Shimano Road Groupsets
Shimano is an industry leader when it comes to the manufacture of road bikes and bike accessories primarily due to their reputation for innovation and efficiency. Their gears are known worldwide for providing unparalleled performance and durability and their braking systems are said to be some of the most innovative in the world. Shimano sales are said to make up around 50% of the bicycle accessories market worldwide and when you take a look at their groupsets you will understand why. Let’s take a look at how Shimano progressed from a dream, to an empire.
The History of Shimano
Shimano is a Japanese manufacturer producing bicycle components, fishing, and rowing equipment. The company was established in Japan in 1921 by “Shozaburo Shimano” and now operates in over 34 countries.
Shimano started to make their famous derailleurs in the early fifties before launching into the bike crazy European market in the sixties. They grew their reputation by refining biking products and creating new product lines. In 1980 Shimano launched the “AX line” followed by the mountain bike series and the “Nexus-line” which became a top seller in the USA, because of the simplicity of operation and retro styling.
Shimano Road Groupsets
Shimano offer a number of road groupsets. The most basic is the Shimano Sora which unsurprisingly is also the cheapest. This is what you will usually find on entry level bikes as well as those that are for non-professional use. The best groupset in the range is the Shimano Dura Ace – this is an award winning groupset and has been used by winners of the Tour de France. The Dura Ace is a light and sleek groupset that is well engineered and is slick to shift.
The groupsets that are somewhere in the middle of the two mentioned above are the Tiagra, the 105 and Ultegra. All of these are generally cheaper than the Dura Ace yet are sleeker and better engineered than the Sora. You may also find some un-named groupsets on real basic bikes – these will generally just come with a model number and are not really recommended to anyone who is serious about road biking.
Shimano’s Popularity
One of the reasons why Shimano is an industry leader is because their engineers focus on maintaining strength whilst also effectively creating a light weigh bike. The “Total Integration Gearshift” system also contributes to the reputation of the company as it combines braking and gear shifting into one smooth control which enables bikers to shift gears with complete efficiency. Unlike other tube shifting systems which can be observed, the Total Integration system does not require the biker to remove his hand from the handlebars.
In addition, the Shimano groupsets tend to be lower priced than those from other manufacturers and when combined with their reliability this leads to a high level of popularity. Shimano’s sales are said to be increasing year after year and with groupsets like these on offer, it’s not hard to see why.
