What is the difference between ultegra and 105

People consider buying a new groupset for various reasons. The main reason is usually a performance upgrade. Typically, the differences between high-end and entry-level groups are a matter of nuance.

All the same, riders can expect more precise, crisper, and lighter gear shifting combined with more powerful and smoother braking when they opt for high-end components. Another advantage of upgrading your groupset is saving some weight. For professionals, the combined difference in weight and performance makes it worth the investment. Keeping up with the trends and progress in the industry are other reasons for purchasing a new groupset.

In recent years, there have been evolving groupsets from traditional speed to the new speed transmission. Also, there is the introduction of powered derailleurs and electronics. The speed of innovation in groupsets means most of them to get outdated within five years or less.

This does not mean they will stop working, but finding replacements will become a challenge. Each bike groupset manufacturer offers multiple electrical and mechanical options using different operating procedures and names. Knowing the differences between the two will help you make the right purchasing decision. It works via wires attached to the derailleurs and shifters to transfer a signal. Shimano, the clear market leader, has the largest range of road specific groupsets.

It may be one of the reasons why it is a favorite among professional teams. It is an ingenious system that allows the rider to brake and change gears up and down with one hand. The left-hand lever controls the rear brake and front derailleur. The right-hand lever controls the front brake and front derailleur. Keep in mind brake orientation may vary depending on the region. During operation, the brake lever swings inward pulling the derailleur in one direction.

There is a smaller shift lever located behind the brake lever. It releases the cable for the derailleur to move in the opposite direction. Shifting in this case uses cables that are attached to the shifters. They run through the frame, externally or internally, to the rear and front derailleurs.

The downside is mechanical shifting is not flawless since it relies on cables. If they are not in good working order, shifting may be a challenge. The main challenge of mechanical shifting may arise when using some types of frames. For instance, frames with acute angles and long frame tubes make cable installation difficult.

Such frames also decrease the performance of the whole system especially if it is not adjusted regularly. This works only if they share the same number of gears. Working with different groupsets makes it possible to mix componentry. For optimal performance, it is recommended to keep uniformity.

Overhauled in , the R is designed for the intermediate level road rider. With this in mind, it is equal parts reliable and durable. The groupset also features most of the same technology you would find on the more expensive Ultegra.

It is squarely aimed at intermediate to high-level road riders. The latest iteration of Ultegra features both disc and rim brake options.

Ultegra Di2 uses motor-driven mechanics at the rear and front derailleurs to provide a perfect and crisp shift. One of the features is you can shift via satellite buttons or Di2 specific shifters.

The companion app allows you to customize groupset characters, battery use, and shift settings. This creates a more personalized riding experience. This article will consider the differences in price, weight, and performance to help you decide what you should choose for your next bike. A full Shimano Ultegra R group consisting of shifters, front and rear derailleurs, crankset, cassette, chain, and brakes.

Shimano denotes its group generations with a numbered system. Shimano releases new generations about every four to five years. Dura-Ace is generally updated first, with Ultegra and updates coming over the following two years. The latest Dura-Ace group was released in , followed by Ultegra R in , and R in The current generation of Shimano , Ultegra, and Dura-Ace groups are all speed. The previous generation , , R are also speed.

The generation before that , , were all speed groups. All three groups are available as mechanical groups with rim brakes or hydraulic disc brakes. Ultegra and Dura-Ace are also available as electronic Di2 groups that offer electronic shifting with rim or disc brakes.

Shimano is known for trickling down technology from its top-of-the-line Dura-Ace group to the Ultegra and groups. Because of this, current-generation and Ultegra groups could be considered a step up from the previous generation Dura-Ace group.

This can be down to interpretation, however, because the main things that separate the three groups are weight, materials, and manufacturing. Even though a current group may have newer technology than an older Dura-Ace group, some riders still consider the older Dura-Ace group to be more refined due to its lighter materials and better machining and finish. Price is the most noticeable difference for riders comparing road bikes equipped with , Ultegra, and Dura-Ace groups.

A frame built with Dura-Ace will cost significantly more than the same frame built with An Ultegra build will land somewhere in the middle. These prices reflect the least-expensive mechanical, rim brake groups, with chain and bottom bracket included:. They show that each group is nearly twice as expensive as the group below it.

For some riders, especially novice and casual riders, the retail price of a Dura-Ace group alone might blow their budget for a complete bike. Read our article on how much beginners should spend on their first bike to learn more. Of course, there are plenty of bikes that fall outside of these ranges, especially when looking at pre-owned road bikes. Bikes with past-generation Shimano groups also fall outside of these ranges, allowing riders to save on used bikes with older Dura-Ace.

Manufacturers get price breaks for buying large quantities of components for original equipment OE spec, so it is generally more economical buy a complete bike than it is to buy a bike and upgrade the full group later, or build a bike up from a frame though that does have its own benefits. The main things that separate the three groups are weight, materials, and manufacturing. The top-of-the-line Dura-Ace group will be the lightest, and it will use expensive and exotic materials like titanium and carbon fiber more liberally.

Certain components will feature more extensive machining. The rear derailleur is a good example. Compared to a derailleur, the Dura-Ace derailleur has less material. More time has been spent to machine away excess metal, reducing the weight. The difference is slight, but parts of the Dura-Ace derailleur are visibly slimmer, with more beveled edges.

