Shimano has revealed it is bringing drop-bar shifting to its affordable ESSA groupset.
The new components consist of drop-bar levers with cable-actuated brakes for 8-speed bikes and a wide-ranging 11-45t cassette.
Drop-bar ESSA will only be available in 1x8 form, with only one of the levers being a Dual Control shifter.
While the groupset can be bought from Shimano, it's likely we'll see it in OEM form on the next batch of budget gravel bikes.
Shimano has also released drop-bar components for its CUES groupsets, but is yet to confirm the price and weights for the new components.
ESSA-ential update
Launched last year, ESSA is Shimano's most affordable groupset and was released to 'harmonise' the brand's 8-speed flat-bar component families, including Acera, Altus and Tourney TX.
Shimano says ESSA is backwards-compatible with these groupsets, simplifying the entire line-up by using the same pull-ratio.
The addition of drop-bar shifters sees a widening of the groupset focus, now offering a 1x replacement for Shimano's 8-speed drop-bar offerings such as Claris and Sora.
Before this, ESSA was considered a mountain bike and urban groupset.
With cable-actuated brakes, we could see the components used in conjunction with mechanical disc brakes or rim brakes, meaning we may also see it on budget road bikes in the future.
The groupset uses an RD-U2000 rear derailleur, which Shimano says has optimised geometry and spring tension to reduce chain drop.
The brand's Hyperglide technology has trickled down to ESSA, making it compatible with a range of existing cassettes.
Shimano ESSA Dual Control Lever 8-speed – ST-U2030
The new hood will look familiar to users of Shimano drop-bar groupsets, with the design taking a great deal of inspiration from the current brand's gravel and road groupsets.
This will likely please those with experience of the Japanese brand's shifter shape.
Shimano ESSA Brake Lever For Single – BL-U2030-L
The ESSA drop-bar brake levers feature Super Shimano Linear Response (SLR) technology, which is said to have friction-reducing mechanisms in the lever and cable to improve response and modulation.
Shimano says it offers an ergonomic design inherited from its high-end mechanical brake levers, offering better control for the Front Single Crankset.
HG Cassette 8-speed – CS-HG300
This new cassette has a wide 11-45t range, including the following sprockets: 11, 13, 15, 18, 22, 27, 35 and 45T cogs.
Shimano says it provides reliable shifting performance for various riding styles and is compatible with 8-, 7-, and 6-speed Hyperglide chains.
