Hi

Am about to order a Strada Speciale with a classic look, barbers pole, amber wall tyres, brooks saddle etc the only thing I can't decide is the groupset.

I don't want to go vintage as it is a new bike so 60s components don't make sense.

I was thinking silver Campagnolo Centaur but they now only make it in black, so it would have to be either Veloce or Athena but I'm put off because I've read as 11 speeds they both need constant maintenance - any thoughts?

The only other option was to go Velo orange crank and dia-compe downtube shifters but not sure if they will feel cheap - my daily ride has campagnolo Nuovo record.

Any suggestions? Advice?

Thanks

I have Athena 11 Speed on my Gazelle, it's solid, performs great and have yet to need adjustment.

+1 the Campy 10 and 11speed stuff is solid rides great and needs no more maitaince service than other stuff. It is just campy makes the assuption that if you spend the bucks for there stuff you will spend the the time money to properly setup there stuff and then maintain service it. Competative riders put hundreds of miles on this stuff a month without problems thats why they spend the extra bucks and buy it.

Those dia compe down tube shifters that VO has look nice and would look good on that bike. If you're talking about old school NR down tube shifters on your daily bike, I'll bet the dia compes will work better. Still you need to decide whether you want brifters or not. There is a world of difference between the two shifters.

I'm about to pull the trigger on a bespoke Mercian 853 Audax myself.

Since form follows function what is the purpose you intend for your Strada Speciale?

https://www.merciancycles.co.uk/frame...trada-speciale

Road racing, club rides, Brevet, century or just pootling about?

What geometry, tire/mudguard clearance, quill stem/ahead fork and brake type & clearance are you going to spec?

A serious LD build for mountains can require a triple, criterium use calls for a straight block while brifters work well for certain applications bar-cons or DT controls are preferred for others.
This all assumes a functional spec, is your requirement for a certain aesthetic instead?

-Bandera

go with the 11 speed Athena.

+1. The Athena group set is really nice looking.

Lots of good feedback on Athena - thanks that's put my mind at rest - I am drawn to having the modern equivalent of the Nuovo Record on my current bike and seeing the difference.

Hi Bandera

Haven't fully figured the exact specs yet, so any advice is welcome.

The choice of Mercian was down to wanting a traditional but bespoke English frame.

I am going for the Strada Speciale for evening and weekend rides - I live in the country and it's fairly hilly by me, so I wanted to go light and fast on the frame. So it will have no mudguards, racks etc - I will probably run 700 x 25 tyres as the roads aren't smooth enough for anything skinnier.

Might look at joining a club too at some point but all the local ones seem to be full of carbon fibre bikes - don't know what they think of steel bikes?

Obviously we all know they are far cooler

Morksmith, assuming you're in the UK your Mercian will fit right in with your local club.
When I was in the Uk the main prerequisite for fitting in at the cycle club was the ability to drink real ale.

Morksmith, assuming you're in the UK your Mercian will fit right in with your local club.
When I was in the Uk the main prerequisite for fitting in at the cycle club was the ability to drink real ale.

I'll be contrary but when I was speccing out my new-stuff-on-vintage-British-steel road bike, I decided that Campag don't make stuff quite as pretty as what they used to, and went for a SRAM Force groupset instead. Performance/weight-wise it's right up there, and I honestly think the brakes and levers are more aesthetically pleasing than Campag Athena. (Cranks maybe on a par, and mechs are mechs!) You end up with more of a mix of black/grey/silver than silver/silver/silver but it's not like you're trying to pretend the bike's 30 years old.

A made to spec Mercian with a modern 11 speed group of any flavor would be extremely choice.
Pics when it's on the road.

I'm sure a British club would be welcoming of a modern classic.

-Bandera

For a modern but classically constructed steel frame, I would consider a mixed group with some modern parts where it's important, and more classic parts where it's less important. For example, I would suggest a 10-speed Dura Ace 7800-series drivetrain with 10-spd down tube shifters, but with a classic TA crankset, which should work just fine with any modern 10-spd drivetrain. The current 7900 series looks very modern but the 7800 series is very classic. A TA crankset also allows you to dial in a diverse range of gearing. You mentioned hilly riding. I don't know what type of gearing you need, but I recently built up a modern steel frame (A Rawland Stag, 650B) using the above-mentioned drivetrain (but with 10-spd bar-end shifters) for hilly riding and it's been great.

Mork, have you checked out Lickbike.com? A big Campagnolo seller in Chicago, they usually have older 10 speed groups available new with full Campy warrantee.

Thanks for the tip but I am based in London, Uk...