I kind of miss the sock puppets
I kind of miss the sock puppets
Mavic Ksyriums I would say, more in keeping with the look of the frame and components
With all your top notch Shimano gear you should match with Dura Ace wheels either 9170 or 9100.
Far too pricey.
I got this on the C2W scheme for winter use, it's rather heavy especially at the rear, weight which cannot be accounted for by the fitment of mudguards. It's also very short, and twitchy in crosswinds; i think there is quite a lot of track geometry in it, and you can't pedal with the front wheel turned too far or you clip it with your toe.
The 105 feels very cheap too, it seems there is little increase in component quality from Tiagra through Sora to 105, just more gears. The shifters are poorly weighted in the downshift and miss shifts altogether sometimes.
Luke Appleyard (Wharfedale)- quick on the dissent
Most of the Dolan models are orientated towards race geometry, hence a tad twitchy. There's far more to a winter bike than a road (race) bike with mudguards. I cobbled mudguards onto my crosser for winter use, but too twitchy. Now the tourer is something else, not fast but beautifully stable.
Shimano hierarchy is:- Sora - Tiagra - 105 - Ultegra - Dura-Ace; you imply that Tiagra is below Sora.
Many experienced riders consider that Ultegra does not yield any benefit over 105, hence they settle for 105.
There is a view that with 'trickle down' technology, this year's Ultegra is last year's Dura-Ace, 105 is last year's Ultegra ..... etc.
Last edited by wheezing donkey; 12-02-2018 at 05:41 PM.
I was a bit of an oddball until I was abducted by aliens; but I'm perfectly OK now!
Luke Appleyard (Wharfedale)- quick on the dissent
I'm guessing that the real point of difference is the build quality of the brake leavers / gear shifters. On my Ultegra 6700 ( 10 x 3 ) gruppo, the RH lever for the rear mech works perfectly in both directions - tightening the cable for down changes and releasing the cable for up changes. However the LH lever is great at tightening the cable for up changes but can be very 'lazy' at releasing the cable for down changes. This can be disconcerting when a steep ascent suddenly looms and you need a swift down change on the chainwheels. I've often wondered about upgrading just the levers and sticking with the rest of the existing gruppo; but even that would not be an economical project and I don't think that a front triple was ever an option with Dura-Ace.
Last summer I was looking at a gorgeous Litespeed Ti gravel bike that the owner had self assembled. Disc brakes aside, he had opted for a full Dura-Ace compact c/set gruppo, apart from an Ultegra long cage rear mech (to allow for a wide ratio cassette). It all worked perfectly together.
I was a bit of an oddball until I was abducted by aliens; but I'm perfectly OK now!
Nice idea WD.
I too like a triple and note with interest your findings.
Mine came with 105 but I would like the top spec.
Come on Luke dura ace the full machine.
A nice set of Ksyriums turned up yesterday. Anodised blue hubs and blue detailing in the rim, they'll go with the blue flashes of the Rabobank detailing.
Nearly ready to build now, waiting for a Colnago carbon seatpost from Belgium, and deciding what bars and stem to go for. I want shot-peened bars, but they're pricey!
Pedals arrived yesterday- Makashima RX1 track pedals.
Luke Appleyard (Wharfedale)- quick on the dissent