Discussion
For Shimano lower end kit, you drop down a gear by hitting a thumb button. You can only do this from the hoods, compromising sprints. This is despite Campag having a similar system, but a button that can be reached from the drops too.
Higher end Shimano has a second lever behind the brake to drop a cog which is better. However I don't like either, as you must swing the entire brake lever to go to a bigger cog.
SRAM works in the same way across their model range, the brake lever does the stopping and moves in the expected plane only, and a second "double tap" lever behind it shifts up or down depending on how much you move it. You can sometimes shift the wrong way whilst you're getting the hang of it, but it's soon intuitive.
SRAM kit only tends to appear on higher end roadies, as their base Rival gruppo is equivalent to Ultegra, so you are more likely to come across Shimano lower end. If you want to upgrade to a higer end Shimano lever, it is expensive I'm afraid, and STI levers rarely come up on eBay or similar.
Higher end Shimano has a second lever behind the brake to drop a cog which is better. However I don't like either, as you must swing the entire brake lever to go to a bigger cog.
SRAM works in the same way across their model range, the brake lever does the stopping and moves in the expected plane only, and a second "double tap" lever behind it shifts up or down depending on how much you move it. You can sometimes shift the wrong way whilst you're getting the hang of it, but it's soon intuitive.
SRAM kit only tends to appear on higher end roadies, as their base Rival gruppo is equivalent to Ultegra, so you are more likely to come across Shimano lower end. If you want to upgrade to a higer end Shimano lever, it is expensive I'm afraid, and STI levers rarely come up on eBay or similar.
Edited by Hard-Drive on Friday 14th August 16:02
from memory, shimano dedicated road stuff is ordered accordingly;
Dura-Ace
Ultegra something (might be called ice grey?, i think its just a different colour but there may be more to it than that?)
Ultegra
105 (comes in black or silver)
Tiagra
Sora
2200
then there is other stuff like Acera and Alivio that adorn various hybrid and lower end mtb bikes but sometimes features on low end road stuff too.
in general, and from experience, there is little wrong with the shifters and mechs for the front, its at the back that you notice the difference in quality. perhaps this is because you tend to
use the rear mech more often and also require it to be more accurate. my advice would be to upgrade the rear mech first, for general road riding, something like 105 is more than adequate, you should be able to pick one up new from around £35-£40. see how you get on, then consider upgrading the shifters...
shifters are available as individual (left or right hand) items so its worth dropping an enquiry into
the big unit shifters like wiggle, chain reaction etc as well as your local bike shops. shifters are quite expensive however and dont make as much financial sense regarding upgrades as the rear mech, but in turn, you may not notice the benefits of the rear mech upgrade in full, without slightly better and more accurate shifters....
it sounds daft but good quality cables also make a difference, they dont stretch as much as cheaper cables and this makes for more accurate shifting over time.
Dura-Ace
Ultegra something (might be called ice grey?, i think its just a different colour but there may be more to it than that?)
Ultegra
105 (comes in black or silver)
Tiagra
Sora
2200
then there is other stuff like Acera and Alivio that adorn various hybrid and lower end mtb bikes but sometimes features on low end road stuff too.
in general, and from experience, there is little wrong with the shifters and mechs for the front, its at the back that you notice the difference in quality. perhaps this is because you tend to
use the rear mech more often and also require it to be more accurate. my advice would be to upgrade the rear mech first, for general road riding, something like 105 is more than adequate, you should be able to pick one up new from around £35-£40. see how you get on, then consider upgrading the shifters...
shifters are available as individual (left or right hand) items so its worth dropping an enquiry into
the big unit shifters like wiggle, chain reaction etc as well as your local bike shops. shifters are quite expensive however and dont make as much financial sense regarding upgrades as the rear mech, but in turn, you may not notice the benefits of the rear mech upgrade in full, without slightly better and more accurate shifters....
it sounds daft but good quality cables also make a difference, they dont stretch as much as cheaper cables and this makes for more accurate shifting over time.
raf_gti said:
Saddle bum said:
I'd rather walk than ride Shimnano, (after decades of using Campagnolo). 
Why is that exactly?I ride Campag on my road bike and love it but I also ride full XT on my MTB and also love it! Wear on XT is fairly high but I put that down to the mud and grit etc.
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