# 105 will I be able to tell



## nicholas (26 Jan 2014)

My question is I am debating weather to upgrade my shimano Claris to 105 group set and have found a deal for 299 and wondered is it really that much of a change your thoughts on this matter


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## MikeW-71 (26 Jan 2014)

Bear in mind I've never tried Claris for myself. I found 105 to be noticeably different to Tiagra, it feels more "snappy" and needs less lever travel for shifts. 105 brake calipers are also very noticeably better.

I think you will notice quite a difference as 105 is the best "bang for your buck" IMHO. As long as your rear wheel is 10 speed compatible, I don't see why you shouldn't do it. It can always be removed and re-fitted to a different bike if needed.


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## Roadrider48 (26 Jan 2014)

MikeW-71 said:


> Bear in mind I've never tried Claris for myself. I found 105 to be noticeably different to Tiagra, it feels more "snappy" and needs less lever travel for shifts. 105 brake calipers are also very noticeably better.
> 
> I think you will notice quite a difference as 105 is the best "bang for your buck" IMHO. As long as your rear wheel is 10 speed compatible, I don't see why you shouldn't do it. It can always be removed and re-fitted to a different bike if needed.


You're right about the difference in shifting. I upgraded from bottom end Shimano to 105 a while ago and there is no comparison IMHO.


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## Doyleyburger (26 Jan 2014)

Had claris on my previous bike and found incredibly good. Very quiet when shifting and smooth. Thinking of getting that 105 deal myself mind


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## Roadrider48 (26 Jan 2014)

Doyleyburger said:


> Had claris on my previous bike and found incredibly good. Very quiet when shifting and smooth. Thinking of getting that 105 deal myself mind


The reason I got onto 105 in the first place was that I had those shifters with the thumb shifting thing for changing up. The gear changing with those is so sh## IMO. All clunky and jerky on the upshift.


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## LimeBurn (26 Jan 2014)

In a word yes


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## potsy (26 Jan 2014)

105 is very smooth, certainly better than my Sora equipped bike.
Ideally you would get the bike from the outset with the groupset already on it, much cheaper in the long run than upgrading afterwards.


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## musa (26 Jan 2014)

yes defo claris is 8 speed btw


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## slowmotion (26 Jan 2014)

Can I be a party pooper? I had Shimano 105s on my last bike. My new lover has Campagnolo Veloce. I'm totally smitten...no comparison.


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## Sillyoldman (27 Jan 2014)

slowmotion said:


> Can I be a party pooper? I had Shimano 105s on my last bike. My new lover has Campagnolo Veloce. I'm totally smitten...no comparison.


Slowmotion, good to hear you like your Camapgnolo set up. I hope to pick my old girl up today from my LBS. Have upgraded to Campagnolo Athena groupset and am so excited I could poo myself. Just waiting on a phone call to say its ready.


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## SS Retro (27 Jan 2014)

slowmotion said:


> Can I be a party pooper? I had Shimano 105s on my last bike. My new lover has Campagnolo Veloce. I'm totally smitten...no comparison.


I have Veloce equipped Italian and whilst its great you cant buy a groupset for £299 which seems like a fair deal for a 105 set up.


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## raleighnut (27 Jan 2014)

Roadrider48 said:


> You're right about the difference in shifting. I upgraded from bottom end Shimano to 105 a while ago and there is no comparison IMHO.


You're "cod on " 105 is where Shimano quality begins. Still don' like the look of the new outboard bearing crankset though.


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## Andrew_Culture (27 Jan 2014)

I might have a buyer for your claris


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## slowmotion (27 Jan 2014)

SS Retro said:


> I have Veloce equipped Italian and whilst its great you cant buy a groupset for £299 which seems like a fair deal for a 105 set up.


 I'm sorry, I didn't realise that 105s cost less. One solution would be to buy this bike and flog the frame, wheels etc on Ebay. 
http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m1b0s6p0


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (27 Jan 2014)

It's a massive change!


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## AndyRM (27 Jan 2014)

SS Retro said:


> I have Veloce equipped Italian and whilst its great you cant buy a groupset for £299 which seems like a fair deal for a 105 set up.



Ribble will do you a Veloce gruppo for £340, which isn't too bad IMO.

Claris to 105 is a cracking upgrade though. My Sora/Tiagra mix to 105 feels great! 

Plus, you don't suffer the indignity of having a gruppo named after a fishing rod...


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## uphillstruggler (27 Jan 2014)

i find the 105 on my Genesis to be spot on.

its a big jump from the sora that I have on another bike.


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## DooDah (27 Jan 2014)

nicholas said:


> My question is I am debating weather to upgrade my shimano Claris to 105 group set and have found a deal for 299 and wondered is it really that much of a change your thoughts on this matter


That wouldn't be from Merlin Cycles would it??


