uncreative

i have an unknown vintage ( i think 96-97) Bianchi veloce that its time to upgrade or replace. it currently has a full campy veloce group.

the desired outcome is to lower the gearing and replace the worn cassette, chain and chainrings. given how obsolete the components are, it appears that i will need to replace almost everything.

can anyone point me to any resources that can help me determine what my upgrade options are?

Thanks!

CACycling

8 speed stuff is still available so replacing the worn chainrings, cassette and chain would probably be the most cost effective way to go. Depending on what you currently have, you can make some changes in ratios at the same time.

Barrettscv 

I would consider changing your 53 & 39t Standard Crankset for a 48 & 34t Compact: https://store.velo-orange.com/index.p...-crankset.html

You could also replace your existing 12-23 cassette with an 13-26 model: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/k7.html#campagnolo

FastJake

I'd say find some old 8 speed stuff if you can. Or just ditch Campy completely so you won't have to replace EVERYTHING once the old stuff becomes obsolete and impossible to find.

It's my understanding that if you're going from 8 speed to 10 or 11 speed you will have to replace: shifters, derailers, rear wheel, cassette, chain, crankset.... At this point you could probably buy a couple new bikes for the cost of a new Campy group.

fietsbob

Pick up a Campag race triple, they still use a square taper,
BB: 111 symmetrical [115 if fat seat tube on frame]
2 models 52, 42 or 50,40 for the outer 135 bcd.
3rd ring is a 74 bcd . so stock is usually a 32 or 30,
I fit a 26 on my 52, a 24 on the 50.. half the size of the big ring ..

I'm just a tourist rider..

You need a longer arm RD, to wrap up the slack chain,
the parts for that longer arm may be retrofitted to your existing derailleur,
I got a short cage RD from their MTB era, bought the long cage bits
NB, it was 20 years ago.. Campag is rebuild-able, they sell the small parts.
somewhere .. Ask Dealers of pro level bikes..

the rest is just a clean and lube maintainence ..
Campag makes a freehub driver for their hubs, to adopt shimano cassettes,
consider that. its a C note at Cambria bike..

uncreative

lots of good ideas, thanks guys. i assume if i changed to a triple i would need a new front ergo lever as well.

i like the idea of that sugino crank-i assume i will have to get a shimano BB to match the taper.

the deeper i get into this the more i am inclined to just buy a new bike.

edit

That velo orange site has some great stuff, they may have pulled me back from the brink of new bikedom.

Barrettscv 

Yes you would need a new BB. Velo Orange should be able to supply it, just ask them and provide the bike model & year.

Getting a new bike has merit. Consider: https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...our_legacy.htm

hello16

I happened to stumble across your post, and i happen to have a bianchi veloce, probably around the same time as yours. this is a bit off topic, but i sort of broke my rear derailleur... if you happen to replace yours, i'll happily take your old one off your hands.

Anyways, good luck with the upgrade!

Puget Pounder

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but Campy levers are all double/triple compatible unless they are the era of QS. You should be fine switching up the crankset.

Drew Eckhardt 

No new lever needed - all Campagnolo left levers will shift a triple.

First and second generation left levers have 12 clicks of which 7 are used for triple front derailleurs and 3 or 4 for a double.

Drew Eckhardt 

Until they discontinue them. I got the last two first generation right front lever return springs from Loose Screws and Branford Bike ran out of first generation right G-spring holders after I bought a couple.

The WH-KX890 Hyperglide freehub only fits 2007 and newer Record hub and Campagnolo/Fulcrum wheels with an over-sized aluminum axle unless you retrofit the current FH-BO001 axle to a 1999-2006 Chorus/Record or 2000-2006 Centaur/Daytona hub which have the same over-sized axle setup differing only in the side which mates to the free hub. People have also done a little grinding to get the newer freehubs on the older axles. WH-KX2 is a hyperglide freehub for the older over-sized alloy axles which supposedly fits the new ones too.

The steel axle is about 1/3 smaller and the pawl end is different.

Retrofiting a 1997-1998 Chorus/Record 9 speed freehub or 1998-1999 Athena/Veloce freehub is possible (but might take the correct axle plus an additional drive side spacer) although the supply of new parts dried up a decade ago. I did that when Campagnolo discontinued my favorite 8 speed cassette. The 2000 and newer Veloce freehubs share the same pawl mechanism but mate to an over-sized steel axle; you might be able to move your freehub bearings to that and use one.

cs1

I did a similar swap a few years ago. You can still buy a new cassette hub for about $75. It will allow 9-11 sp cassettes to work. You'll have to have the wheel re-dished. Figure an LBS will charge about $100 - $125 for the swap.

Then I'd sell the old stuff on ebay to help defray the cost. Go to Ribble and get a new Veloce groupset https://ribblecycles.co.uk/ Remember to convert to dollars. At current exchange rates Veloce is about $530 US. Good luck.