icemilkcoffee 

Campy groupsets still looked good as recently as the early 10 speed:

After this they started to lose the plot and went down the path of Brutalism with UltraTorque cranksets

As for wheels, they lost the plot when they came up with these triplet spoke patterns where the front and rear wheels don't even match

mschwett 

interesting set of hobbies, rc copters, guitar, the whole earth catalog (and obviously audio)

Polaris OBark

Those speakers and Mcintosh amp/pre look great, but those lamps and that sculpture thing have got to go (or at least move them off the speakers).

kommisar

When did shimano become sram?

seypat

This could be the right answer. Still, the new stuff is fugly. Not shiny, either.

jgwilliams

I'm with the OP in thinking that aesthetics are important. I hate the design of the Ultegra crank. That, along with the fact that I wasn't comfortable with brake levers moving in two planes pushed me towards SRAM on my road bike. I used to be a Campagnolo man myself back in the late nineties; those cranks looked more organic than manufactured.

mtbikerjohn 

The Whole Earth Catalog! The stereo equipment is sweet too...John

mtbikerjohn 

Just notice the Les Paul hiding in the corner..looks like flame maple top?

Sy Reene

There was the 11s Athena silver group, which was maybe the last of the classic looking Campy.

seypat

I don't think they were copying Shimano here. Shimano wasn't the original, either. Cheap box/department store bikes have had 4 armed swagged cranks that looked like this since before 2000.

Trakhak

Like everyone else in this thread, I wish Shimano had killed off Campagnolo at the same time that they obliterated Suntour. Shame on them for attempting to adapt for survival!

Kontact 

Looks like a melted bar of soap that doesn't even match the finish or contours of its chainrings. Previous cranks had sharp, pro edges. So did DA 7400. This just looks like:

seypat

I don't know if that's everyone's opinion. They did make the Centeron G pulley. Once the Suntour patent on the slant parallelogram RD expired, Shimano refined it and the rest is history.

Reflector Guy

LOL I thought those were miniature snowmobiles! Possibly RC even. I couldn't imagine where he'd be able to use them in NC.

DangerousDanR

That looks a lot like my Magic Starfish crank from 1987, and they are both wonderful. I know, the Starfish has 5 arms and it is made of aluminum.

My modern Campagnolo cranks are all from the 5 arm era, but they are carbon fiber and they also look like the new 4 arm cranks.

I went with Campagnolo because I find them intuitive, unlike brake levers that wobble or two clicks to shift down...

As a post script: Shimano are alloy, Campagnolo are carbon. The Hirth joint? Shimano copy? You are kidding?

stan01

Shadco, Is that a Rega & a Sota??? And yes, please loose the lamp & figurines/vase.

amazinmets73

Tiagra is more than 99% of cyclists need, maybe even higher.

Shadco 

The one on the left was a Pro-Ject debut carbon since given to my dotter and replaced with a Thorens TD124, the one on the right is a VPI HW19.

Vase is gone lamps have been replaced with cooler ones, I need light on that side of the Mancave.

.

icemilkcoffee 

OK. But the starfish was made by Mavic, not Campy

Huh? Campy front derailleur is exactly as you said- two clicks to shift.

Shimano's Hollowtech II was and is the more elegant solution that solves the problem without undue complexity. Campy's Hirth joint solution came later, and is more expensive and complex without any notable improvement.

drlogik 

Bikes in general have lost the aesthetics from decades ago. Same with automobiles. Every SUV, sedan or pickup shares the same shape as the other brand. Take the logo off the car and it's hard to tell what car it is. Dare I say even BMW's look like some of the Korean imports?

Same with bikes. Carbon and aluminum rule as does the industrial clean no nonsense design. Bikes in one group, say carbon, all seem to display the same look. Heck many of the bikes sold today are made in one of two plants (Maxway and Giant). Those companies build bikes for many brands. That's why they all look alike.

Do I miss the flowing lines of old Campy? Yes. Do I like the look of some of the new bikes and components? Yes. I own both and enjoy both. I will tell you this though, my dream bike is not a $10,000 carbon wonderbike. My dream bike is a Colnago Arabesque with a full new old stock (NOS) Campy Super Record group.


This is a bicycle when form is married to function...

I'm not talking racing. I'm talking pure riding enjoyment.

alfaspider

nope

alfaspider

nope..and why would someones age matter?

Atlas Shrugged

There is nothing more generic and monotonous than the semi-mass produced Italian and British top end bicycles from the 70’s to mid 80’s. Columbus or Reynolds lugged construction, Campagnolo record which remained virtually unchanged for decades, low profile tubular aluminium rims, and a name that ends with a vowel. They are still around by the tens of thousands and virtually indistinguishable from each other in both build quality or ride. I get the romantic attachment to an item or product lusted for in your youth but to say the current bikes are generic or dull is unfounded.

drlogik 

Thank you for the positive feedback.

DangerousDanR

1) Yes. The Starfish was made by Mavic, but the Campagnolo 4 arm cranks look a lot like it. And mine was made in 1989...

2) No. My primary bike Campagnolo is EPS, so front or rear, big lever to move to a bigger sprocket, small lever to move to a smaller sprocket. Even I can remember that. And on the mechanical front derailleur, the two clicks are to trim the derailleur position, not one for up, two for down.

3) Hollowtech cranks NEVER fail at the bonded joint...My 5 arm crank from around 2011 has the Hirth Joint and it works, and it allows me to preload the bearings by shimming the bottom bracket cups. It is in no way shape or form a "copy" of the Shimano crank. And I like the way it looks; no clamp at the spindle.