# Forte Microshift Gruppo - My review with pics



## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

Here is my review of the Forte gruppo. I'm no Shakespeare so I'm sorry in advance if the writing sucks. 

I have been riding the "gruppo" (FD, RD, Shifters) for 770 miles. I wanted to put mileage on before doing a review so I could try to be as objective as possible. I got this grouppo for 3 reasons: 
1. Cheap - $200 for all 3 pieces on sale
2. Light - claimed 674g for all 3 components
3. Crash worthy

FWIW - I have only ridden 9-speed 105 and 10-speed DA for comparison. No experience with Campy or SRAM. I have done maybe 5 races and many rides including hilly, flat, fast, and slow. I'd say the group has been tested under most normal conditions. 

The Shifters:
One thing I was concerned about regarding the shifters was the size. I have small hands and need a smaller shifter. My favorite shifters of the past were the Shimano 9 speed ones. Anyway, got these mounted and they are just right. Size is slightly larger than Shimano 9-speed and slightly smaller than Shimano 10-speed. The shifters have a cheaper plastic feel to them and they rattle a little on bumpy roads. The internals seem fine and I haven't noticed any defects or flaws to date. 

Microshift systems work a little differently than the big 3. There is a large paddle and a much smaller paddle for shifting. The actual brake lever does not move in the shifting process. Shifts are quick and as precise as I'd expect a $200 gruppo to be. Shifting is significantly louder than other systems I've used so if you're into stealthy ninja shifting these aren't for you. The front shifter has a great trim feature: both the big and small ring are allotted a trim setting (instead of just one). Some may have concerns with the cheap looking resemblance to SRAM Red in looks... personally I could care less.





























Rear Deraileur:
When I built this bike up the first thing I did was bring it to the shop for deraileur adjustments. I got it back and it was ghost shifting like crazy. So, I broke down, bought a stand, and went to work wrenching. After some tweaks I got the system working just fine. Rear shifts are quick with no noticeable issues. The deraileur has held up well with nothing breaking or going bad as far as I know. After I was able to tweak it there have been no more issues with ghost shifting. Limiting screws seem accurate and barrel adjuster works. 




















Front Deraileur:
Front deraileur has worked well. No parts breakage or any noticable defects thus far. The shifts are quick and I haven't managed to throw the chain yet (and I did try). I do have a gripe that they don't include a barrel adjuster of some sort with the system. I have been able to get it working fine but those minor adjustments a barrel adjuster is good for are not an option for me with the stock set-up. The deraileur is braze-on. I had to get a clamp to be able to use it (no biggie but useful info). Like the rear, the limiting screws seem accurate.



















I've been running the stock cables and housing. There have been no major issues. Overall, the system is on par with 105 I'd say. Works fine and will likely last a long time if maintained properly. Although shifts are quick, it's not as smooth as DA or any other high end system I'd imagine. I do wonder if better cables and housing would do much but I really have no reason to spend the money to find out. I recommend this group for those looking for something cheap and light. However, if you need pinpoint accuracy with shifts and lightning fast speed, then this is not the group for you. Also, if you have money to burn, I'd go with something else. 

Hope this helps 

Rob


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## old_fuji (Mar 16, 2009)

The Microshift bike I tried required obscenely long throws to get the front to shift. Did you ever run into something like that? If so, how'd you fix it?


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

I was wondering about these shfting gizmos when I saw them in PerformanceBike. Thx much for the review 

How easy is it to shift while riding on the hoods vs. on bar-top vs. in the drops?


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

old_fuji said:


> The Microshift bike I tried required obscenely long throws to get the front to shift. Did you ever run into something like that? If so, how'd you fix it?


The throws are long but nothing unreasonable. I think has to do with the trim settings.


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

Marc said:


> I was wondering about these shfting gizmos when I saw them in PerformanceBike. Thx much for the review
> 
> How easy is it to shift while riding on the hoods vs. on bar-top vs. in the drops?


i can shift from the hoods or drops with no problems. Very easy.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Great review.


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## JoelS (Aug 25, 2008)

My 8yo has them on his Felt. He's able to work them just fine. So the throw can't be too long.


