I forgot to mention this in my comparison:
- Ergo & STI can both *downshift* 1, or 2, or 3 gears at a time.
- Ergo can *upshift* 1, or 2, or 3 gears at a time. *
- STI can only *upshift* one gear at a time.

(*) Exception for the '07 to '08 groups below Chorus which were crippled with the "escape" Ergos.
It is my understanding that this is gone with the '09 groups.

09' ultra ergo can dump/up shift the cassette 5 gears at a time.

not that this is practical or anything, even with wide spread gearing like a compact can give.

I just hit the lever several times, and it downshifts as fast as anything else.

Really, though, all of this constant discussion of Campy vs. Shimano vs. SRAM is a bit silly. They all make good gear that works well. Just find something your price range that you like, and let's all stop pretending that one is "better" than the others.

I agree 100%. I Campagnolo, Shimano and SRAM all make good stuff, period. It all comes down to personal preference.

Bzzt. One of my favorite things about SRAM is the ability to pull the lever in close to the bars to shift while sprinting.

Not that it makes my sprinting any less slow, mind you.

Can do same w/ Campag.

The thumb shifter is neither a plus or a minus for me. I used Shimano on my first bike and I just think the Campy hoods are more comfortable. Granted I went from Shimano Tiagra to Campy Chorus. With Campy you can also drop all 10 gears in one swipe which is nice when you're climbing in the big gear which I find myself doing quite often.

internal cable routing

To each his own, but In addition to some of the functional pluses above, IMHO, I think they just look better than Shimano.

I don't like that big trapezoidal-ish "head" with antennae, with all that two-tone black/silver. Granted, 09 DA are getting there.


I like the curves on Campy.

I like my '09 Campy shifters, and yes, I can shift the thumb levers from the drops with them. Mine are the new Centaur, and I even like the soft shifting action of the right shifter's downshift mechanism. I think I may be alone in that regard, however.

The best part?.....(drum roll please)..........they're made in Ittly.:D

I've used both Shimano and Campy through the years on my various bikes. Until recently, though, I had not used Campy Ergo's at all. I built a new bike last fall with Campy Record, and a couple thousand miles later, here are my humble opinions.

Record and Dura Ace both shift exceedingly well. This includes "loaded" shifts in both directions going uphill. Both stay tuned really well.

What's different? I like the ability to do multiple upshifts on with Campy. I like Campy's fully hidden cabling (which is now matched with the 7900 Dura Ace). I like the Campy hoods.

I like the silence of the Dura Ace shifters. They have this subtle click, but the Campy ones are pretty loud.

I don't like the mouse ear though. Maybe it is just getting used to it, but it still seems a bit less ergonomic to me.

The best recommendation I can make though, is if you pick a company, stay consistent. Sharing wheels is a pain when you have to switch freehub bodies back and forth.

This is why I chose SRAM.

Lighter
cheaper
more ergonomic (at least to me)