get_nuts

I'm building my first touring bike. It's going to be of the road (non-mountain) variety. I'm not sure of what to go for on components. My knowledge is heavy on track components. Shimano seems to be the most popular, as they are in most bicycle areas. I'm a fan of Campy personally, but is there a reason I never hear of Campy on a touring bike? I think I will probably at least go with Campy derailleurs and friction shifters. I know their track hubs can't be ridden in the street, but are the road hubs pretty durable and dependable? What other hubs should I look at?

aroundoz

You might want to check R and E cycles at: https://www.rodcycle.com/. They are about the only shop I know of that specs Campy for their touring bike. They make a great bike and have been around for several decades. I have Campy on my road bike but never would think of using it on a touring bike but that's just me. Maybe check w/ them to see how campy has held up touring and let us know. I would be interested in hearing.

I have always toured on Shimano mountain hubs like LX or XT mostly becuase they have been very dependable and becuase I haven't been able to justify spending more on a Hugi or Phil Wood, for example. I put about 10,000 miles on a rear LX hub and it did fine. If I was going on a world tour, I would seriously look at Phil Wood hubs. Then again, if I only had LX hubs and couldn't afford anything else, that wouldn't stop me. Just depends on how remote you plan on being. A side note, the most spokes you can use on a Shimano hub is 36. If you want 40 or above, you have to spend a lot more.

cyclintom

You don't hear a lot about Campy on touring bikes only because people are generally trying to get away for as cheap as they can on touring bikes.

Campy makes a triple and a Compact. They make up to 29 teeth in the 10-speed group. They have a long cage rear derailleur.

There's absolutely no reason that you can't use Campy and it's generally more reliable than Shimano. What's more it's repairable. Shimano is mostly replace.

There are very few components you can buy that are superior to Campy in just about any catagory.

Blackberry

Wow! What a very interesting site. These people look like they know how to spec a bike for real people!

Blackberry

Phil Wood. You can ride on them for decades and bequeath them to your grandchildren. Plus they are works of art.

halfspeed

They aren't generally used for touring because they aren't designed for it. Here's what Campy says:

"INTENDED USE - This Campagnolo® product is designed and manufactured
for use only on road racing style bicycles that are ridden only on smooth
road or track surfaces. Any other use of this product, such as off-road or on
trails is forbidden."

Don't get me wrong, I love my Campy equipped bike, but I wouldn't spec that stuff for loaded touring.

kesroberts

From my limited experience, the biggest problem with Campy for touring is that they don't make drive train parts that are designed to handle the low gearing that most tourers want, which is why most people end up largely using Shimano "mountain" components at least in the rear. I dealt with this on one Campy bike by replacing the "road" triple crankset with a Shimano XT.

MichaelW

I have Campy Mirage (95/8spd) on my tourer. I'm not sure I would make that choice again but it is a reliable and durable group.
Campy have the drive-side bearings on the rear hub placed between the hub shell and the freehub, leaving a couple of inches on unsuported axle. Shimano bearings are much better places to eliminate the risk of axle breakage. I queried the Campy technical dept about this and they were confident that their hubs were strong enough for touring.
The best hub for touring is probably Shimano XT. Phil Woods is excellent if you can afford them. Personally I think if you have the money you should prioritise a PH bottom bracket over their hub.
The Campy road triple crank has too large a BCD to fit small rings. I switched mine for a Shimano LX.
Shimano have gone all propietory on their BB/cranks and change the design every year. Specialities-TA cranks are a good match to the PH bottom bracket.

get_nuts

Is there any reason not to get the nicest Campy hubset I can afford (in the current hierarchy of Xenon, Mirage, Veloce, Centaur, Chorus, Record) or do their hubs become less durable as they become lighter and smoother?

I'm thinking Centaur or Chorus.

halfspeed

Another thing to bear in mind when considering road hubs, regardless of manufacturer, is that the narrower spacing will make for wheels with more dish and slightly less strength.

aroundoz

Campy is also going to limit your shifting options to either downtube shifters or ergo levers. I know the campy levers are repairable but how much of a benefit is that really since most shops are not going to stock the parts or have the expertise unless you are in a major metropolitan area. Even then, you would have to be lucky. (Correct me if I am wrong since I have never worked on an ergo lever and hopging I never do). If you really love Campy, like I do, I would save it for your road bike.

vosyer

If you are a Campy fan you can make it work - usually people just use the Campgo Ergo shifts and xt or xtr der - then use a jtek device so they can use a shimano cassette in a 32 or 34. Lots of options available -a racing triple can be switched out with TA rings to something more touring like 48-34-24. Some of us campy fans stashed Campy OR rings and use these as. A nicer solution, but hard to come by is a 32 8 speed cassette made in the early 90's along with a long cage campy der that also works. Campy also made touring hubs 36 and 40 hole - Large flange in 130 and 135 spacing - never seen them in 9 speed always 8 speed. All of this depends on how much of a campy fan you are!!!!!!!!!!!