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Sora 9 speed Brifters? Any experience?

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Sora 9 speed Brifters? Any experience?

Old 12-19-22, 06:38 PM
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BTinNYC 
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Sora 9 speed Brifters? Any experience?

I like the Sora 9 speed RD, I'm using it already with a flat bar set up. I'm thinking about using the Sora 9 speed brifters, they're a good deal right now. Any thoughts? Howls of outrage?
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Old 12-21-22, 10:28 AM
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(hmmm no responses)

how dare you !

I have a bike with Sora drivetrain including 9 speed brifters

got it toward end of last summer - and only did a few short rides - but it/they worked fairly well ... I was pleasantly impressed (surprised ?)

however - again - just a few short rides

and the focus during and after the rides on that bike shifted to the brakes ... the mechanical disk brakes on the bike were/are so bad that’s just about all I could focus on

so bad that I plan to switch the bike to Tiagra 10 speed with hydraulic brakes

I might install the Sora stuff on another old school road bike that has been laying around
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Old 12-21-22, 11:57 AM
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correction to this post :

the 470x and 472x shifter models are Tiagra - not Sora

( erroneous text removed )

Last edited by t2p; 12-21-22 at 03:57 PM.
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Old 12-21-22, 12:24 PM
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Sora is fine for those that don't know any better. Not that there is a problem with them or anything. They work just fine. It's that there are so many better shifters out there that are smoother, more refined, weigh less, etc...I really like the ergonomics of the hood shape. But the shifter action drove/drives me nuts in a way I still can't quite put my finger on.

Every so often I build up a bike with a Sora group I've got kicking around because the hoods feel so "right" to my hands. Within about 6 rides though, I'm installing something different...Maybe I have "Princess & the Pea" syndrome.

I say get them if they're a good deal. Especially for a budget flatbar to road bar conversion. But be realistic in your expectations. They are second from the bottom in Shimanos' line up.
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Old 12-21-22, 04:06 PM
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Originally Posted by base2
But be realistic in your expectations.
Excellent response, thank you. Of course I was hoping to hear these shifters are great and totally undervalued.
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Old 12-21-22, 05:39 PM
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Originally Posted by BTinNYC
Excellent response, thank you. Of course I was hoping to hear these shifters are great and totally undervalued.
Speaking from first-hand experience..I think you'll find(at least I have) the railing that folks do here about how bad the lower-end Shimano shifters are is rather exaggerated.

My touring bike has 7 speed Tourney STI shifters on it. I've toured for 3 years with them(purchased new) and have had no issues. They shift as expected..no muss, no fuss. Touch them, they shift. I'm not real sure what else they could do that they aren't currently doing. My GF has Claris 8 speed STI's on her touring bike and has been running them for 4 years. Again..no issues, no muss, no fuss. For comparison sake we have quite a few bikes that run 105, Ultegra, Dura-ace, Tiagra, XT, & XTR shifters**. They all work fine..no muss, no fuss and no issues. If I had to pick one of them that I like the least.. it would be a 9 speed Dura-ace setup on my '01 Lemond Maillot Jaune. The shifters shift fine, but the right shifter seems to require a lot more "throw" of the brake lever than any other shifter I have. It just takes a little getting use to when I ride that bike.

There are weight differences, naturally, but functionally they all work just fine.


(** I recently built up a bike that I mounted 8 speed MicroShift road shifters on. They seem fine, but I haven't ridden it hardly at all as the arctic weather hit just when I finished the build.)
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Old 12-25-22, 12:20 AM
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My experience with the R3000 shifters is that they seem like really good quality, solid, durable shifters. I used them last summer for about 900 miles. Ergonomics of the shifter are of course fantastic because they feel the same as all the other modern Shimano shifters. The shifting is good, although I think the lever throw is a bit longer than for example 105-level shifters. It's really a minor issue since the price difference between 105 R7000 and R3000 is so huge.
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Old 12-25-22, 05:23 PM
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Work great

I have about 20,000 miles on 1x set up with the Sora Brifters. They work great. I found them easier to adjust than my Campy Records or my Shimano 105s. The only downside is the hoods are too narrow in my opinion. My dream bike had Campy Records on it, but for an everyday rider the Soras work just fine.
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Old 12-29-22, 12:43 PM
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Sora is absolutely fine. I had R3500 on my bike for a year, then swapped to R3000 because I didnt like the cables coming out of the top. Compared my old R3500 to Ultegra (5-7 years old) shifters and only noticable difference was the throw required for upshift (on ultegra it is shorter), appart from that I felt them identical. After I swapped to R3000 I feel the throw is shorter and more comparable to that ultegra. I reccomend you to get R3000 - shifting will be fine and you will be able to hide cables under the wrap.
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Old 01-06-23, 09:23 PM
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Have almost 30K miles on a set of ST-3500 shifters, matching rest of the drivetrain. No issues with the shifters. The little window for gear position slightly yellowed over time, and the right (rear) shifter needs a steady diet of shifter cables (every 5-10K miles). Pretty happy with it on a commuter bike.
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Old 01-09-23, 03:05 AM
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Just wanted to say that there are a few things you can do to improve performance of cable discs, largely upgrading pads, but also ruthlessly entering the pads - I normally do this by loosening the calliper bolts, winding in the cable adjustment and the pad adjustment really tight till the rotor is locked in place, then tightening the calliper bolts and backing off the cable and pad adjustment. That should minimise the ab=mount of deflection of the rotor by the pads, which is imo key to getting them working as well as possible. Then burn the pads in really hard - listen for the sound to change, and see if they get grabby at low ish speed. That's about as good as it gets, but give it a go and see if you'd still like to upgrade.
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Old 01-11-23, 09:59 AM
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My budget bike runs 9s because I have loads of 9 speeds bits for altus/alivio/Sora. I mix and match these shimano 9s components on kid bikes, folding bikes, budget rebuild etc... As I had Sora sT3500, I used that for the budget hill climb racer. Worked well, not much heavier than 105, or even ultegra and frankly once I use a 9S XTR cassette, the groupset was lighter than ultegra because 9Ti gear are much lighter than 11 ultegra gears.

After a crash on black ice that destroyed the st3500, I fitted the later r3000 and they are so much better. better ergonomic, comforts. For budget, commuted, resto mod, these sora stuff are great... and if you have an old 9S XT MTB you wish to convert into a cheap gravel, Sora 3000 with a set of cantilever brakes is a good option.
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