# SRAM Rival 22 vs. Shimano 105 5800



## annirak (16 Feb 2015)

I'm working out what to look for in a new commuter road bike. Right now, I'm looking at components.

I had a bike with Shimano Claris and, while I liked it, there were a couple of things I didn't like:

If I had to lean on the brakes in a hurry, I would occasionally shift gears at the same time.
The FD needed continuous tweaking. After the first week I had the bike, shifting on the FD was just never as smooth as it should be. RD was fine.
I know that 1. is just how Shimano's STI's work. But is 2. still a problem with 105?

I've tried SRAM's doubletap shifters and I like them. I also like SRAM's hydraulic disc solution, but Shimano has one now too.

This is for a commuter bike, so durability is a primary concern. I can't wash the bike after every ride and I can't guarantee a fully covered spot to park it every time.

Will Rival 22 or 105 5800 be better suited to my kind of use?


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## Racing roadkill (16 Feb 2015)

If you Go for the SRAM 22 kit, you'll get the yawing front mech. I rode a road bike at the weekend with the Yaw mech on it. I quite liked it. It seemed a lot less irritating and 'random' than the Shimano 105 5700 kit on my Boardman Road bike.


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## cyberknight (16 Feb 2015)

I have claris on my commuter and i cant say i have ever accidentally shifted when braking so i would put that down to your braking technique ? and once set up and adjusted after running in for cable stretch.
Cables do bed in or "cable stretch " happens on all cable systems , even on higher end stuff .
Apart from the yaw on the sram mech its much of a muchness, they shift and they work so it really depends on what hood shape and shifting action you prefer .


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## annirak (16 Feb 2015)

cyberknight said:


> I have claris on my commuter and i cant say i have ever accidentally shifted when braking so i would put that down to your braking technique ?


Probably. As I said, it only happened when I leaned on the brakes in a hurry--as in stopping because I was about to hit something.



Racing roadkill said:


> If you Go for the SRAM 22 kit, you'll get the yawing front mech. I rode a road bike at the weekend with the Yaw mech on it. I quite liked it. It seemed a lot less irritating and 'random' than the Shimano 105 5700 kit on my Boardman Road bike.


A trim-free FD sounds good to me. I tried to use trim on my Claris bike and it never worked right. If I had the tension and endstop screws set right so that shifting worked and the chain didn't fall off, one of the trim positions would disappear. I adjusted the mech using the Shimano setup guide, but I could never get it just right.

I started tweaking my Claris FD when the chain started falling off the big ring of my crankset. Even after following Shimano's installation instructions, I still had the chain fall off from time to time. It would fall off the big ring or the small one depending on how it was adjusted. If I could shift easily, I couldn't count on the chain staying on the rings. It has soured me towards Shimano a bit.


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## cyberknight (16 Feb 2015)

annirak said:


> Probably. As I said, it only happened when I leaned on the brakes in a hurry--as in stopping because I was about to hit something.
> 
> 
> A trim-free FD sounds good to me. I tried to use trim on my Claris bike and it never worked right. If I had the tension and endstop screws set right so that shifting worked and the chain didn't fall off, one of the trim positions would disappear. I adjusted the mech using the Shimano setup guide, but I could never get it just right.
> ...


Hey if you can afford it then go for it , i am just trying to say that claris is not that bad if its set up right , take it to a LBS maybe?
My front mech trims fine , i have it set so that the 2 fastest gears need a trim out if that makes sense and it work ok for me but mech height, cable tension , H/L stops can all affect shifting.


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## Drago (16 Feb 2015)

I set up the Claris on the wife's roadie and itsvery slick.


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## Yellow Saddle (16 Feb 2015)

annirak said:


> This is for a commuter bike, so durability is a primary concern. I can't wash the bike after every ride and I can't guarantee a fully covered spot to park it every time.
> 
> Will Rival 22 or 105 5800 be better suited to my kind of use?



There's the crux to your question and the answer is.....neither. Both those groupsets will suffer from salted roads and both will rust/corrode equally.

Keep the current commuter, fix the irritating FD (buy a new one if you have to, it is dirty cheap) because it can be slick if all's well.

Then....save your money and get yourself a drive-to-church-on-nice-days-only bike with the fancy stuff you desire. 105 is far too good to leave out in the open and ride on salted roads.


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## annirak (16 Feb 2015)

Yellow Saddle said:


> There's the crux to your question and the answer is.....neither. Both those groupsets will suffer from salted roads and both will rust/corrode equally.
> 
> Keep the current commuter, fix the irritating FD (buy a new one if you have to, it is dirty cheap) because it can be slick if all's well.
> 
> Then....save your money and get yourself a drive-to-church-on-nice-days-only bike with the fancy stuff you desire. 105 is far too good to leave out in the open and ride on salted roads.


I expected someone would say that.

Getting my road bike fixed at this point would not be economical. It met an unfortunate end against the front fender of a motorist who failed to shoulder check when turning through a bike lane. But that's another story in another forum. Suffice it to say that I don't currently have a road bike.