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## nicholas (27 Jan 2014)

Yep doodah it is wondering now what size cassette I should get having never bought one worked out I need short reach calipers and 17crank arms


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## e-rider (27 Jan 2014)

nicholas said:


> My question is I am debating weather to upgrade my shimano Claris to 105 group set and have found a deal for 299 and wondered is it really that much of a change your thoughts on this matter


most 299 105 deals are limited to what cassette ratio, crank length, derailleur cage etc is offered. All okay if it just happens to be exactly right, rarely is though! I recently bought a full Sora groupset with tektro long drop brakes for 199. Only slightly worse performance and slightly more weight than my 105 groupset. It was for a winter training bike anyway so I wanted to feel a difference when getting on the summer bike!


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## Linford (27 Jan 2014)

I've got 105 on my Giant...was miles better than the few Sora (sp) equiped bikes I road tested. That said, the bike I rented in Mallorca a few months ago had Ultegra compact kit on it, and that really was very nice


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## cyberknight (27 Jan 2014)

Go to a LBS that will let you do a test ride is the best option to see if you think that its worth the extra .


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## nicholas (27 Jan 2014)

Good thinking cybernight


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## vickster (27 Jan 2014)

Evans very good for test rides. I test rode a 105 bike and decided it wasn't for me due to the hoods, smooth changes though


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## uclown2002 (27 Jan 2014)

Just upgraded from 2300 to 105 and it's smiles better!!!!


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## vickster (27 Jan 2014)

I was comparing to tiagra. Still better...shame on the hood shape


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## musa (27 Jan 2014)

Campag albeit expensive is fixable. But shimano is cheaper because you just chuck it in the bin when its dead


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## Martin p (16 Feb 2014)

I was looking at that deal myself but would prefer the Sram Apex deal for around the same price . I have small hands & would be changing from a triple . Also have Apex on my flat bar & like it . 
the trouble is that it only comes with 172.5 chainset & all my others are 170 mm . Would this make much difference or should i be sticking to the 170mm chainsets. Cheers


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (16 Feb 2014)

I highly doubt most people would notice 2.5mm


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## Martin p (16 Feb 2014)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> I highly doubt most people would notice 2.5mm



Ooh er missus , Sorry T.M just post this on beginner as I missed my alerts  not sure whether ur joking or not :-)


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (17 Feb 2014)

Martin p said:


> Ooh er missus , Sorry T.M just post this on beginner as I missed my alerts  not sure whether ur joking or not :-)


I'm not joking


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## HLaB (17 Feb 2014)

vickster said:


> Evans very good for test rides. I test rode a 105 bike and decided it wasn't for me due to the hoods, smooth changes though


Not saying you are wrong but for me I find the hood shape more comfortable than sora, perhaps the set up wasn't quite right :-/


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## Rob3rt (17 Feb 2014)

105 is a different beast entirely compared to Claris, Sora etc.



T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> I highly doubt most people would notice 2.5mm



I tend to agree (I have ridden 165mm to 175mm cranks and the difference was not particularly noticeable), you would notice a change in Q-Factor much more so (although, you shouldn't worry about this either, kind of wish I didn't say anything about it now for fear of follow up Q's, lol)


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## vickster (17 Feb 2014)

HLaB said:


> Not saying you are wrong but for me I find the hood shape more comfortable than sora, perhaps the set up wasn't quite right :-/


The hoods are the wrong shape, too fat for me to comfortably hold and brake. The SRAM hoods are narrower so can wrap hand round and get enough force on lever


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## Martin p (17 Feb 2014)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> I'm not joking



Ok , cheers .


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## Martin p (17 Feb 2014)

Rob3rt said:


> 105 is a different beast entirely compared to Claris, Sora etc.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## Martin p (19 Feb 2014)

Hi nicolas. I gather you ve seen the 105 groupset at merlin . Just in case you've missed it , can be had in double or triple form at Ribble for £299 standard price not in an offer :-)


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## maltloaf (20 Feb 2014)

I've gone from 8 speed 2300 to 10 speed Tiagra and I've just put 105 on my new build. Honestly I can't feel the difference between 2013 Tiagra shifters and 2012 105 which I used but the jump from 2300 to Tiagra is massive.

The derailleurs are much better engineered than the lower spec ones though.


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## zizou (20 Feb 2014)

I have Claris on my winter bike and 105 and Ultegra on 2 of my other bikes. The latter two are better, a bit crisper but its not night and day unlike the old sora that had the thumb shifters.

Ive been impressed with Claris to the extent that i may use my winter bike (minus the mudguards obviously) for early season racing when the chances of crashing tend to be a bit higher - i wouldnt however consider this if i wasnt confident in how it shifts.


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