Racing with Tiagra
 

Hi all,

I have this nice alloy frame waiting to be built up. I'm slowly starting training again after a few years off the races. Most of my riding before has been on Ultegra 6600, Campagnolo Xenon/Mirage 9 speed and Campagnolo Veloce 10 speed and now 11 speed DA on the TT bike.

I have a kind of a tight budget with a newborn in the house so I can't justify spending too much money on cycling right now.

So I'm looking at the 10 speed Tiagra 4700 group. Would anyone actually recommend this for racing instead of 105? I know it's 300g heavier than 105 but I'm 7-10 kilograms overweight right now so really why should I care. I can probably get the bike close to 8 kg even with Tiagra. I'm not convinced I truly need 11 speed either.

Is there any difference in functionality or durability compared to 105? I've heard mixed opinions. Brakes are a common complaint but can probably be fixed by changing the pads.

I'm probably going to ride 7000-10000km max yearly and most likely going to update the groupset after a few years anyway. I'm 31 and my FTP is somewhere between 250-300 so strictly amateur level with a calendar of maybe 5-10 races next year.

I have turned to shorter cranks on my current old steel bike so I'm delighted to see Tiagra offers 165mm cranks readily available online with the complete group.

It should be fine and won’t hold you back. Unless you are a weight weenie it’s ok.

That said, the current 105 group is really nice so if you can swing it, go for it.

Isn’t Tiagra a PED?

Tiagra works fine. Especially the newest tiagra.
10 speed vs 11 really isn’t that big of a deal unless you need to swap/borrow a rear wheel. Most racers I know have 11.

It works well and spare parts are much cheaper than Ultegra. Its heavy, but you know that. Only thing I can think of is the right brifter only does two gears at a time vs three for 105 and up.

Tiagra is a great group set actually. You’ll be fine.

I definitely wouldn't. If you're planning on riding that much, I'd certainly get the 105. Plus, 10 speed is old. Pit wheels/neutral service will likely be 11. Probably won't come up, but if it does it can be an issue.

105 has 165mm cranks, too.

It's not that it won't hold you back or that it's heavier. It's functionality and durability.

4700 performs extremely well. Better than the old 6600 IMO.

From what I can see it's less than $100 more for 105 group.:foo:

In the past Tiagra or its equivalent Deore have been the level where every part is made from metal that is either aluminum, or steel that is stainless or shiny plated, not painted or black oxide. It's not going to get UV damage or rust. You can rely on it for the life of the bike, barring wear and damage. Higher levels get lighter (forged aluminum, carbon fiber, hollow crank arms) or more efficient (ball bearings in the pulleys) and have more adjustments, but might not actually be more reliable. If the bike is for riding alone I think it's a winner. But in a race... @rubiksoval 's note above about neutral support of 11 speed is really good and I think the most relevant you're going to see.

Good NRS at an amateur bike race will have 10 speed wheels.

Racing with Tiagra is fine.

I dare you to race with a Tiara!

Tiagra 4700 lever throw is the same as the other Shimano 11-sp, so couldn't OP race with an 11-sp chain to readily accept an 11-sp wheel?

You could probably get away with that in Malvern, but not Chester Springs. :)

Nothing wrong with Tiagra, but I think 105 is worth the relatively small increase in cost.

I've always ridden Chorus - 8, and now 11. My trainer bike is 10-speed Tiagra. Seems to behave just fine. But, as others have said, small price differential to 105 (I had 105 on my older trainer bike - Tiagra is good enough that I didnt move the 105 parts over yet - saving them for if/when the Tiagra wears out). In either case, what are you going to do for wheels?

If you're serious about racing you'd find some less expensive baby food.

Lever throw (cable pull) is the same but the derailleur moves through the same old 10-speed cog spacing (10s cassettes are still the same as before). So a Tiagra system would not shift an 11s cassette. I'm pretty sure , correct me if I'm wrong.

Whoops, you're probably right, it would only work if one were to get a rd change in addition to a wheel change. So not useful in a race.

I think you mean it would only work if you had a shifter change. It's the shifter that has the indexing that has to match the cassette spacing.

Anywho, although neutral service wheels are a potential drawback, I don't think it's that big of a deal. Bring your own pit wheels, or accept the fact that a flat might mean the end of your race. Which it will if you flat in the last five laps of a crit anyway.

I built up my kid's race bike with Tiagra because it was a heck of a deal on Chain Reaction or Ribble or one of those UK sites, don't remember which. And it allowed me to share wheels with my own 10-speed bikes, including a nice set of carbon tubulars that wouldn't take an 11-speed cassette. It shifts gears just as well for a few grams more and a few dollars less.

So, put me in the pro-Tiagra bucket.