zacster

After a long ride this past weekend I decided maybe it is time to replace the G springs in my 2005 Chorus Ergo levers. It looks easy enough to do myself, but I have one question. Do you need to remove the bar tape to get the lever? That would be more trouble than I want to go through since it is relatively new. I guess I'll have to because shifting has gotten really soft over the last few rides.

darkhorse75

It will be easier with the shifter off the bike since the first step involved is to drive out the pin that retains the brake lever with a hammer and a punch. If you can the mount the shifter on an old handlebar secured in a bench vice it will make the disassembly/ reassembly much easier. Remember to replace the spring carrier as well as they were prone to breaking.

Kontact 

You overhaul the shifter from the back. They have to come off the bars.

easyupbug 

+1, from my experience I agree, what I remember is it would not be possible w/o and a lot easier if you mount a stub bar in a vise and then the brake/shifter so you have a steady work platform. As a Shimano guy I have only done two but the reward was instant, very satisfying.

Kimmo

You can just unscrew the levers entirely off the clamp, but getting them back on can be a hassle, what with getting the cable housings back in their holes and getting the bar tape back over the lever bodies, not to mention finding the clamp with the bolt again.

Another way to hold Campy levers while you're working on them is to pop a square-ended allen key in a vise, and sit the front end of the shifter spindle on it.

zacster

OK, I was asking if I need to remove the tape to undo the lever as I just re-taped them recently and did a good job for a change. I already see that the lever needs to come off. I've ordered springs, the carrier and the washer as a set and I'll replace them all as recommended. I guess it'll be obvious how I need to hold it to work on it when the time comes.

My biggest fear with doing this is that it won't go back together without needing a new something, and then not having the bike until it comes. It also sounds like not being able to move the housing that's under the tape will make it difficlut to fit back on. I guess I can always get new tape at the LBS.

pdlamb

I've never had to "mount" a shifter to replace the G-spring. That one step where you have to work miracles to get the spring seated, though? Did it once on the first try, then found out I had something in backward further down.

Back to OP: I always plan on taking the tape off. It's worse than getting that internal spring right to try to get the cables through the housings, and the housings lined up right on the shifter when you remount the shifter on the bars.

zacster

Yea, I think so. Maybe since I only need to take off the tape on the tops I can get away with rewinding it. I'll see but be prepared to get new tape.

Dave Mayer

As a veteran of many Version 1 and 2 Ergopower lever overhauls, here my boiled-down, hard-won advice:

• You have to take the levers completely off of the bike
• You have to remove the hoods
• You have to remove the brake lever blades
• You have to immobilize the lever upside-down. As indicated earlier, a 5mm hex key secured in a bench vice is ideal.

Bar tape? You can buy pairs of these direct from Asia for like $3. Free shipping.

zacster

I can buy bar tape at any bike shop. It is the winding that is a PITA. I never get it right, but I did a decent job of it the last time I did it. That's my only concern really.

Kontact 

Unwrap just the top of the tape, do your thing and try to follow the way the tape is formed.

zacster

OK, I did this today. I undid the top tape and unwrapped the lever, I undid the cables and pulled them all the way out, removed the lever. I took the lever to my workbench and watched the step by step videos as I went, after seeing it already about 10 times. I removed the brake lever bolt, and that's where the trouble starts. Holding the thing steady is difficult, but I eventually figured out a good way to do it and also be able to shift when necessary. I took all the parts out as shown, then started putting them back together with the new carrier and G springs. The hard part is getting the 2 other springs to go in correctly, and I must have done it about 5 times before I got it all right. Once re-assembled I did the click, click, click and it was nice and solid.

Putting it back on the bars wasn't so hard, except that now I realized that the tape was toast. I've pulled off the rest on the one side and I'll see if my LBS has the same tape, if not I'll retape both sides. Getting the cables to fit into the lever may not have been so hard if I could have left the tape on, but the lever was wrapped too. Anyway, new bar tape is in order.

Adjusting the gears was a breeze now that I have a work stand. Except for the tape and hood, it is ready to ride. The whole process, with all the do-overs, took about 2 hours.

I wouldn't do this job for anyone else, which is OK because nobody I know or even ride with ever has Campy 10 except for the woman I rode with yesterday. She had a Look bike that looked to be the same age as mine, and lo and behold it was Campy Record 10. Campy fans are a tiny fraction of the riders out there.

squirtdad

didn't know campy made g strings............ oh springs, never mind

speedevil 

Good one.

zacster

Regardless of the bad humor, I took it for a ride today after the pouring down rain that happened while I did the work yesterday. It is truly amazing how much better it is now. They shift like they did when they were new. Every click puts it precisely in the gear, no over or under shifting. It works both ways, up and down. I should have done it sooner.

The LBS didn't have the same tape so I'll have to retape both sides. I did the one side to take it out for the ride and I'll do the other whenever. One thing that happened is that when I started to stress the bike and myself on the ride the brakes locked up. I loosened them some, but only later did I see the problem. The lever wasn't screwed down tight enough and the stress moved it on the bar. I took care of that.

All in all I'd recommend this for any Campy 10 speed owner, since they are all getting old at this point.