I bought an ultegra chainset just before the prices went up and it feels a bit more solid than the 105 it replaced. Suspect that is down to a combination of bigger chainrings and purchase justification. Look good though
i normally used DA9000 but needed a compact for a particularly hilly Audax, fitted a 105, cannot tell a difference, its been couple of months since i fitted it and I’ve not actually switched back, part lazy, part because it feels the same
Rusty Spanner – Member
molgrips – Member
I also have a compact but I don’t want to use it cos.. well.. it’s Tiagra. Y’know….
What a shame, you don’t come across as the type.
I have Tiagra on mine, and to be fair it makes a little sad when I look at it.
got 105 (11) on the wifes bike and ultegra (11) on mine there’s not a lot between them to be honest, very similar looks wise the 105 is more black the ultegra more slate…. the ultegra has some kind of plastic filler/insert on the inside i presume to fill in the “casting fins” that you can see on the 105s.
THey all look shite and the chainrings cost a fortune. I’d get a SRAM Force or Red chainset cos they’re lighter, the BBs seem smoother and tend to last longer and don’t go creaky, they don’t have those annoying pinch bolts that often come loose and you can buy chainrings for next to nowt off ebay. Plus they look loads better. Go for 170mm crank arms aswell.
Perfect for what you need. My commission rate is very reasonable. Have a compact 6700 and it is excellent. I also ride 172.5. Now my main bikes sport semi-compact, but Ultegra is a little nicer.
I’ve got 105 (with a di2 Ultegra group) which I chose over Ultegra because the finish matches my bike better! Iirc it’s closer to 50g difference than 100g.
Wife has Ultegra (shorter so I can’t compare weights).
I’d have either. She’s got Tiagra on her cx bike and it’s OK but not quite as nice looking so if it’s an otherwise Ultegra bike I’d not want it either…
Ultegra is the stiffest road crankset Shimano make, Dura Ace is lighter but more flexible
Difference between 105 and Ultegra cranksets? Its noticeable when standing on the big ring and putting down the power, or doing bad shifts on the front under power.
If you look at the rear of the 6800 large ring, its a carbon fibre infill, on 5800 large ring, its a nylon infill.
105 5800 is excellent value workhorse groupset, but Ultegra is worth the extra in my personal opinion, in terms of performance (especially shifters/crankset), wet weather durability on mechs /brakes and a useful weight saving