I do 95% of my riding on my commute. I ride at least 80 miles/week on commutes. I have ridden one sportive per year for the last two years and have yet to get out on a club ride (hopefully soon!). I want to enjoy my commutes, since that's where I do most of my riding. Surely SRAM or Shimano have a solution for this kind of thing.


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## vickster (16 Feb 2015)

Two bikes, one with gears and a single speed

I'd go for sram because I don't get on at all with the shimano hood shape

However, weren't the sram hydraulic disc brakes an utter catastrophe when launched. One poster was having a long running battle with them!


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## annirak (16 Feb 2015)

vickster said:


> Two bikes, one with gears and a single speed
> 
> I'd go for sram because I don't get on at all with the shimano hood shape
> 
> However, weren't the sram hydraulic disc brakes an utter catastrophe when launched. One poster was having a long running battle with them!



If I'm going that direction, shouldn't I be looking for a belt-drive hub-gear bike? I hear those are the lowest maintenance--unless you have to fix the hubgear, of course.


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## Doyleyburger (16 Feb 2015)

I had Claris on my first bike a couple years back and I must say that once it was set up correctly (that's halfords for you) then I had no issues whatsoever. In fact I found them to perform exeptionally well, very crisp and precise shifting and I never had a problem when I had to brake in a hurry.
I would suggest going back to the drawing board with the tuning of the gears and see how it goes.
Iv now got 105 on my current bike and can't fault it


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## Hacienda71 (16 Feb 2015)

I ride my Sram shod carbon bike in all weathers including wet, icey and gritted roads both on leisure rides and my commute. Mine is 10 speed and I don't really see the need for 11 speed, but as long as you clean and maintain the bike then why not. If you let a gritty paste build up on your drive train then yes it will wear quicker, but maintain it well and it isn't going to make a massive difference if you ride it every day. Choose the groupset you feel most comfortable using.


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## vickster (16 Feb 2015)

annirak said:


> If I'm going that direction, shouldn't I be looking for a belt-drive hub-gear bike? I hear those are the lowest maintenance--unless you have to fix the hubgear, of course.


I can't see how that would be less maintenance than single speed and they cost more to buy. Chain and a cog can't cost much (even a chainring)


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## annirak (16 Feb 2015)

vickster said:


> I can't see how that would be less maintenance than single speed and they cost more to buy. Chain and a cog can't cost much (even a chainring)


Oh, no, it may not be less maintenance, though belts are supposed to be lower maintenance, but I'm not riding 16 miles a day on a single speed...


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## Soltydog (16 Feb 2015)

I have an old road bike with 105 10speed (approx 8years old) & a new bike with Sram Rival 22. Replacement parts are much cheaper for the 105  so if it's used in all weathers that would be my choice, but no noticeable difference in quality to me.


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## jowwy (16 Feb 2015)

All my bikes run 105, so its out in the salt and rain, whether its too good or not


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## vickster (16 Feb 2015)

annirak said:


> Oh, no, it may not be less maintenance, though belts are supposed to be lower maintenance, but I'm not riding 16 miles a day on a single speed...


Why not? Is it hilly? On the flat around here, I find single speed no harder than the geared bikes


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## slowmotion (16 Feb 2015)

I commute year round on my "good" road bike. Yes, it gets more wear and tear than if was pampered in some air conditioned shrine, but I just like riding it. I'm prepared to have to replace parts as they wear out. I've never tried SRAM, but my last bike had 105s. I now have Campag Veloce which I much prefer. The shape of the hoods just suits me and I really like the thumb up-shifter for the rear mech.


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## annirak (17 Feb 2015)

vickster said:


> Why not? Is it hilly? On the flat around here, I find single speed no harder than the geared bikes


No, but I've had my knees get sore quite a few times from pedalling too hard. I have to keep an eye on my cadence to stop that from becoming a bigger problem. Not so easy on a single-speed.



slowmotion said:


> I commute year round on my "good" road bike. Yes, it gets more wear and tear than if was pampered in some air conditioned shrine, but I just like riding it. I'm prepared to have to replace parts as they wear out. I've never tried SRAM, but my last bike had 105s. I now have Campag Veloce which I much prefer. The shape of the hoods just suits me and I really like the thumb up-shifter for the rear mech.



This! Exactly this! I expect I'll go through chains and cogs more quickly, but that's okay. 

I like the look and feel of the SRAM, but I've yet to ride one. That will be the deciding factor, of course.


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## Pumpkin the robot (17 Feb 2015)

Last year I ran my best bike all through the winter (about 5000miles all told) and that has DI2 fitted. The only noticable wear was to the chain and cassette and you would get that regardless of what groupset you are using. Use whatever you feel the most comfortable on. I think most groupsets now are very good as long as they are set up well and you are only paying for lighter componants or electrickery. The only issue may be that as parts get lighter, they can also lose some of the durability that the cheaper groupsets have.


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