I Rode Campy
11-08-10, 12:22 AM
#51
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For example, I went on a ride today. The first real rain storm of the season. It pretty much sucked, but hey, I got to ride my bike, so I'm happy.
11-08-10, 12:27 AM
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I'm in the East Bay. I force myself to ride, even if it's raining. I have some rain gear, lights, and fender if need be. I far prefer actually being outside and riding on real roads regardless of the weather.
For example, I went on a ride today. The first real rain storm of the season. It pretty much sucked, but hey, I got to ride my bike, so I'm happy.
For example, I went on a ride today. The first real rain storm of the season. It pretty much sucked, but hey, I got to ride my bike, so I'm happy.
11-08-10, 12:35 AM
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Don't get me wrong. It definitely freaking sucked and I hated myself out there, and probably now have pneumonia, but I haven't been able to ride in forever. I said I was going to ride today, so I did. Whatever gets it done.
11-08-10, 12:42 AM
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I'm in the East Bay. I force myself to ride, even if it's raining. I have some rain gear, lights, and fender if need be. I far prefer actually being outside and riding on real roads regardless of the weather.
For example, I went on a ride today. The first real rain storm of the season. It pretty much sucked, but hey, I got to ride my bike, so I'm happy.
For example, I went on a ride today. The first real rain storm of the season. It pretty much sucked, but hey, I got to ride my bike, so I'm happy.
11-08-10, 12:53 AM
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11-08-10, 06:22 AM
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Blackdays is obviously mistaken about the practicality of Campagnolo components based on his definition of "practical." All Campagnolo components are replaceable piece by piece, and are fully user serviceable.
Let me ask you a question, have you even ridden your bike enough to make your Shimano/SRAM integrated lever shifts so poor and indefinite that they no longer shift well? I assume not. Well, for those of us who actually ride our bikes on a regular basis and enough to wear down parts like that, Campagnolo is key. I've only ever had to completely service one pair of Campy shifters for a customer who rode them a huge amount over the course of seven years. Total cost excluding labor (paid in pizza): $30 a lever. Now, how many worn down Shimano STI shifter pairs have come into the shop beyond repair, and too new and thus non-serviceable? Approximately 15. How many had to be thrown away because they're not user-serviceable and not worth the extraordinary effort and price to be sent in to Shimano for repair? Approximately 15.
The price to quality difference isn't present at all, so that argument is moot anyway.
And then this dumb argument that always freaking arises about the thumb lever. Well, sir, I'm going to have to go out on a limb here and say... IT'S COMPLETELY RIDER PREFERENCE. A purely subjective matter. I started on a road bike with STI shifting, and freaking hated the shifting lever combination. I happen to really enjoy and feel comfortable with the thumb lever. Thus, all of your points are completely irrelevant to this debate and I urge a strong vote for the government.
Yes, I'm a high school parliamentary debate nerd and experienced wrench.
Let me ask you a question, have you even ridden your bike enough to make your Shimano/SRAM integrated lever shifts so poor and indefinite that they no longer shift well? I assume not. Well, for those of us who actually ride our bikes on a regular basis and enough to wear down parts like that, Campagnolo is key. I've only ever had to completely service one pair of Campy shifters for a customer who rode them a huge amount over the course of seven years. Total cost excluding labor (paid in pizza): $30 a lever. Now, how many worn down Shimano STI shifter pairs have come into the shop beyond repair, and too new and thus non-serviceable? Approximately 15. How many had to be thrown away because they're not user-serviceable and not worth the extraordinary effort and price to be sent in to Shimano for repair? Approximately 15.
The price to quality difference isn't present at all, so that argument is moot anyway.
And then this dumb argument that always freaking arises about the thumb lever. Well, sir, I'm going to have to go out on a limb here and say... IT'S COMPLETELY RIDER PREFERENCE. A purely subjective matter. I started on a road bike with STI shifting, and freaking hated the shifting lever combination. I happen to really enjoy and feel comfortable with the thumb lever. Thus, all of your points are completely irrelevant to this debate and I urge a strong vote for the government.
Yes, I'm a high school parliamentary debate nerd and experienced wrench.
To me the whole debate about which gruppo is best is silly. Like bike brands, they all have a following for good reason...pros and cons to each.
I like the thumb shifter btw. Is it superior to the Sram one lever does it all? Personal preference.
Last edited by Campag4life; 11-08-10 at 06:27 AM.
