metal_cowboy

I just received my new Rivendell Rambouillet frame and I am thinking about building it up with Campy Ergo levers. I have always used a combination of Shimano and Sugino parts for my bike builds, so I am unfamiliar with a good long distance Campy set up.

My decision to go with the Campy shifters is simply aesthetics. I am not a big fan of Shimano's STI levers; although I know that they work flawlessly.

What campy components are you riding with? I am thinking about a triple up front and either 9 or 10 speed rear end. I live in the Pacific NW, so I will be climbing a lot of hills.

I would appreciate your feedback and any advice you might have.

Randochap

Unless we're talking old stock, your options are 10 speed (Centaur and below) or new 11 sp -- probably not the best choice for long-distance.

If you want a triple, then your one option is Comp gruppo. You might as well run that in its entirety, w/ Centaur or Veloce cassette and Centaur Ergo. BTW, they have been redesigned this year and the ergonomics/look are now closer to Shimano so you may be disappointed, if your only interest is looks, rather than, say, the ability to rebuild.

Check out the gearing on my bikes. They see lots of hills. Also see specific rando gearing page, which looks at present Campag options, as of 2009.

bobbycorno

My last upright brevet bike (before I got 'bent) was a mix of Campy Daytona/Centaur/Veloce, 3x10 ergo. Worked like a charm, and got me up all the hills that Oregon Randonneurs could dish out. And then some.

SP
Bend, OR

sch

I have 10spd Centaurs on my compact set up and find that it pinches my
hands (about size 8-9) on longer rides (60+mi) compared with older style
or newer style Shimanos. I haven't ridden the revised version. Problem is
the sharp uptick of the 'horn' part of the brifter, not enough room for my
hands. They are in the Campy recommended part of the curve on the
bar. Smaller hands may not note a problem.

italiaandyf

Hi
I've just had my summer bike changed over from Shimano to Campag. This is what I chose :-
2009 Centaur shifters, with Centaur Medium cage rear mech.
2009 Comp Triple chainset, with 30/42/53 rings, coupled with a 13-26 cassette.
With the Comp Triple you have to use the Comp Front Mech, and a Centaur Standard square taper bottom bracket.
I went with a Triple as I've entered the Etape this year, and plan to do some hilly Audax/sportives as well, so it seemed a sensible choice.

I love the new Campag Levers, really comfortable riding on the hoods.

my bike is posted here if you'd like to take a look at the shifters etc.

https://s553.photobucket.com/albums/j...%20-%20condor/

sch

Italia, that is definitely the 'newer style' that likely would solve my
problem with over sized hands. First pix I have seen of a side
view, as the catalogs just give an end on view.

plodderslusk

I got a decent deal on Ebay for a nine speed Campagnolo Racing triple FD and RD with Record brifters. Bought a Ritchey WCS triple crank very cheaply on Ebay and use a 13-26 cassette. This setup works great although I need a smaller cog on the cassette for those long downhills.

Randochap

What's the big ring on your triple?

I run a 50T big ring with a 13-29 cassette. That gives me a 102.9" high. I never run out of gear on a ride. If I spin that out on a downhill, I'm doing 65-70kph -- certainly enough thrills for a long-distance ride. Much more important to get the low gears I need on a brevet.

plodderslusk

It is a 52-42-30 setup, and I need the extra oomph when I am using the bike with my club, and I also like to go all out down from the weekly hill workouts.

BlueJay66

Is Rivendell selling Rambouillet again? Hadn't they stopped selling it for awhile?

metal_cowboy

Rivendell did stop making the Rambouillet, but every once in a while they will list some on their website. Mine looks to be a special order paint job that never got picked up. The frame is a beautiful metallic rootbeer brown with a cream headtube. I will post a couple of pictures whenever I can decided on which group to use.

offtheback

You could do like Jan Ulrich used to do, find some old eight speed ergo's (more comfortable body) and have them rebuilt into 9 or 10 speed. Don't get too hung up on Chorus or Record. I have Chorus 10s that have been rebuilt twice since 2004 and I have Mirage 8s that haven't been touched since new in 1996. I run a 52-38-24 front on my tour rig with a 12-26 in the back. Both derrailleurs are stock. Unloaded, I can do a 23% grade in the saddle for about a quarter mile with out too much huff and puff.

