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Anyone using Campy Synchro levers with Campy 10 Speed Drivetrain?

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Anyone using Campy Synchro levers with Campy 10 Speed Drivetrain?

Old 03-04-21, 05:10 PM
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tNuvolari
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Anyone using Campy Synchro levers with Campy 10 Speed Drivetrain?

Wondering if it's possible to convert Campagnolo Synchro 8 speed levers into 10 speed? I guess it would take custom inserts with the proper grooves but it must be possible?!?

I'm converting my old Torpado frame into more of a city bike and I'm using bullhorn bars which don't lend themselves to Ergo levers very well. The brake levers seem to work better inverted although it would also work with them in the proper placement although they still lack the perfect placement so not sure the best way to go in this situation. Any suggestions appreciated...




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Old 03-04-21, 05:22 PM
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AJI125 
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Seen a few conversions of 10s bar-ends on this site. Might be the easiest path forward. Here's a couple but try searching on Google if you want to find some more.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...onversion.html

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...retro-fun.html
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Old 03-04-21, 08:31 PM
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Originally Posted by tNuvolari
Wondering if it's possible to convert Campagnolo Synchro 8 speed levers into 10 speed? I guess it would take custom inserts with the proper grooves but it must be possible?!?
As long as you don’t want indexed shifting, sure!

I guess you could take an 8 speed insert and fabricate a 10 speed version, but you’ll need deep pockets and plenty of time.

Does the 10 speed insert from the Campy bar end shifters fit in the 8 speed levers?

You could buy one and find out: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Campagno....m46890.l49292
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Old 03-05-21, 04:09 AM
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The answer is NO. (At least I’ve never heard of it, but people try and get away with crazy things.) Those levers rarely worked well as intended. Don't try to force a lemon into a decagon. Btw, what type of rear derailleur are you using? The one currently on the Torpado looks to be designed for a friction system.

Last edited by gaucho777; 03-05-21 at 11:01 AM. Reason: Removes unnecessary comments.
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Old 03-05-21, 02:15 PM
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You might get lucky like some and get it to work, as what usually happens when dealing with Campy's not-so-good indexed DT lever design for that time. But it could take a lot of trial and error with all different sorts of indexing lever inserts (Plus differing chain and freewheel recommendations) from Campy, which could get quite frustrating. Take a look at the charts for the inserts out there for the Synchro if you haven't yet dome so and you can get an idea on what you might be up against. Plus what they say on those charts would will not always be the case as the system is so sensitive to differing tolerances grnerated by paticular setups from bike to bike.
In my case, I have a first gen Synchro lever system on my Montello that works OK, the first shot, while the second gen Synchro system on my Bottecchia only works about 80% of the time, at best, even after lots of fiddling and adjustments made to it. That is why I'm seriously thinking of just taking off the Synchro II levers from that bike and just replacing it with Campy's version of retrofriction levers ("Doppler" levers) from that time.
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