11-08-10, 06:59 AM
#57
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I don't know. Campy isn't perfect. The '09 Ultra Centaur CF levers I have are case in point. Campy missed the boat with the right shifter...vague shifting with catchy cable for the upshift. I like Campy but don't feel its better than Shimano or Sram...just different. I personally hate the hole underneath Sram hoods. Sram levers feel cheap to me. I probably would be happier with Shimano. I believe Sram makes the best shifters and derailleurs for mountain bikes. I fix my own stuff, but lots to be said for throwing out a shifter after it is done. Some may want to replace parts but not for everybody. Also...Campy likely by design does not offer the rear derailleur main spring for the parallelgram as a replacement part...only comes with the entire sub assembly. Cheaper to buy a replacement derailleur of any brand on ebay brand new. I still can't get the Campy replacement detent wheel for my right shifter...which Campy redesigned after discovering their design error by performing their beta testing on the public...on backorder.
To me the whole debate about which gruppo is best is silly. Like bike brands, they all have a following for good reason...pros and cons to each.
I like the thumb shifter btw. Is it superior to the Sram one lever does it all? Personal preference.
To me the whole debate about which gruppo is best is silly. Like bike brands, they all have a following for good reason...pros and cons to each.
I like the thumb shifter btw. Is it superior to the Sram one lever does it all? Personal preference.
I wonder if some delicate Dremel work would fix it.
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11-08-10, 11:57 AM
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What BS and I am Euro by the way!
11-08-10, 12:19 PM
#60
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I ride enough. Dura Ace 7800 has never failed on me. Not a single time.
How isn't price a factor here? You can get Sram Red for how much you spend on a Chorus group. I'm sure we can all agree on which one will shift better.
Correct. Just like almost every thing else in cycling is based on opinions. So why should this be any different?
How isn't price a factor here? You can get Sram Red for how much you spend on a Chorus group. I'm sure we can all agree on which one will shift better.
Correct. Just like almost every thing else in cycling is based on opinions. So why should this be any different?
https://www.shinybikes.com/bike/Groupsets/
As for the thumb buttons, I've been using them since 1995 and never had a problem with them. It's a lot easier to shift 3-4 cogs smaller with one push of the thumb button than 3-4 taps of the finger lever. I switched from Ultegra STI and never regretted it. The 2009+ ultrashift levers are truly wonderful.
Last edited by DaveSSS; 11-08-10 at 04:21 PM.
11-08-10, 02:21 PM
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My experience with Campy is limited to test rides on bikes I could not afford (Colnago C50, etc.) and the Record groupe I tested was magic. I have owned Shimano 105 and currently use SRAM Red (full groupset except for brakes) and I would gladly switch to Campy in a minute. Campy looks cool, feels great, shifts beautifully and is rebuildable. The mechanic at my LBS loves working on Campy (even though they don't sell any bikes with Campy at the moment) and swears their mid to high level groupes are much more reliable than Shimano and rebuildable.
Haven't tried the 11 speed Campy stuff but I hear it is very good. My next bike will have Campy if I buy it as a frameset and build it up. If it comes with SRAM or Shimano, I'm not going to make the change.
Haven't tried the 11 speed Campy stuff but I hear it is very good. My next bike will have Campy if I buy it as a frameset and build it up. If it comes with SRAM or Shimano, I'm not going to make the change.
11-08-10, 02:47 PM
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If you're opinion of thumb levers is based on Sora, you really need to try Campy.
The Sora buttons are smaller and positioned much farther out on the stalk of the shifter making them difficult or impossible to reach from the drops:
The same is not true of campy:
Depending on your hands, bars, and position of shifters some folks may still have difficulty with Campy thumb levers I suppose but my wife can reach them fine from the drops and she has smaller hands.
I spent about 18 months with Sora shifters and couldn't reach the thumb lever from the drops. It's no problem at all for me with Campy.
It's a *good* thing that there is a variety of road shifters to choose from. I've got Campy on my bikes now because I prefer the way they work with front derailleurs. Shimano was great for the rear shifters. I had no issue at all with my 105s... until one broke.
The Sora buttons are smaller and positioned much farther out on the stalk of the shifter making them difficult or impossible to reach from the drops:
The same is not true of campy:
Depending on your hands, bars, and position of shifters some folks may still have difficulty with Campy thumb levers I suppose but my wife can reach them fine from the drops and she has smaller hands.
I spent about 18 months with Sora shifters and couldn't reach the thumb lever from the drops. It's no problem at all for me with Campy.
It's a *good* thing that there is a variety of road shifters to choose from. I've got Campy on my bikes now because I prefer the way they work with front derailleurs. Shimano was great for the rear shifters. I had no issue at all with my 105s... until one broke.
