Should I spend the extra £250 for the full 105 groupset?

[rich05uk]

Hi,

I am new here so please forgive me if I have posted in the wrong place. Being a now retired mountain bike rider, I am looking into buying my first Road Bike to cycle to work each day which is a round trip of about 50ish miles. I’ve decided to go for a Trek 1 Series and am stuck on my decision between the 1.5 and the 1.7 bikes. My only question is with the Groupset/ Drivetrain, here are the specs of the 2 bikes:-

Trek 1.7
Shifters
Shimano 105 STI, 10 speed
Front Derailleur
Shimano 105
Rear Derailleur
Shimano 105
Crank
Shimano 105 50/34 or 50/39/30
Cassette
Shimano 105 11-25 or 12-27 (triple), 10 speed
Pedals
n/a


Trek 1.5
Shifters
Shimano Sora STI, 9 speed
Front Derailleur
Shimano Sora
Rear Derailleur
Shimano Tiagra GS
Crank
FSA Vero 50/34 or 50/39/30
Cassette
SRAM PG950 11-26, 9 speed
Pedals
Nylon body w/alloy cage


The difference in price is £250 extra for the 1.7 which comes with full 105 Groupset. Is it worth it? During my mountain bike days I always had Shimano XT Groupset which has never let me down over the 10 years I’ve had it, its still feels as smooth as ever and gear changes are still excellent. I want the same performance from my road bike but I’m not used to the road bike range of groupsets, would I notice the difference with the 2 specs above, would the cheaper bike give me a similar feel as my XT groupset on my mountain bike or should I spend the extra £250 for the full 105 groupset?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Rich.

 

[Dave5N]

Spend. Good for the economy.

 

[4F]

Welcome

Sora is the budget end of the groupsets whilst 105 is mid range and if I had a similar choice I would go for 105 (well I would really go Campagnolo but that is a different argument )

From memory it goes 2200, sora, tiagra, 105, ultegra, ultegra sl, dura ace

 

[Steve Austin]

105 is at the same level as LX, but in my experience it works as well as XT level of equipment.
Road kit lasts a lot longer. so I always buy the best i can, as it will last.

105 for me

 

[Gary D]

The main functional difference between the 2 is the way you change gear on the shifters.

Sora uses the brake lever moving sideways to shift down a gear and a little lever on the inner top side of the hoods to shift up a gear (for the RH STI - LH is opposite)
105 uses the brake lever again for down shifting but upshifting is done by a secondary lever behind the brake lever that you move inwards.

Some people don't like the Sora system because they say you can't change up a gear easily when on the drops (actually you can if your hands are big enough). I have both systems - albeit the Sora is 8 speed - and I do prefer the 105 as it appears to give smoother shifting. However, it is on a much nicer bike anyway so I'm bound to be biased

I would say that the 105 kit is made using better quality components and is a more refined design and so if you could do a true side by side test it would "feel" better and maybe longer term, it would last better.

Go for the 105 if the money is not a real issue

Gary.

 

[punkypossum]

Forget about the 105 - if you went for the 1.5 you'd have to ride a puke green bike, would you cope?

 

[palinurus]

Go for the 105 I say

 

[rich05uk]

Forget about the 105 - if you went for the 1.5 you'd have to ride a puke green bike, would you cope?

I must admit, I thought the same when I looked on the website, however in the shop they have the 1.2, 1.5, 1.7 & 1.9 side by side and it doesn't look too bad in the flesh. If I'm honest I like the Blue/White colour of the 1.9 but cant afford it (comes with Ultegra Groupset), it's a shame I cant get the 1.9 bike with 105 Groupset for the same price as the 1.7 but never mind.

Thanks everyone for your advice and a warm welcome to the forum, I think I've decided on to get the 105 Groupset, Trek 1.7 here I come.

 

[Bigtwin]

Def get the 105. It's nice stuff to use (esp the levers over Sora), and it's durable - I've always thought it's the best value in the ShimaNO range if you don't have unlimited dosh: the club rider's choice. It used to be generally the case that 105 is essentially last years' Ultegra. If you are commuting, longevity is good.

 

[rich05uk]

Thanks again everyone for your help, I really do appreciate your advice, together you all have much greater knowledge than I ever will…. However, looking into buying the Trek 1.7 with the 105 Groupset, I have discovered 1 final problem, I have another question about this in a new thread I have started:-

http://www.cyclechat.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?p=748557#post748557

Hope you can help me with this as much as you have done with the 105 Groupset. Your all very helpful.

Thanks, Rich.

 

[punkypossum]

I must admit, I thought the same when I looked on the website, however in the shop they have the 1.2, 1.5, 1.7 & 1.9 side by side and it doesn't look too bad in the flesh. If I'm honest I like the Blue/White colour of the 1.9 but cant afford it (comes with Ultegra Groupset), it's a shame I cant get the 1.9 bike with 105 Groupset for the same price as the 1.7 but never mind.

Thanks everyone for your advice and a warm welcome to the forum, I think I've decided on to get the 105 Groupset, Trek 1.7 here I come.

I know, I loved the blue and white, but it was way over budget, so I ended up with 1.7 red and white - I testrode the pukey green 1.5, but not sure if I could have lived with it on a permanent basis....

 

[rich05uk]

I know, I loved the blue and white, but it was way over budget, so I ended up with 1.7 red and white - I testrode the pukey green 1.5, but not sure if I could have lived with it on a permanent basis....

Ahhhh ok, so you have tested the 1.5 and you own the 1.7? Apart from the colour, how do the 2 compare?

It is a shame you can't choose your bike and the colour scheme independently, but I guess with all the bikes, colour schemes and sizes out there, it would be almost impossible for a manufacturer to produce such a large catalogue of bikes. But then again, car dealers allow you to choose your own make, model, color and spec etc so why cant bike manufacturers (at least the larger ones) do the same........

 

[4F]

I know, I loved the blue and white, but it was way over budget, so I ended up with 1.7 red and white - I testrode the pukey green 1.5, but not sure if I could have lived with it on a permanent basis....

I think it looks quite nice however as a side note Mrs 4F never lets me choose the paint for decorating.

 

[punkypossum]

The reason I went for the 1.7 was that I wanted a triple, but no sora shifters which limited choice quite a bit, so the 1.7 it was - got a pretty good discount, so it wasn't quite as over budget as it looked at first.