why campy shifters?
 

I don't mean to offend anybody with this comment, but why do people like campy shifters? You have to use a thumb shifter like the shimano sora, correct? I have the soras because I'm a poor college student but, I would prefer a group with the sti shifters because I can't shift from the drops with the soras.

I guess my question is, what is the appeal? Why do you like the thumb shifter?

Not...like...Sora...

You can shift from the drops. The rest is personal preference.

Dont deny it!

1. the thumb shifters are not in the same spot as sora.
2. fits smaller hands better.
3. QR in the lever makes for easier wheel removal on canti style brakes.

BRB, I'm busy shifting from the drops of the Sora shifters


Seriously, though, it's comfortable when you use it. So is STI. I like the Campy hoods better, so I have Campy.

The Sora thumb button is placed too far forward on the shifter to be shifted from the drops. If you have super short reach bars and a long thumb its possible, but in most cases its not. Shimano probably put the lever where it is because that is where the shifter mechanism is.

The campy thumb button is 3x larger than the sora and is placed closer to the bar. Its very easy to reach from the drops assuming you have a decent bar/shifter setup.

I have a road bike that is all Campy, and a cyclo-tour bike that is all Shimano with STI.
My observations:

Campy (2006 Ergos):
+ Separated levers mean never accidentally hitting the wrong shift lever, (as on Shimano).
+ Better shifting on FD.
+ Ergos are serviceable.

Shimano:
+ Softer touch on shifting.
+ Better shifting on RD.

can u reach the campy thumb shifter when ur near the bottom of the drops? that's the only fault I see with campy.

can you do it with shimano? cause I can't.

I have no problem reaching the mouse ear when in the drops, and in fact I think it lets me keep a firmer grip on the bars while shifting, since all four finger can be gripping.

Thumb shifters are easy to use, from everywhere except the very bottom of the drops, where you can't reach Shimano or SRAM either.

Other good reasons to use Campy:

Campy stuff works really well.
Campy stuff is really easy to use.
Campy stuff is easy to maintain.
Campy stuff looks cool
Campy stuff has a history behind it.

As for being able to reach Ergo or STI from the drops.
BTW I just noticed the background of STI photo is tilted. The bike is tilted nose-down in a workstand.
The levers are mounted vertically.

Small hand = small glove.

Seriously though, the only cyclist who would pay out the @ss for a campy group and the incompatibilities that come with it is the nostalgic, grouchy, "Get off my lawn" type of cyclist.

you can mix campy levers and shimano cassettes.

My bike came with Campy, and I don't have a beard.

It's the Shimano stuff that's incompatible.

Weight for dollar their cost is about equivalent.

Now get off my lawn! :D

some people just don't get it...not everything is for everyone, simple as that.

unless you have actually logged some miles on each, there really is no way to make judgement on preference. after using Tiagra, 105, Ultegra/SL, Rival, Mirage, Veloce, and Centaur, I find myself going back to a Veloce/Centaur mix. lest we forget that my entire drivetrain is now serviceable vice, disposable. :thumb:

Well, since Ergos are *serviceable*, while STI's are *disposable*, would it not make sense that the latter costs less?

You're an idiot.

I paid ~$500 for my Campy Chorus/Centaur group.

Nothing to do with nostalgia and everything to do with function.
Smaller hoods and multiple upshifts ftw.

"Came with Campy"???
You mean...you ride one of them...thar...*store-bought* bikes?:eek:
:D

(Oh, and just for the record, I *do* have a beard.)

FWIW, I don't know anything about the difference between the two groups, so threads like this can be informative. I had no idea before this thread that Campy's were easier to shift from the drops, for example. My newest road bike is an '84 Ciocc with downtube shifters, so I do find this stuff to be helpful.

Campy is easier than Shimano Sora/2200, the Tiagra-and-up groups use the brake lever pushed laterally as the upshift lever, which is pretty much even with anything as far as ease-of-use goes.

No problem shifting from drops; in fact it's simple, even with my little hands.

Ergos are ergonomically preferable for me (though I don't know how I'd like the new hoods) as well as just functionally better all round.

I just rebuilt my old Centaurs.

To me, Campy shifters just fit like a great pair of Italian shoes. I can drop five gears at a time in one push of the thumb button. I like that the shifter and break are not the same lever. Finally, Campy will last forever since it can be rebuilt. Up until this year, Shimano didn't have hidden cables.

SRAM would be my next choice since I don't really care for the feel of Shimano shifters.