Upgrading Sora to Tiagra or 105.

[Brandane]

I am thinking about upgrading my trusty Tricross. After 1 year and 3000 miles, I have decided to upgrade the drivetrain components. Levers, chainset, bottom bracket, cassette, chain, front and rear derailleurs.

I have checked out the on-line prices, and Ribble seem to be the cheapest (better than both Wiggle and ChainReaction). The Tiagra components would cost £272. That is for the 4500 series, with 9 speed cassette and triple chainrings.

The 105 components (the new 5700 series) comes in at £375, which is a bit more than I want to pay. That is for 10 speed cassette, and triple chainrings. If it is a whole lot better then I could bite the bullet and save elsewhere (i.e. sorry, no Christmas present again this year, darling! ).

I keep reading varying reviews about the Tiagra. Some say it is just as good as the 105, so why pay the extra £100? Others seem to swear by the 105 stuff.

I am not planning on going racing; just looking for some better quality drivetrain gear, and being able to change up gears while on the drops! Upgrading is also cheaper than my original plan of buying a Secteur Elite. I prefer the versatility of the Tricross in any case, as I plan to do a bit more touring in the summer.

So; is this a worthwhile project, or a waste of money? Any pitfalls to look out for when changing over so many parts?

I know, I know; I should have gone for the better spec bike right from the start. But I wasn't to know how addictive this cycling lark can get .

 

[sparrow101]

if your sora set up is 9 speed all you have to do is change the shifters (£152.70 from cycle basket for triple shifters) your chain would prbably need changing after 3000 miles, i had a 105 10spd chain it had worn out in just 600 miles

when i bought my bike (a massi team ) i had choice of groupset 105 or tiagra my lbs said its not worth spending the extra on 105 over tiagra, hence i've got tiagra

 

[rusty bearing]

Agreed, I'm not a fan of Sora shifters. I've had Tiagra 9 speed on the old bike and put 105 on the new one I built last year. The shifting on 105 is smoother but nothing wrong with Tiagra, however both machines had ultegra cassettes for the few extra pounds it cost.
I put 105 on because the new version was just coming out and there were some bargains to be had, there probably still are.

 

[Brandane]

Unfortunately the Sora gears are 8 speed, so new rear derailleur and cassette needed. So because of new cassette, a new chain also. Could stick with sora chainrings for now, but I figured I might as well do it all in one go....

I priced the older version of 105 (5600 series). It was £35 MORE than the current version .

 

[adscrim]

How about tiagra shifter and cassette with a 105 rear mech? This is what I run on my commuter/winter bike and the shifting is spot on.

 

[automatic_jon]

I'm looking at taking my 2300 gear up to 10 speed at the other end of the winter and hope I can get away with keeping my chainset and front mech in the short term. Just swapping levers, rear mech cassette and chain. I want closer ratios without loosing range. I might start looking on fleabay after christmas for levers and mech in case people have gotten new gear and are selling off their old components.

I don't know how you feel about pre-loved kit but there are some deals to be had if you're astute.

 

[accountantpete]

Personally I'd get the upgrades bit by bit off eBay or the For Sale section - especially the bits that are not subject to that much wear and tear like the mechs.

Last week I bought an almost new Chorus cassette for £8 posted (it was an old 9spd). My current levers were £35 posted off the For Sale section, mechs cost £18 posted, Record chain £11, cranks and Record BB £40 posted. Apart from the levers which are perfectly good everything else was virtually new - total £112 posted.

 

[jay clock]

I really would not bother. I had a tourer with Sora on and it worked fine for thousands of km. I now have two road bikes - a £3000 BMC with Ultegra and a Trek 1.2 with 2200 levers and a Sora rear mech. For long rides the Trek is not really any different in speed. And if it is not faster, why bother?

I would save your cash towards an additional (and better) bike, the keep the current one.

 

[sparrow101]

there's no need to change mechs when upgrading from 8 to 9 or ten speed, i recently changed my 7 spd to 9spd and kept the old 105 mechs