Went Bike Shopping Today

[Mkay]

I had a hard time braking with 105's due to my small hands and decided to go with the Ruby APEX. I absolutely love my Ruby and have no regrets.

[Aggie_Ama]

In Texas we they love to use the chip seal pavement (it is cheaper) and I have felt rattled on all carbon too. I actually felt my old steel bike absorbed better but then again Cannondale (my current bike) is known to be some of the stiffest bikes in business and stiffness negates some plushness. I had an aluminum bike when I commuted, hated the feel and the ride felt extremely harsh. Overall unless I could get titanium or steel, I would go carbon.

I think the Ruby is a slightly less aggressive set up than the Madone, you may find this more comfortable. At least this was true when I looked a few years back, I am not up to speed on the 2012 versions.

[turbojackie]

Thanks! All of these terms seem foreign to me!

[Owlie]

I had a hard time braking with 105's due to my small hands and decided to go with the Ruby APEX. I absolutely love my Ruby and have no regrets.

Huh, I have small hands and short fingers, and haven't really had a lot of trouble with Shimano. I do need short-reach shift levers(a borrowed bike with regular 105 was not a pleasant experience!), and does Shimano make short-reach 105 or Ultegra? They tend to advertise short-reach brake levers on entry-level bikes, but not so much on the higher-end ones.

Jackie, don't worry. None of us were born knowing this stuff. We all had to learn.

[Titania]

Huh, I have small hands and short fingers, and haven't really had a lot of trouble with Shimano. I do need short-reach shift levers(a borrowed bike with regular 105 was not a pleasant experience!), and does Shimano make short-reach 105 or Ultegra? They tend to advertise short-reach brake levers on entry-level bikes, but not so much on the higher-end ones.

Jackie, don't worry. None of us were born knowing this stuff. We all had to learn.

When I mentioned my difficulties with the Shimano 105 brakes during the test ride of the Madone, my sales guy mentioned that the 105s are intended to be shim-able. So they put shims in to lower the engagement point.

The SRAM apparently can be adjusted without shims, which Nate did before I rode the Dolce.

[Caddy]

Huh, I have small hands and short fingers, and haven't really had a lot of trouble with Shimano. I do need short-reach shift levers(a borrowed bike with regular 105 was not a pleasant experience!), and does Shimano make short-reach 105 or Ultegra? They tend to advertise short-reach brake levers on entry-level bikes, but not so much on the higher-end ones.

Jackie, don't worry. None of us were born knowing this stuff. We all had to learn.

I believe that the Shimano Tiagras and Soras shift like Campagnolos, with a separate thumb shifter. I don't remember how large the hoods are. However, 105s and above use the 2:1 shifting, which is an issue for small hands.

And what do you mean shim-able? Does that shorten the reach?

[Titania]

And what do you mean shim-able? Does that shorten the reach?

Nate showed me how they shim the 105s...they pull the brakes all the way towards the handlebar and put a small metal shim into the mechanism which keeps the brake levers from moving away from the handlebars as far when they return to the "off" position. That way, they're closer to the handlebars when you reach for them.

[Owlie]

I believe that the Shimano Tiagras and Soras shift like Campagnolos, with a separate thumb shifter. I don't remember how large the hoods are. However, 105s and above use the 2:1 shifting, which is an issue for small hands.

And what do you mean shim-able? Does that shorten the reach?

I don't know that Tiagra's like that, but Sora and whatever that one below Sora is do have that thumb shifter. I do have trouble shifting into the big ring, but that's not a reach issues--that's a force issue related to the fact it's a cheap triple with cheap shifters.
I did test-ride a 105-equipped Roubaix (so it has "normal" reach) and it was a little bit of a stretch to shift, so hopefully proper shimming would take care of it.

[jusdooit]

Don't know what tire pressures those of you having a bumpy ride are using, but you may want to try slightly lower pressure to absorb some of the bumps.
My bike has Ultegra and it came with short reach shifters (R-700, flight deck compatible).