.

So FWIW I'd go for the Tiagra.


----------



## AndyRM (4 May 2013)

smokeysmoo said:


> Bianchi is just a brand name these days, (like most others are), so that frame will have been mass produced in the Far East, (possibly alongside other brands as well in the same factory), as opposed to hand forged by Giuseppe Italiano whilst wearing a full length leather apron in his workshop in Turin, so therefore the Campag argument is totally lost on me TBH.
> 
> I stick to Shimano as I know it, I like it and I've never had an issue with any of their groupsets either.
> 
> ...



Blasphemy.


----------



## vickster (4 May 2013)

What does agricultural mean in the context of gear changes? Akin to driving a tractor or leading a horse pulling a plough?


----------



## smokeysmoo (4 May 2013)

vickster said:


> What does agricultural mean in the context of gear changes? Akin to driving a tractor?


Yup, and an old knackered one at that.

Horses for courses and all that, but Campag is not a horse I'll back again in a rush.


----------



## Bianchi-67 (3 Jun 2013)

Here is my Bianchi Nirone which I upgraded with Ultegra components. My wife has the Bianchi Impulso Veloce but I prefer Shimano.


----------



## Cycleops (3 Jun 2013)

Very nice, just a shame it's not very "Italian" anymore.


----------



## ThinAir (3 Jun 2013)

Wingnuts said:


> Thanks guys,
> 
> I spoke with my lbc and he's fine with me making up the difference, happens all the time apparently. Is it worth trying to knock him down on price, or is it a no no on a cycle scheme, last thing I want to do is put their nose out of joint from the get go?
> 
> What do you think would be the price if it were the 105?



I know we ain't talking a load of money, it i got a couple of quid (literally), knocked off everything I bought with mine to bring it within the £1000 limit set by my employers. It was only some knocked off the price of an inner tube, but it shows it can be done :-)


----------



## SpokeyDokey (3 Jun 2013)

Bianchi-67 said:


> Here is my Bianchi Nirone which I upgraded with Ultegra components. My wife has the Bianchi Impulso Veloce but I prefer Shimano.
> View attachment 24185


 

Never seen a sensor on the back wheel.

What's the reasoning there?


----------



## Herzog (3 Jun 2013)

SpokeyDokey said:


> Never seen a sensor on the back wheel.
> 
> What's the reasoning there?


 
Doubles as a cadence sensor.


----------



## SpokeyDokey (3 Jun 2013)

Herzog said:


> Doubles as a cadence sensor.


 

I see - didn't know that - thanks.

Who makes those?


----------



## Herzog (3 Jun 2013)

SpokeyDokey said:


> I see - didn't know that - thanks.
> 
> Who makes those?


 

Not sure what type is shown, but many are available (e.g., http://www.wiggle.co.uk/cateye-strada-cadence-cycle-computer/)


----------



## goody (3 Jun 2013)

I've had Shimano 105 and tiagra in the past and now have campag veloce on my ribble. I much prefer Campag it looks and feels nicer and I think it works better when riding on the hoods which I do 99% of the time. You also get the gear cables routed under the bar tape rather than the slightly ugly washing lines on the Shimano (if current sora and tiagra are still like that?).


----------



## Sillyoldman (3 Jun 2013)

Well, I have a simple old steel frame bike and Microshift STI's. Have Sora gears and they work beautifully now I have them nicely indexed. I know everyone says Tiagra is an improvement on Sora and 105 on Tiagra. And I guess I have to believe that but I just can't see how I would notice or how it could be better. Upshifts are so smooth and downshifts are like a rifle bolt action. Even the front mech shifts nice. Maybe one day I will upgrade but not until current set up is worn out. Enjoy whatever you buy.


----------



## Bianchi-67 (4 Jun 2013)

SpokeyDokey said:


> I see - didn't know that - thanks.
> 
> Who makes those?


They are Cateye Strada Double Wireless Cadence Computer. I'm thinking of upgrading to Garmin Edge 500.


----------



## SpokeyDokey (4 Jun 2013)

Bianchi-67 said:


> They are Cateye Strada Double Wireless Cadence Computer. I'm thinking of upgrading to Garmin Edge 500.


 

Ta - might look at that when I am fitter!


----------



## Wingnuts (11 Jun 2013)

Thanks for all the replies. I have now got the voucher and have decided to go for the Companolo groupset.

I have a further question, which shoes and pedals to go for? I think I want something around the entry level as this will be my first,and I don't want to buy something expensive only to find that I don't like it.t

The reason I ask, is because at the moment I'm in Spain and was thinking it may be cheaper to buy them here rather than back in England, any thoughts or advice would be very much appreciated.


----------



## bozmandb9 (9 Sep 2013)

I just purchased some Fizik F3's on Planet X, and I'm very pleased with them. Link here: 
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/SHFIRSRCS/fizik_r3_road_cycling_shoes

I paired them with Shimano R 540 SPD SL pedals, and I've been very pleased with these too, haven't had a clipless moment yet. Usually I can clip straight in too.

I guess it depends on your budget, but the Fiziks are a great shoe, carbon sole, but it all depends on the shape of your feet, and what style or shape of cycling shoe will suit them.


----------



## Powely (11 Sep 2013)

Planet X are doing a full Ultegra carbon bike for £999.00 IIRC. Best spec for £1k I think?


----------



## Powely (11 Sep 2013)

Wingnuts said:


> Thanks for all the replies. I have now got the voucher and have decided to go for the Companolo groupset.



Sorry just seen this! :/


----------

