lenticular

I ride a 2006 Kuota Khan with Campy Record 10-speed that I got new in 2007. Since shifting was getting a bit rough, I took it into the shop to have the mechanic look at it. He said that the cogs on the cassette were worn and that it, along with the chain, should be replaced. Yes, I've replaced the chain several times since I've had the bike. He found a new Campy Veloce cassette that would work and installed that and a new chain.

It shifts great now, but the gear ratios are quite different than those on the Record cassette. I found myself descending at hill at 32mph where before I was at 34. I could get to 33 if I really windmilled my legs. On flatter sections I kept pressing the brifter to get to a higher gear that was no longer there. I now have an easier gear for hills, but keep forgetting that it is there. I don't really need it.

I'll call my mechanic tomorrow, but wondered if it is difficult to find a cassette with more aggressive ratios that will work with my 18-year-old derailleur?

Thanks!

jimc101

So what did you have (ratios) and what do you have now (ratios)

Realistically, if you just need to descend faster, eat some pies*, put on weight and gravity will get your speed back up

*It will make going up the hill harder

Crankycrank

What was your previous cassette gearing? Someone here may help you find a replacement.

curbtender

The small cog in the rear is what would give you more speed per revolution. You could loose 2 mph just by getting a little headwind.

lenticular

Despite the fact that I have had the bike for so long, I don't know what the gears were.

As I understand it, replacing cogs on a cassette is so involved that you usually just get a new cassette. Given the age of my bike, are cassettes for it hard to find? The mechanic said that the only cassette that he could find new was Veloce.

I've only ridden it once since getting it back last week, but the new gears felt 'easier', like I could not put the same power to the pedals while descending or riding hard on flat ground. Climbing is ok since I can ignore the new lower gears.

Dave Mayer

I am a mind reader, so I can fill in the absence of useful information here.... The new cassette is a Veloce 13-29 10-speed. These cost less than $50 through dozens of online outlets. The Veloce cassettes shift as well as anything in the Campy lineup. Because they are all steel, they wear better than the $300 Record units with the titanium cogs.

The old cassette started with a 11 or 12-tooth cog, hence the loss of some top-end speed. Personally, I am a big fan of the 13-29 cassettes, as they dispense with useless 11 and 12 tooth cogs; if I'm going 30mph or above, I'll coast.

The loose cogs on Campy cassettes can be replaced individually, as long as you replace like for like. As I tend to wear out the 17-A and 19-A cogs, so I replace just those when the old ones are done. Replacing these worn cogs takes about 10 minutes from the time the wheel comes off to when it gets punched back into the frame.

mpetry912 

Campagnolo cassettes are available on ebay in new or used condition but be prepared to pay market prices for a nice example in desireable ratio.

A record 10 cassette in 13-26 may run you 150-200 buck

Miche makes an acceptable substitute but they do not have the same shift ramps or plating, and wear quickly

/markp

lenticular

Thanks, I think that is exactly the case here!

Crankycrank

Veloce 10sp cassettes of your choice in stock here. Campagnolo Veloce Cassette (Silver) (10 Speed) (Campagnolo) (13-29T) - Performance Bicycle (performancebike.com)

lenticular

Thank you!

squirtdad

give it time and that will change

really does the difference between 32 and 34 mph going down hill really make that much of a difference?

lenticular

I'm 66 now and average14.5 or 15 mph over a 30 mile ride. Half a lifetime ago, I was cruising at 18mph or better, if my old Cateye ccMicro could be believed. These days it isn't so much speed as it is effort. When I descend I like to push the pedals as much as I can, then just coast when the speed of the descent itself makes pedaling useless. With the old cassette I'd look at my computer and see that when that moment came I was at 34. With the new cassette it comes at 32. Even though it makes no difference at all, I felt as though something had been taken away from me.

There were a couple of times on flat ground when I went to shift into a higher gear, but was already in the highest gear. I'm used to the effort of high gears on my old cassette and it seems like the new one won't require the same amount of effort or give me the same speeds (not that they matter).

My ride had a twisty climb up a mesa of maybe 250 feet near the end. Because of the the rainy weather weeks, a bout of covid, and general wimpiness, my legs were not where they were back in August. As I climbed I kept shifting to lower and lower gears until I reached the lowest. I started laughing because it unexpectedly turned a grind into something not too bad. Besides, I can dial in as much effort as I want just by using higher gears.

I'm going to take a few more rides with the new cassette before I make any decision. Who knows? By then it will probably all seem normal.