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## gamara (May 20, 2002)

Interesting review. Actually I think that lever looks more like a shimano lever that a sram. Its kinda a strange to see that the whole entire top part of the shifter mechanism also pivots with the brake lever & you're able to see into the guts cause of the large opening created. That might be a concern in terms of reliability because dirt can easily get in there.


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## Coolhand (Jul 28, 2002)

Well done, going to sticky this one for a bit. 

:thumbsup:


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## 1971tch (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks for the review, I was just fixing to start a thread asking if anyone had used these.


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## fallzboater (Feb 16, 2003)

No FDs include a barrel adjuster; if your frame inexplicably lacks them you have to use those ridiculous inline adjusters, or just fiddle with the clamp (which might be tough once the wire is that badly frayed). Good for you for deciding to work on it yourself, though.

That's not the worst bar-taping job I've seen, but it's in the top three. ;^)


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## tron (Jul 18, 2004)

I just built up a cross bike with this group. Shifting is great, set up was pretty easy considering I am not the best mechanic. The hoods are comfortable. I would say that it is slightly difficult to reach the shifters from the drops, from the hoods they are very ergomatic. Also very light especially for the price. The one petty aesthetic issue I have is that the cable are not all under the tape.


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

fallzboater said:


> No FDs include a barrel adjuster; if your frame inexplicably lacks them you have to use those ridiculous inline adjusters, or just fiddle with the clamp (which might be tough once the wire is that badly frayed). Good for you for deciding to work on it yourself, though.
> 
> That's not the worst bar-taping job I've seen, but it's in the top three. ;^)


Haha yeah I had a "dispute" with the FD cable. I'll get it fixed this weekend post-race. I also know I need to re-wrap the bars. What can I say, I'm lazy


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## dougydee (Feb 15, 2005)

Nice review.
I believe their is an Australian company looking at developing a new gruppo, I'm pretty sure it was with developing microshift further. I'll have to look for the article I read for more details.


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## Richard (Feb 17, 2006)

To my knowledge, the "Microshift" system is made by Sunrace in Taiwan and is now sold under Performance/Forte, Nashbar (a wholly owned subsidiary of Performance), Samson, and "Sunrace/Microshift".

The 2011 entry level Felt Z100 road bike we just got in the shop has it and all I can say is it's head and shoulders better that 2200/2300/Sora STI's from Shimano - and 9 speed to boot. It's actually possible to "upshift" from the drops, something that's damn near impossible with Sora.


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## tomcho (Jan 30, 2010)

Richard said:


> To my knowledge, the "Microshift" system is made by Sunrace in Taiwan and is now sold under Performance/Forte, Nashbar (a wholly owned subsidiary of Performance), Samson, and "Sunrace/Microshift".
> 
> The 2011 entry level Felt Z100 road bike we just got in the shop has it and all I can say is it's head and shoulders better that 2200/2300/Sora STI's from Shimano - and 9 speed to boot. It's actually possible to "upshift" from the drops, something that's damn near impossible with Sora.



That's a nice upgrade, is that bike still under $800? That makes a really nice package for someone looking to get into a road bike and not break the bank.


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## Argentius (Aug 26, 2004)

*Thanks*

for the well-researched reviews.

Interested to know how the shifters perform after a few thousand miles, do keep us posted.

Also, curious how it shifts with cables that aren't half exploded...


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## St.Zu (Jun 30, 2010)

Thank you so much for doing this review. I am about to overhaul my GT ZR 5.0 and I was looking at these.
Thanks again


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## biker (Apr 2, 2004)

A little off topic - What type dog is that on the couch ?


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

biker said:


> A little off topic - What type dog is that on the couch ?


Haha it's a Jack Russel/Cavalier King Charles. Rescued him about 1+ years ago. He's awesome!


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## tconrady (May 1, 2007)

I was in a jam running around getting parts to build up mrs tcon's new frame. Most of the parts were off my busticated TCR advanced. I was at the last store of the day which happened to be Performance and I remembered I broke the rear derailleur and needed one. They only had that Forte one and a SRAM Red. No way I was putting Red on HER bike!  So I got the Forte one. Seems to work just fine mated up to Ultegra 10 (6600) shifters. The only gripe I have is I can't get that [email protected] Forte logo off it...it's not a sticker. Other than that it's worked admirably.