Also check icycles.com for new 06 Centaur 10 Ergos. I got a pair for $120.00.

DanteB

I run Campy Record with 53-42-30 in front and a 13-29 in the rear. My rear derailleur is med length. I'v been very happy with this combo.

songfta

I run a mix of Campag stuff: Chorus brifters and front mech, Record rear mech (short cage), Centaur brakes. My crankset is a SRAM Rival compact (34/50), and combined with an 11-25 cassette, it provides more than enough gearing for all but the most wicked of hills.

mattm

my ciocc has centaur 10sp on it - 53x39, 12-25. i only use this one for the shorter (<=400k) rides, in which i'm not carrying much.

for the other rides, i use the pacer - with mix of veloce & ultegra parts on it. that one has compact gearing (50x34, 12-27) for the steep slopes. sometimes i wish for one more (small) gear, but then i think i just need to train more instead.

AsanaCycles

all i can say about campag stuff... look at how much cogsets cost.
shimano, or sram stuff does not cost as much.
$150 chorus cogsets...

i've never seen, much less tried this thing: https://jtekengineering.com/shiftmate_straight.htm

I'm a bit curious.

being that you could, theoretically...
use a Campag ergo shifter, which i do like, however i want the new SRAM Red groupo, and get away from that mouse ear, i'm sick and tired of it for sprints... the SRAM stuff is much better... (wrong tangent)

but if you're bent on using campy shifters...
perhaps you could use an X9 or X.O rear derailleur
and an XT cogset... you pick it... they make 34-11t cogsets

i have a Hunter 29er that i run all SRAM, and ride the bike for everything... the X.O groupo is awesome. IMO the X.O is better than Record. it shifts nice all the time, and you have a ton of MTB cogsets to choose from.

i really do not like $50 chains, and $150 cogsets... but obviously i buy them, along with Sidi Ergo2's


thats my 2cents

acorn_user

Well, if you don't like $50 chains, and 150$, buy Veloce instead of Chorus. Then you can have $50 cassettes and $30 chains.... sorted.

You can run Sram/Campagnolo with a shiftmate, but I'd not bother. And Sram doesn't make a triple.

Road Fan

I asked around a lot about Shiftmates, a few years ago. All the users said they really do match up the travel rates of dissimilar systems, and deliver good shifting.

Longfemur

I pay virtually zero attention to model changes and other new stuff, but I can say that I've had no problems at all over the past decade with my Campy Veloce triple. My setup is 30-40-50. Rear is 13-26. It's been fine for me, and I like to climb hills. But that's for a sport tourer. I don't do loaded touring. For the latter, I'm pretty sure I would want lower gearing than I have. The 30 granny is about at the limit of usefulness when it comes to low geared climbing. I don't know about today's Campy, and I really prefer fewer "speeds" in back than even the 9 I have now, but one thing I do know is that my mid-range Veloce has been batting 100 in terms of reliability.

cupsal

I use the modified Sram Derailleur from DaVinci modified derailleur (https://www.davincitandems.com/comp.html)on my commuter; that way i can run a 32 cog on a 53-42-30 front and have a good range for when i have to haul lots of stuff. it shifts great.

cs1

Old post but I found it on Google. I'm in agreement on the 50/40/30. But the only way to get it is using TA rings. Campy no longer stocks anything close. Campy triples are basically their 53/39 with a granny gear thrown on. Any suggestions what to use 4 years later?

ThermionicScott 

If you're in a pinch, Vuelta USA sells a 50T 135 BCD ring for $30: https://www.vueltausa.com/se-chain-ri...-39-55t-1.html

No need to swap the 39T for a 40T.

Road Fan

I think the Campy choices are pretty good, but a 53/13 is a really tall gear, especially since I'm getting a lot better as spinning.

LWaB

Campag 11 levers are a perfect match for Shimano 9 rear mechs and cassettes, no adaptions necessary. Another option to throw into the mix.

rm -rf

Has Campagnolo recently changed their triple chainring sizes for sale? It's really confusing. Their website doesn't show chainring sizes at all, and some of their pdf links are to older years.

It took a while to find triples for sale. A lot of websites show older year triples, 2010, 2011, etc.

At wiggle.com,
I see 50-39-30 Centaur 10 speed
and 50-39-30 Veloce 10 speed,
but 52-39-30 Athena 11 speed