Shimano’s entry into the 12-speed street drivetrain class got here a bit later than their competitors, however they made up for it with stellar efficiency and long-term sturdiness.
I’ve been using the group for practically two years and it continues to supply flawless shifting, clean operation, and quiet rolling. Even the wheels, which by no means appear to get as a lot consideration, are nice. Right here’s my long-term assessment…
Setup & Set up Notes
I put in the Ultegra group on a Pursuit Allroad, a wonderful bike that made my 2022 Editor’s Selection checklist. Every thing went because it ought to with one catch that’s necessary to notice when you’re putting in it your self, and this contains store of us… ensure that to make use of the right spacers on the BB spindle.
Earlier than you learn the following 5 paragraphs, know that I’m not knocking anybody. It is a easy mistake that anybody could make, and it induced lots of head-scratching grief. Shimano put in the group of their SoCal HQ and commented about how entrance shifting appeared off. The entrance derailleur couldn’t transfer the chain far sufficient all the way down to reliably shift onto the small chainring.
In order that they despatched it again to Pursuit pondering that it was a body tolerance difficulty. Carl Robust, co-founder of Pursuit and superb body builder, checked, re-checked, and confirmed the body was precisely to spec.
Even so, he heated and molded a small divot into the downtube so as to add clearance for the entrance derailleur’s cage pivot, and that helped, however didn’t solely repair it.
I obtained the bike and had the native Shimano rep go to to interchange the entrance derailleur, pondering perhaps that was the problem, after which re-check every part. The brand new half was an identical to the unique, and that wasn’t the issue.
Seems, we would have liked a 1-2mm (I neglect which, precisely) spacer on the crank spindle on the driveside to push the chainrings out. That tiny quantity of extra offset solved the issue. It’s one thing so easy, with no different warning indicators to counsel it, that it eluded Shimano, Pursuit, and myself till we simply tried it on a whim.
The purpose? Attempt the easy stuff first, and check out to consider different options. As soon as the spacer was put in, shifting was excellent and has been for the 18+ months I’ve been using the bike.
The entrance derailleur comes with a small wire information that offers it a 90º angle whereas additionally defending it from bending too sharply. This additionally retains it from looping so vast it rubs your rear tire. It’s tiny and finest put in along with your rear wheel off the bike, belief me.
Shimano has straightforward guides for setting chain size…
…and rear derailleur B-tension settings. The information is plastic-free, which is good, too.
A small mild is color-coded throughout setup so it’s straightforward to know when you’re in setup mode. It adjustments to blue whereas charging, then turns off when the battery is full.
One of many largest upgrades to the brand new Di2 12-speed is the power to customise the shifting patterns, activate Synchro Shift, and different options straight from their e-Tube app. Right here’s a great video displaying easy methods to set it so you’ll be able to put the rear derailleur into adjustment mode remotely from the shifters, permitting micro-adjusts whereas using (not that you must want them, nevertheless it’s nonetheless cool).
Ultegra R8100 Trip Assessment
The nutshell model is that this: I’ve ridden the brand new Dura-Ace 12-speed Di2 additionally, and Shimano’s Ultegra group performs each bit as effectively, however for lots much less cash and only some additional grams. Should you’re constructing a motorcycle or upgrading, it’s an important alternative not solely amongst Shimano’s drivetrains however an important alternative basically.
Shifting is as fast as ever, to me feeling barely sooner than SRAM. It’s additionally very quiet, and feels clean and easy, even for an digital group.
Should you haven’t watched this video but, please do, there’s much more to it than simply pace…it additionally barely overshifts each cog to make sure the chain will get the place it must go, then trims again. It’s actually cool!
The entrance shifting is highly effective and direct, as I anticipated. I’ve additionally owned Dura-Ace Di2 and GRX Di2 11-speed teams, and the brand new 12-speed entrance shifting appears barely smoother.
SIDEBAR: I can’t assessment this group with out speaking about Shimano’s 11-speed crankarm recall. The 12-speed cranks are made utilizing the identical hole solid and bonded development, so I requested Shimano what modified with these new ones to forestall them from having the identical downside. Their response was:
“Shimano has made quite a few adjustments, enhancements, and enhancements in response to the market data we obtained. That is commonplace observe at Shimano.“
…which is about what I anticipated. I’d love a extra technical rationalization, however they’re very secretive about their processes. I bought a have a look at that course of throughout my manufacturing unit tour for the XTR launch when you’d wish to see it. FWIW, they’re not the one model utilizing this development technique, and I haven’t had any issues with these (or my prior DA) cranks.
