MegaTom

I sold my Long Haul Trucker to fund a new Lynskey Cooper CX with S&S couplers. Now it's time for the hard decisions.

Lynskey has a deal going on for a Cooper CX commuter special: complete bike with Sram Rival group, rack & fenders and wheels. Problem is, I want Shimano (probably Ultegra, possibly 105), so that brings up decision #1:

buy the complete bike and sell the Sram group to fund a Shimano one, or just buy the bare frame and go from there. I'm not having Lynskey do the build, so the labor of switching parts is not an issue. I just gotta do the math and see which makes the most financial sense. I'm guessing that I might bring in $550-600 for the unused Rival group, does this sound like a fair estimate? There's also a time factor as I can't afford to lay out the money for both the complete bike AND another full group. I'd have to wait to sell the Sram group before I can start buying the components I want.

My biggest conundrum: to go triple or compact? I live and do 95% of my riding in Florida... very little hills around here and I'm just now becoming accustomed to riding with a standard crank on my Roubaix (originally had a compact on it). I'd like to keep as close to my current gear range, but I also want some granny gears for when I get to hit the hills back home (PA) and out west. A triple would seem to be the perfect answer, but the only triple road group I've ever rode was Sora and, well, you know... So I guess my question here is: how is shifting on Shimano's upper tier triple groups? If I go this route, will I be wishing I had a double instead just as I did with my Sora group way back when?

deepakvrao

Are you leaning towards Shimano because of the triple? In which case you could consider SRAM with a midcage RD and a xx-32 cassette. Did that for my wife when she shifted from a triple 105 to SRAM Force and she loves it.

fordmanvt

You'll be happy with the front shifting on 6600 or 6700 Ultegra triple, vastly better than Sora.

MegaTom

No. I'm leaning towards Shimano because it's what I like, and it's what I have on my other bike. And it's what all the spare parts are in my junk drawer. I'm reluctant to go with any cassette higher than a 25, maybe 26 (I like my gears close), but I'm definitely getting the longer RD just in case I do need to go higher at some point.

jrobe

I did a S&S coupler conversion on a Bianchi steel frame. I mostly take it out to the mountains to ride. I put a Shimano triple (105 to save a little money) with a 12-27. It was a good decision for me. I can go out to altitude (Colorado, etc.) and at least spin up the hills. I took it to Maui last winter and did Haleakala. That would have been a nightmare without the triple.

It really depends on where you are going to use it. Weight isn't as much of a factor on the bike for me so a minor weight disadvantage for the triple was well worth it.

MegaTom

Gracias and dànké to you both. Weight is not a concern, I have plenty to worry about on my person before I concern myself with a pound or two on the bike. Do you find that you have full access to all of your cogs without chain rub or anything of that sort? And what else should I be thinking about for this build?? I'm sure I'm missing something..

Chris Pringle

Definitely Triple for a travel bike. You never know where you may take her and you don't want to be short-changed. You haven't specified what type of shifters you'll be using. With Dura Ace bar-end shifters, for exampe, it's very easy to avoid any minimal rubbing with the front derailleur since it's friction, but even index brifters should operate quite well.

If this is a custom build, don't forget about any braze-ons you think you might need for racks, pump, chain hanger, etc. You might never use them but it's nice to know they're there, plus they don't take anything away from the look of the bike.

fordmanvt

I have 6600 shifters and FD. With the ability to trim, I can be in any of the 30 gear combos without rubbing. You can feel the cross-chain and it's not good or necessary to do it, but if you do it doesn't sound like a cog railway.

Drew Eckhardt 

If you can spin a 39x21, 23, or 25/26 (with an 11, 12, or 13 starting cog respectively with only 10 cogs in back) up the majority of hills you'll encounter and enjoy the rest you can run a full-sized double. Otherwise get the triple to allow for tight gears and wide range without too many front shifts.

Campagnolo triples shift great. FSA triples shift well. Shimano triples should shift great too.

dalava

I did a travel bike with SRAM Rival with compact front, mid-cage RD, and 11-32 back. Couldn't be happier.

Banzai

I went with an Ultegra triple, 30-39-52, for my Ritchey Breakaway. In usage it's really like having two cranks; a 39-52 and a 30-39. When the usage is mostly on the road, I almost exclusively use the 39-52 rings. On cross courses, or "cross-like" conditions, it pretty much stays pinned in the 39 the entire time. And sometimes I even *gasp*, use the 30, especially on very rolling terrain or steep trail sections.

I used to turn my nose up at the triple. I gained a new appreciation on my travel bike though, and find that I shift less with the triple than the compact double I initially had on it. It keeps the rear cassette jumps tighter, and the front chainring jumps are shorter than on a compact as well, which means smoother transitions with less shifting in back to make the transition.

svtmike

6700 Triple shifting is terrific front and back. For an all-purpose bike, it's the bees knees. I treat mine as a standard double with a bail-out gear. I leave it on the 39 for 95% of my local riding (pretty much unless I'm really hammering a downhill tailwind) and use the bail-out 30 for really steep stuff when I'm out of my home region. I really enjoy not having to mess with the front much compared with a compact.