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## cs1 (Sep 16, 2003)

Richard said:


> To my knowledge, the "Microshift" system is made by Sunrace in Taiwan and is now sold under Performance/Forte, Nashbar (a wholly owned subsidiary of Performance), Samson, and "Sunrace/Microshift".
> 
> The 2011 entry level Felt Z100 road bike we just got in the shop has it and all I can say is it's head and shoulders better that 2200/2300/Sora STI's from Shimano - and 9 speed to boot. It's actually possible to "upshift" from the drops, something that's damn near impossible with Sora.


Actually Microshift makes them for Sunrace. http://www.microshift.biz/about.asp I've been thinking on trying a group myself.


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## herndobler (Jul 12, 2010)

Here is an installation video for Sunrace's STR90 shifters.

To the "OP", take a look and see all the similarities between the shifters. 

Sunrace's "Top of the line" series is called "Driven" There is also an interview on this site with the North American Rep for Sunrace / Sturmey Archer.

http://www.velosupply.com/sunrace-str90-installation/


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## zender (Jun 20, 2009)

robncircus said:


> Haha it's a Jack Russel/Cavalier King Charles. Rescued him about 1+ years ago. He's awesome!



Well, now that the floodgates are open, I think that rug really ties the room together. :thumbsup:


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## old_fat_and_slow (Jun 4, 2008)

Holey Schmoley Batman!

Those brifters are hugenormous !! I didn't think they could get any bigger than DA 7800's.


Uhmmm, don't cha think it might be time for a new FD cable? Man that is jez askin' fer trouble.


Is it hypocritical to be runnin' a CK headset, and Forte transmission controls ?? Just an observation.


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

old_fat_and_slow said:


> Holey Schmoley Batman!
> 
> Those brifters are hugenormous !! I didn't think they could get any bigger than DA 7800's.
> 
> ...


No they're not. I've used 7800 and these are smaller. They are about the size of the old 9-speed shifters. 

I did put in a new FD cable. 

What does CK have to do with Forte?


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## old_fuji (Mar 16, 2009)

robncircus said:


> No they're not. I've used 7800 and these are smaller. They are about the size of the old 9-speed shifters.
> 
> I did put in a new FD cable.
> 
> What does CK have to do with Forte?


CK = top end bike bling
Forte = pricepoint, function-over-fashion, budget stuff.

Sorta like putting the steering box from a Ferrari into a Kia.


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## robncircus (Oct 28, 2009)

old_fuji said:


> CK = top end bike bling
> Forte = pricepoint, function-over-fashion, budget stuff.
> 
> Sorta like putting the steering box from a Ferrari into a Kia.


Gotcha. I've used CK headsets for years and they're awesome. So I put one on this bike. I decided to try Forte since groupsets are outrageously priced. Keep in mind this bike is raced regularly. If I crash, I'm much more liekyl to destroy shifters and deraileurs than I am a headset. So I tried to splurge where it made sense and not splurge where it didn't. 

:thumbsup: 

Rob


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## zach.scofield (Apr 11, 2010)

Richard said:


> The 2011 entry level Felt Z100 road bike we just got in the shop has it and all I can say is it's head and shoulders better that 2200/2300/Sora STI's from Shimano - and 9 speed to boot. It's actually possible to "upshift" from the drops, something that's damn near impossible with Sora.



Completely agree! Some of the Felts we just got in also use the shifters and they are way better than the sora stuff on the spec bikes we have.


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## crossracer (Jun 21, 2004)

You know i tried the forte rear der on my shimano equipped cross bike, and it worked fantastic. SO what the hey, i am throwing on the frt der and cranset also. The crank is the carbon one from a few years ago and is super dupper tough. And i weigh in at the 225 mark so i can really flex a crank. 

ALl in all i have been very happy with all the forte equipment i have installed. Is all of it great? No. But for the most part it is bullet proof and performance has the best warrenty in the business. 

Bill


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