This machining takes time and effort, increasing the cost, but it will save around grams over the derailleur. Ultegra also features more machining than , but less than Dura-Ace. The Dura-Ace and Ultegra rear derailleurs also use more expensive and higher quality bearings that marginally reduce drivetrain friction. Finally, the Dura-Ace rear derailleur's finish is much nicer. Other than these differences in weight, bearings, and aesthetics, the derailleurs are largely the same.

The rear derailleur profile is narrower when you look at the bike from the rear, sitting 12mm closer to the bike when in the bottom cog of the cassette. This means if you crash or the bike falls over on the drive-side, there is less chance of damaging the derailleur or bending your derailleur hanger.

This technology has trickled down from Dura-Ace and gives the current Ultegra and groups a small leg up on older generations. Riders who do more gravel riding may be interested in the Ultegra RX rear derailleur, which adds a clutch mechanism to improve chain retention. Neither nor Dura-Ace offers an RX option with a clutch so there is that small difference.

The crankset features a one-piece chainring design, where the inner and outer chainring are machined together and remain connected with splines. Dura-Ace, on the other hand, has machined inner and outer chainring as two separate pieces Ultegra does as well.

This allows much more material to be machined away, reducing weight. The weight difference, however, is more significant at nearly grams. In the looks department, again the eye-catching mirror black finish of the Dura-Ace crank just does it for me. For others, it can be too much.

Ultegra splits the difference a bit with a two-tone matte and mirror finish on all its components. The only other areas riders will notice major differences in material choice are in the shifters and cassette. The shifters' internals are all the same, so shifters from all three groups function the same.

Dura-Ace and Ultegra shifter, however, use carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic brackets and carbon levers while has fiberglass-reinforced plastic brackets and aluminum levers. Dura-Ace shifters weight up to grams less as a result. Ultegra is around 30 grams heavier than Dura-Ace due to some slightly heavier internal hardware. The cassettes use sprockets made from nickel-plated steel. The cassette holds the larger cogs together with an aluminum spider and a nickel-plated steel lockring.

Dura-Ace takes it a step further with the five largest cogs all being made from titanium. Ultegra cassettes are about grams lighter depending on tooth count than Dura-Ace cassettes, amazingly, shed about grams over the cassettes. Keep in mind though, the titanium cogs make Dura-Ace cassettes very expensive to replace once they wear out. Otherwise, components like the bottom bracket are exactly the same between groups. Chains will be marginally lighter as you move up from to Dura-Ace due to machining.

The rim and hydraulic disc brake calipers are more or less all the same. The rotors for the hydraulic disc brakes, however, are pretty different. The brake track is the same, but Dura-Ace level rotors feature larger and more prominent cooling fins which Shimano claims will drop the temperature of the rotors an additional 50 degrees Celcius.

Comparing the weight between complete groups, we can see the larger differences. The weights provided below are added up using the lightest examples all were mechanical disc groups I was able to find in our shop over the last year:.

Will the approximately grams Ultegra saves over or the grams Dura-Ace saves over matter? If you want the bling factor, this is the place to start. The profile on the lever means you can easily use 1 finger braking with the Ultegra levers.

The new levers do change gear with a similar snappy feel to the Ultegra levers, and the performance is almost identical.

The main difference than to the levers is the lighter weight of the Ultera shifters. They have a lower weight as they feature carbon fiber construction, over the aluminum of the levers. Shimano used to run 5 arm chainsets, Dura-Ace was then changed to an unevenly spaced 4 arm design. The idea behind this design was to increase the stiffness and lower the weight of the chainsets.

The good news is that this technology has now trickled down to both Ultegra and Both styles of cranksets come in the same length options, chainring wise there is also a cyclocross option available with Ultegra, that is a option. The similar bolt size pattern means that you can easily change between chainrings. Both chainsets are constructed using aluminum, Shimano has not changed to carbon fiber for its chainsets like other manufacturers.

The next interesting feature is that the outer chainrings are made in 1 piece. The groupset is a collective term for the mechanical components on the bike. In simple terms this means the drivetrain or those components that convert leg power into bike power and the brakes. On the drivetrain side this means the crankset, cassette, chain, derailleurs, bottom bracket and shifters.

Bringing all these components under the umbrella of a groupset means that you can be confident that all of the components work seamlessly together. It also means replacing components is straightforward as there are no compatibility worries. Within each groupset, not only will the components work together but they will all be of similar quality within the same price range. Since groupsets are split across different budgets to appeal to different riders, there are differences in the build quality and materials that ultimately affects the overall performance.

For example, across the Shimano groupsets the main difference tends to be the number of sprockets in the rear cassette. Generally, the more you spend the more sprockets you get. The extra sprockets are important for dialling in the perfect cadence for any efforts out on the road. It also means smoother shifting with less torque difference between each shift. Spending more money also means lighter components and every cyclist knows that saving weight is essential to a high performance.

Going by the specifications these weight savings may seem small but they make a difference in the real world, especially when you hit a climb. Moving away from the drivetrain, the groupset is completed by the brakes. On modern bikes, following their acceptance in the pro-peloton, this could mean hydraulic disc brakes especially on the higher end groupsets. Once you reach the and Ultegra groupsets the emphasis is most definitely on performance. The Shimano and Ultegra groupsets are uniformly excellent with a focus on outstanding performance.

When choosing between the and the Ultegra groupsets, the choice really comes down to weight.