why are gear levers so expensive???

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asterix

Comrade Member
Location
Limoges or York
I don't know why they are so pricey. I have Veloce ergo changers on one bike, bar-end shifters on another and non-indexed DT shifters on the oldest. On all I can shift without going off the drops onto the tops. I had STI once but didn't like 'em.
 

gavintc

Guru
Location
Southsea
An economist will say, that they are as expensive as the market will bear. Ultegra sits up there in the upper end of the market and Shimano will have made a shrewd assessment of what people will pay for the next best thing to DuraAce. Shimano will tell you that if the pennies count, get Tiagra or Sora.
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
Shimano STI's are much more expensive than Ergos. I've just bought some Veloce ten-speeds from Wiggle for £55, though that was with their August 20% discount as my total order was just over £100.

Even so Centaurs can be had for £100, so what you gain on Shimano mechs coming in below Campag, you loose on the shifters.
 
OP
OP
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DLB

Senior Member
Steve Austin said:
105 is fine for most folk, but Ultegra works a little bit better, and then dura ace a little better still

i still can't remember all of this heirachy stuuf (*** is better than %%% etc). i've got a bottom of the range road bike and i just think it would be a more enjoyable if i could ride more on the drops.

Yenrod - if you know where they are singnificantly cheaper (in a 8 speed shifter) then DO share the knowledge...
 

alecstilleyedye

nothing in moderation
Moderator
just as an aside i borrowed a ultegra (9sp) equipped bike last week and was the shifting any better than my usual tiagra (9sp)? was it buggery.
i think the main difference is down to weight. so when the main weight on the bike is the rider (who could always lose a few kilos), imho buying a more expensive groupset to save weight is a waste of money. unless, of course, you're a whippet on a full carbon bike for racing or hillclimbing.

oh, and if shimano could do a non-flightdeck compatible version for less money, that would be good.
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
alecstilleyedye said:
just as an aside i borrowed a ultegra (9sp) equipped bike last week and was the shifting any better than my usual tiagra (9sp)? was it buggery.
i think the main difference is down to weight. so when the main weight on the bike is the rider (who could always lose a few kilos), imho buying a more expensive groupset to save weight is a waste of money. unless, of course, you're a whippet on a full carbon bike for racing or hillclimbing.

oh, and if shimano could do a non-flightdeck compatible version for less money, that would be good.
In a discussion about gears some years back someone made the point that every gear system in the world will shift the chain onto the next sprocket the instant you move the lever, whether it is from a top of the range groupset or the very bottom.

And very true it is too, Armstrong would probably still have won seven Tours if he had been riding with Tiagra or Xenon mech and shifters. The rest is just bling.
 
DLB - I suspect you've got Sora ?
(8sp, can't shift on drops, etc)

I've found I can shift from the drops, by angling them in slightly and then I can reach-up from the drops with my thumb while still having the drop loosely in my fingers - it's just about possible.

However, I have Ultegra on my 'best' bike and Sora on the 2nd/Winter bike and whilst it does the job fine, I'm considering upgrading it to 105 because I find the shape of the hoods just so uncomfortable compared to the Ultegra and the thumb-lever is positioned exactly right to give me a blister on my thumb.

Shimano do make a non-series but 105-standard 8sp shifter, the R500
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=13638
- but again they're over 100 quid
(although you would just need the shifters, you'd also need new cassette and chain as a minimum if you went to 9sp and perhaps chainset and mechs too if to 10sp)

Alex - I read somewhere else that Sora was actually the second lightest Shimano shifter, after DA, lighter than Ultegra/105/Tiagra because it's simpler
So weight weenies will now all be switching to Sora !
 

alecstilleyedye

nothing in moderation
Moderator
andy_wrx said:
Alex - I read somewhere else that Sora was actually the second lightest Shimano shifter, after DA, lighter than Ultegra/105/Tiagra because it's simpler
So weight weenies will now all be switching to Sora !

except they can't shift up from the drops!

i upgraded one bike from sora to tiagra and i can't say i noticed any great difference in weight between the two shifters.
 
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