Shimano R7000 Groupset opinion

[Jmaxwel8]

So I’ve tried the shimano 105 r7000 groupset on one of what I consider my all purpose bikes. Nothing too fancy but fun to ride around at a leisurely pace.

I have to say I read glowing reviews of this groupset (maybe I should have been more aware of bias), but in my experience this groupset falls short. Basically I see no advancement in this groupset. Honestly I wasn’t expecting DA or ultegra quality but I found this 105 to be a disappointment. I’ve had several bikes with older 105 groupset and would really place the older version above the quality and performance of the r7000.

To be transparent I have the hydro version. I’m absolutely not impressed with the performance of the breaks at all. I find them to be fairly soft and not overly confident. The shifters aren’t comfortable although they were redesigned to improve ergonomics. I don’t think that shimano hit the mark with the “newly” designed shifters. I’m familiar with trickle down technology from DA and ultegra but to me it doesn’t work well in this case.

This isn’t anything against Shimano. I use their products on half my bikes and will continue to use them. I just wanted to share my thoughts since I’m sure others are looking at bikes currently with this groupset installed.

[thermalattorney]

That's disappointing to hear you're not loving the ergonomics or braking performance. Are you sure the brakes are bled properly and you've bedded in the rotors? I haven't used the R7000 series, but the last-gen RS685 levers worked really well.

[peanutgallery]

Agree with above, check the bleed. I also ditched the coated cables for the super polished jagwires, that made it shift a lot better. My kit on the Diverge works great

[mktng]

could be down to all the hype for sure.
maybe you were expecting this crazy redesigned value performance group.

i have the older non series hydro stuff. RS785 w/ 6800 then upgraded to 9000.

only prior experience i had with shimano hydro was a poorly set up SLX mtn group. which even that felt nice. squishy but nice.

the RS785/6800 bike was a gift, so i did zero reading or reviews on it before riding it. so far. its amazing. cant imagine the newer R7000..R8000 stuff being worse.

[Jaybee]

I just installed the same group (R7000 hydro) on a bike. Compared to R685 hydros and R8000 hydros, I don't find a perceptible difference in brake performance, but this is highly dependent on having not lost any fluid during the install (see above comments about bleed). The rear shifting seems slower, and it took me a couple rides to dial in the indexing to perfect, but no issues now. The new front derailleur is a huge upgrade over 5800/6800.


I agree that the newer R8020/R7020 levers are pretty big. It almost feels like I went up 1cm in stem length relative to the R685s. No hand fatigue on long rides or anything though, so I don't have any issues with the shape.

[nooneline]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

The new front derailleur is a huge upgrade over 5800/6800.

This, a thousand times.
The 5800/6800 long-armed derailleur was a great advancement that made front shifting a lot lighter, but it was hard to set up and could go downhill without very attentive maintenance.

The r7000/r8000 short front derailleur is so much easier to set up and less finicky throughout its operation; placing a tension screw at the mounting point is a very clever tweak.

[Jmaxwel8]

Everyone could be right about me buying into the hype. Perception is everything I guess. I feel I have enough experience to judge pretty accurately but I guess everyone is impressionable and maybe I just expected too much.

Ill check the brakes again and rebleed. This would be the 2nd time around. I don’t think this is the culprit but we will see. I can say I’ve ridden numerous hydro bikes both road and mountain. If the rebleeding doesn’t correct the issue and there is no other overt problem I would classify this as one of the if not the lowest performing hydro group I’ve ridden. But it is good to hear others are having a better experience.

[dddd]

Since the issue is with the brakes, I would examine very closely whether the disc is flexing in any way, either tilting or twisting as the caliper pads come in.

Outside, above a sun-lit surface, is the best viewpoint, as the background light really highlights disc movement and the gaps between disc and pads.

As for shifting quality, the mathematical product of the cable's friction and elasticity will usually be the biggest variable in bike-to-bike shifting quality. Internal cable guiding radii can produce flexible arcs in the "straight" sections of cable between them, making the cable more flexible in tension. A thinner 1.1mm cable wire can be a solution in such cases.

I would give the 7000 components the benefit of the doubt here in other words.

[R3awak3n]

sounds like the bleed is not right. that said, I had R685 before my campy hydros and to me the campy brakes are much better.

[Jcgill]

Definitely check the bleed.
I rented a BMC with 105/hydros in Maui and did the West Maui loop which was 60 miles with 4100 feet of vert. I was really impressed with the braking especially on sketchy 1 lane road decents.....I liked it so much i am eyeing an emonda disc 105 as my first disc road bike in the future.

[froze]

I find that surprising that you didn't like the 105 since all it is older versions of DA and Ultegra that became 105! called trickle down technology. Doing a quick search all the reviews gave the new 105 4 and 3/4th stars, so almost everyone likes it. So I think there was something wrong with the setup and not the components on whatever bike you tried it on, I suggest you try a couple more with 105, and if for some reason you think they all suck well then check out Ultegra, but I seriously think there was something wrong with the setup on the bike you test rode, what was wrong could be a hundred guesses.

[zmalwo]

105 and ultegra are pretty much identical besides the material used so if you don't like 105 then you also won't like dura ace and ultegra of this generation...

[dancinkozmo]

well , you could try going to over the dark side....

[Pelican]

Have you had a chance to compare the R7000 directly to new Ultegra and Dura-Ace? Performance is quite close, and lever ergonomics are nearly identical. This is the epitome of trickle-down technology for road components.

I was pretty impressed with the groupset, and ended up buying the DA bike because of overall ride quality and weight. I would have zero reservations about riding the new 105 or recommending it to friends. Are you using Shimano rotors? Shifting should be flawless once properly setup. Braking is very good too.

[ColnagoC59]

i was under the impression that r8000 and r7000 were functionally identical with the exception that the weight went up on the 105 along and the finishes were made to match the price point in previous generations. the one sole functional difference is use of bushings vs bearings in the rear deraliuer so some minor shifting performance.

i believe shimano promises identical performance between ultegra and dura ace but not 105, although 105 should come very close

i've always thought the price difference between ultegra vs dura ace was more meaningful and a larger gap than 105 vs ultegra.