May I reopen a "SRAM or Shimano" discussion?

[IBrakeforPastry]

I did a search here and found some great info on the components. I got to try both kinds yesterday on the Specialized Dolce. I think I'm leaning towards the SRAM. As people here have mentioned, it's good for small hands. But...some people have mentioned it's not as smooth as Shimano. Is this still true? Is there a big difference? The threads that my search pulled up were a few months to a few years old and it seems things change pretty quickly, so I'd love some newer viewpoints.

[Irulan]

Sometimes it as to do with feel, also. DH and i have the same bikes, one with each kind of setup. I find the rake hoods are much more comfy for me with the SRAM , he prefers the other.

[nuliajuk]

The most comfortable brake hoods I ever encountered were from one of the Campagnolo groups (maybe Athena?) on a rented road bike. They seemed to work well for my small hands, but I don't know if you have to have the matching derailleur and cassette with them or not.

[ny biker]

Which model of SRAM vs which model of Shimano? I know there are big differences within the Shimano line, and I assume there are similar differences within SRAM.

[pinsonp2]

My latest bike, the Giant TCX W, came with a SRAM double. My other roadies all have Shimano, and mostly triples. I do not see a big difference in the Rival vs the 105 except that the brakes are more comfortable for my smallish hands. I still ride one then the other with no problems. My take on it, it is down to personal preference. If you love the bike and are ok with the SRAM, go for it. I wouldn't let that deter you from the one that was speaking to you.

P2

[Hi Ho Silver]

Both Shimano and SRAM make great products, but I still like the SRAM best. The hoods are much more comfy (not as wide as Shimano), the distance of the levers from the bars is adjustable, and the distance you have to flick the levers to shift is less than with Shimano. I find the SRAM shifting from one cog/ring to the next on both front & rear to be nearly instantaneous (versus the slight delay with Shimano). At the same price point, SRAM tends to weigh less.

You can't go wrong with either. Pick the components that fit your hands best - either way, shifting will be good.

[IBrakeforPastry]

The Dolce Comp has SRAM Apex and the other bikes had Tiagra and/or 105. The LBS guy said that even though the Apex was a lower end SRAM, it was about even with the midline Shimano. At least that is what I inferred.

I've ridden 4 or 5 bikes this week. Except for the Comp, they all had Shimano. The Comp also comes with the 105, but by then I would just get the Elite.

[Howieduck]

I have just got my first SRAM bike after many years of Shimano. I love the simplicity of it. And it just feels right in my hands. None of the moving the brake lever to change gear business. I'm not sure I'd go back to Shimano now.

[Owlie]

SRAM makes nice stuff. It costs a little more than Shimano (and IMO is nicer). Shimano shifting (to me) is intuitive. SRAM isn't. So I stick with Shimano. (I do have relatively small hands too.)

My one complaint with Shimano is how long the throw of the lever is to shift into the big chain ring. However, my bike has Sora shifters and a triple. The Ultegra+compact double I tried didn't have this problem.

[IBrakeforPastry]

I think I'm leaning towards the SRAM. If I didn't have choices, I'm sure I'd be fine with whatever - as long as it works. The Shimano was fine. Then I tried a bike with SRAM and it, too, was fine. Now I have a decision to make. The SRAM seems to work like the rapid fire shifters on my other bike. Repeated clicking to move more than one gear, so maybe that's why the transition doesn't seem difficult. Thanks everyone!

[luvmyguys]

The Dolce Comp has SRAM Apex and the other bikes had Tiagra and/or 105. The LBS guy said that even though the Apex was a lower end SRAM, it was about even with the midline Shimano. At least that is what I inferred.

I've ridden 4 or 5 bikes this week. Except for the Comp, they all had Shimano. The Comp also comes with the 105, but by then I would just get the Elite.

When I was getting pedals put on my bike, the guy at the LBS (not where I bought my bike, so it wasn't a case of tooting their own horn) told me that the Apex was a good set. He said that the SRAM components he had on his bike were worth more than my whole bike was worth (?????), but that the Apex would do about 85% of what his components would.

Thus far, I've been really happy with my components.

[Penny4]

How does SRAM work? I have Schimano, and only test rode one bike with SRAM. I didn't really know what I was doing, so I didn't mess with the shifting too much. Tap once or twice, correct?

[Crankin]

I had no trouble when I went to Shimano from my mountain bike trigger shifters. It was totally intuitive and I never made any horrible errors. However, given my poor track record with even the most minute mechanical change, I decided against SRAM for my custom bike, despite the LBS pushing me for this. I am small and I have short arms and smaller hands, but I think my fingers are actually long for someone of my size. Anyway, I've never felt the hoods on my bike with Ultegra are too big. For me, the biggest thing that helped me was finding a bar with a short and shallow shape, along with the short reach brifters. Since Shimano no longer makes the short reach brifters in Ultegra, I went with 105s on the custom build, but the reach is about 2mm longer in the drops than on my other bike. I rarely use the drops anyway, but I doubt SRAM would make a difference. I think I made the right choice, because just getting used to a more relaxed geometry, the compact, and new pedals was enough. I was a wreck for 6 months.
My friend has a Ruby with the same compact double set up (mountain gears on the back), but with SRAM, as I have on my custom bike, with Shimano. Since I am probably going to be upgrading the bike I will be using on our trip next summer to a Ruby (the company gives this option), I want to try her bike out, as we are the same size. However, because she has SRAM and the bike I will be renting has Shimano, I told her I will test it on the trainer, as I don't want to crash her gorgeous bike!

[Miranda]

I've tried SRAM and had one component that came stock on my roadie...not a fan...Shimano girl here.

In comparison to Shimano imo I think it shifts rough. And the SRAM chain that came stock on my roadie for some reason with my Shimano groupo was just junk. It was rough and made the bizarre squeaking noise. Once I swaped it out for a Shimano chain I never had the problem again.

I am not sure if the LBS gets more of a profit margin with SRAM? Seems like I've read that before somewhere. But they seem to push it. No thanks!

As far as the hand issue that keeps being mentioned... I have thin lady hands, weak grip, but long fingers. A guys size small glove in full fingers works best for me fwiw. However, I have the Shimano short reach shifters and have never had a problem. There is a way to shim them too.

Good Luck with your shopping!

[Jo-n-NY]

I was also one of those gals and only used Shimano for all my years on the bike. Mainly Ultegra & Dure Ace. When I won the Dolce there was no choice as it came with Sram Apex and wasn't sure if I would like it. The sales lady in the shop said it is very intuitive. She certainly was right. I found it to be snappier than Sram. My Amira with Sram Red changes gears in a real snappy way and really with both Apex & Red there is less effort in going from the lower chain ring to the top. If I had a choice at first I would have chose Shimano because that was all I knew and was comfortable. In this case I am glad the choice was made for me as I am very happy with the Sram. I also have small hands and fingers at 5'2".