Last edited by tjspiel; 11-08-10 at 02:54 PM.
11-08-10, 04:01 PM
#63
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[QUOTE=FlashUNC;11751570]Never had a problem shifting from a drops on my Campy stuff.
The two big perks for me were the "slam both thumbs down to downshift to the small ring and not have the gear ratio change as you head into a hill" shift, thanks to the Campy ratcheting mechanism, and having the thumb button in rather convenient positioning to change gear while on the tops with my pinky.
Exactly...I love this feature.
The two big perks for me were the "slam both thumbs down to downshift to the small ring and not have the gear ratio change as you head into a hill" shift, thanks to the Campy ratcheting mechanism, and having the thumb button in rather convenient positioning to change gear while on the tops with my pinky.
Exactly...I love this feature.
11-08-10, 04:01 PM
#64
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I have 3 sets of Campy Ergo 10sp shifters. I like the prev gen(old hood style) Chorus shifting the best.
11-08-10, 04:43 PM
#66
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Oh goody, an old fashioned, spirited Campy/Shimano/Sram feud - my favorite. Hope I'm not too late. 
11-08-10, 05:00 PM
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"The mechanic at my LBS loves working on Campy (even though they don't sell any bikes with Campy at the moment) and swears their mid to high level groupes are much more reliable than Shimano and rebuildable."
This is completely anecdotal and take it for what it is worth (not much), but at this year's Levi's Gran Fondo, there was a SRAM mechanic at the King Ridge rest stop fixing bikes that malfunctioned on the route. He complained during a break that all he was fixing was Campy. BTW, SRAM provided great support the whole ride. Great marketing move on their part. Also, I rode with two guys who rode Record 10 and Super Record 11 (I rode DA 7800). The only mechanical problem any of us experienced was a dropped chain by the guy on Super Record 11 when he went into the small ring on his compact.
I have two vintage bikes with Campy that I just recently acquired (one with C-Record circa 1993 and one with Chorus circa 1996). They shift fine and I like them, but I gotta say I prefer Shimano. I have SRAM Red for a new frame that I will be receiving in the next few days, so I'm going to give that a shot, too.
This is completely anecdotal and take it for what it is worth (not much), but at this year's Levi's Gran Fondo, there was a SRAM mechanic at the King Ridge rest stop fixing bikes that malfunctioned on the route. He complained during a break that all he was fixing was Campy. BTW, SRAM provided great support the whole ride. Great marketing move on their part. Also, I rode with two guys who rode Record 10 and Super Record 11 (I rode DA 7800). The only mechanical problem any of us experienced was a dropped chain by the guy on Super Record 11 when he went into the small ring on his compact.
I have two vintage bikes with Campy that I just recently acquired (one with C-Record circa 1993 and one with Chorus circa 1996). They shift fine and I like them, but I gotta say I prefer Shimano. I have SRAM Red for a new frame that I will be receiving in the next few days, so I'm going to give that a shot, too.
11-08-10, 05:03 PM
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11-08-10, 06:38 PM
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I know, for sure:
- Campy 11 speed shifters, RD, Cassette, chain
- FSA BB & Crank /w Shimano chainrings, and FD
- SRAM brakes
works well.
11-08-10, 07:02 PM
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No kidding
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11-08-10, 07:41 PM
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On my cyclocross bike I use Campagnolo 10 speed shifters and front derailleur, sram rival crankset, sram 9speed cassette, shimano low-normal mtb rear derailleur. And it works great!
11-08-10, 07:47 PM
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11-08-10, 07:51 PM
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As much as I hate to say this, I just tried Campy at my LBS and it's pretty darned nice stuff. I'm a diehard SRAM fan with absolutely no money, but you wouldn't have to twist my arm to convince me to switch.
11-08-10, 08:43 PM
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Speaking of the video, here's one from Campagnolo. Suspiciously they never show shifting the thumb lever from the drops. Oversight, coincidence, don't want to show that you have to move your hand unlike Shimano and SRAM? Or is that total BS on my part? I honestly don't know, and I haven't seen anything Campy to test it so I have to take the word of BF...
11-08-10, 09:01 PM
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The word of BF has been stating throughout this thread that it's completely user preference. Shifting from the drops for me is absolutely nothing. So easy, very quick. I barely have to think about it.
Furthermore, they show no shifting whatsoever from the drops in that video, so I honestly don't see a point.
Furthermore, they show no shifting whatsoever from the drops in that video, so I honestly don't see a point.