The rear derailleur is fascinating. There’s no clutch or spring damping for the pulley cage, and the spring rigidity may be very mild. I applaud having derailleurs that may cowl every part from street to tough gravel, however I additionally respect an element that’s objective constructed to excel at one factor. I imagine that is what permits Shimano’s shifting to really feel so mild and quick, which is particularly noticeable on their mechanical teams.
That is permits the chain to bounce, however not the way you may suppose. As the 2 motion pictures (and dirt) counsel, lots of my street rides find yourself on stretches of gravel, generally with plenty of stutter bumps and potholes. Regardless of these mini adventures, I by no means seen that lack of chain administration and by no means dropped a series.
The place I discover it’s once I backpedal shortly, significantly within the small chainring. I do that to regulate crankarm place for a nook, or shuffle round on my saddle. A fast, exaggerated backpedal usually yanks the pulley cage ahead, creating an enormous swoop of chain slack, adopted by a fast retraction. It feels bizarre, somewhat disconcerting, and is diminished by rising B-screw rigidity.
I thought of shortening the chain barely, however the setup is dialed based on spec and a shorter chain would seemingly trigger points moving into the biggest cogs from the massive chainring (I do know, you don’t need to say it, however all of us do it). In the end, it hasn’t affected efficiency, however I wished to say it.
Hood shapes are nice, with good ridges on prime for grip. The pronounced bump on the entrance is reassuring on spirited climbs, and finger clearance is satisfactory when braking from the hoods.
The bigger shift paddles are straightforward to make use of, and the differing textures make them straightforward to establish even with full finger gloves. The wi-fi design is good, decluttering the cockpit, and shifting is as quick as ever…I couldn’t inform any distinction between response pace from prior wired variations.
The charging port is on the rear derailleur, which is an enormous improve from the tiny junction port and having to wire it someplace. It’s nonetheless a single wire to cost the group, which is handy, although you’ll must put your bike close to an outlet.
SIDEBAR: Shimano usually sends assessment teams with a full PRO cockpit, and their PRO PLT Ergo Carbon Handlebar deserves a shout-out. It has an exceptionally good condition. The flattened tops get deeper on the corners the place my arms usually relaxation, creating an enormous platform for my palms. It’s stiffer than most carbon bars I’ve ridden, so it transmits a bit extra vibration, however I plan on swapping to a gel-backed bar tape to mitigate that as a result of its ergonomics are price preserving.
The PLT stem can also be nice, with surprisingly good torsional stiffness for its girth and faceplate width. Each are moderately mild and an ideal instance of Shimano’s understated excellence.
When Shimano first launched their street disc brakes, they made it clear they had been highly effective and funky sufficient to run 140mm rotors, whereas others had been suggesting 160mm at least.
For me, I went with 160m within the entrance, 140mm within the rear. It’s a great combine, and I like the additional modulation the bigger rotor supplies. Shimano’s brakes are clean, with the correct amount of chew from their Servo Wave lever main into well-controlled development.
Maybe the least talked about a part of the group are the Ultegra WH-R8170-C50-TL wheels, and I blame Shimano. They merely don’t hype them sufficient, however they’re actually good. They’re aero with out making a bunch of aero claims, and Ultegra shares the identical rim profile because the Dura-Ace wheels.
They roll very easily because of cup-and-cone bearings. The 21mm inside width rims held every part from 28mm to 36mm-ish tires with straightforward tubeless setup. They usually’re moderately mild (628g entrance, 872g rear, 1500g whole) for the C50 mannequin (50mm deep rims, additionally out there in 36mm and 60mm depths).
The hubs have a grey anodizing to match the remainder of the group and include a normal HG freehub physique.
For prime efficiency street using, Ultegra Di2 12-speed leaves nothing to be desired. Shifting is exact and quick. Hood and lever ergonomics are nice. It’s mild, and the understated darkish grey ano appears to be like nice on any bike, maybe even higher than the shiny black of Dura-Ace.
It even works effectively on “alt roads”, and the edges held as much as low tire pressures on gravel roads, too. Should you’re out there for top-tier efficiency with out the top-tier worth, Ultegra R8100 delivers.
Learn our launch protection right here for all the tech particulars on this and Dura-Ace.
