How do Ofmega parts compare to Campagnolo, Shimano, etc.? Thanks.

I had an Ofmega crank on a bike in the 80s. Although Ofmega advertised as a Campy clone, it was not. The crank never fit the taper of the BB properly. The precision that I see in my Campy Chorus and three sets of NR are superior to Ofmega. I do not know as much about Shimano as I have only had one bike with it, 600. But, I would say the 600 is superior to Ofmega as well.

+1 to the above ... I've have Ofmega hubs on a singlespeed and an Ofmega crankset in the parts bin. I'd put 'em on a par with low- to mid-range Japanese stuff from the same period.

Is that a Mistral crank, by chance?

I'm casually watching some Ofmega parts for a possible restoration of a Centurion Cinelli...so, no, they are AWFUL components and you should DEFINITELY NOT bid on any that come up on eBay.

In all seriousness, though, the seller of the Centurion told me that he had replaced the original Ofmega Mistral cranks because the arm had snapped clear off! The frame looks like it was well used, so perhaps it was simply fatigue (it was an '85 crank replaced with a late 90s or early 00s Veloce crank, so if it was ridden hard, 10-15 years of service isn't bad.)

The original Ofmega Mistral BB looks great, actually, with the exception of pitting in the fixed cup. But that was likely the result of poor adjustment. The thing was terribly loose when I took ownership of it. If anyone has a Italian thread Mistral fixed cup...

I bought the Regina 1992 groupset - made by Ofmega and NOS - off Ebay, less freewheel and chain, for $100. Stuff looks brand new. For that price, it was worth a try.

Yeah, some of it IS pretty cr*ppy. But one item, the triple crank usually branded as Avocet, is actually a pretty nicely finished crank, and mine never broke even with the 2 sets of additional threaded holes in the arms. Maybe when they were acting as a contractor the QC went up.

It all depends on the on the model your talking about. They made from mid-range to high end. Some was just OK while others were very nice. Definitely better value than Campagnolo, who over-priced their parts. Also, I wouldn't worry about the forementioned cranksrt failure. Forum members can probably counter with dozens of stories about failures on NR/SR cranksets.

If I remember correctly, Avocet sold cranks and hubs made by Ofmega, and they all had QC problems to the point that they did not stay on the market for long.

I think it is equally likely that the additional volume they were doing for Avocet meant that the QC went down. Either way, it doesn't mean that 100% of their stuff would break.

I haven't had much riding experience with these but I remember when I ordered the Ofmega components in the early 80's, they were comparable to low end Campagnolo without the price gouging. I like the looks of the crankset, and the derailleurs - Ofmega Premier - shift as well as any bike I have ever ridden. I think there was some slight weight penalty vs. Campagnolo but I was just macho enough to think the added grams made no difference. I was gong to get dropped anyway.

My personal bias prevented me from putting Japanese components on my Italian frame. I believed at the time - and still do - that the Ofmega equipment was equal to or superior to the Japanese components available during those years. I also don't mind downtube shifting, but then again, I know nothing.

I'd go with the Ofmega components again. Good luck.

My Bianchi came with Ofmega CX cranks, which I replaced a few years ago with newer Bianchi-labled Ofmega cranks out of metal fatigue / safety concerns, having snapped one [Sugino] aluminum crank during an out-of-saddle climb. I have been pretty satisfied with my Ofmega cranks, hubs (currently on my 1959 Capo, because the oil clips make them look like Campagnolos of that period), headset, and bottom bracket.

Can anyone confirm that Ofmega is the same company as Magistroni? My first Bianchi (1962) was loaded with Magistroni and Ambrosio components, whereas my current Bianchi had Ofmega and TTT.

Are those the composite Sintesi pedals as well?

Yes, they are - minus the leather straps that are lost somewhere in the mother of all black holes, my garage.



Actually, the Ofmega Sintesi pedals always seemed a little out of balance and were hard to flip into position. I'm sure it was operator difficulty. I thought the pedals were cool, though, so...

You need to test Suntour Cyclone derailleurs...

Ofmega made some really nice parts. Recently, they have mostly made low end cranks. They were popular on lower end european made bikes like Claud Butler. They were still operating, but I think they might have gone bust recently. www.ofmega.com
Their new carbon cranks were pretty cool looking...

Agreed. They are da kine!

I had a 1986 Trek 660 with Ofmega premier and mistral components. The rear Der. was dupont acetal resin (plastic), never gave me any problems in the 8 years of riding it. Just sold the crank on ebay.
Not in the same league as campy, more like suntour superb pro. Modolo brakes with sintered compound shoes were also on it.
I loved that bike. Stripping it down to build a singlespeed racer.