campy vs. the others

[dpcompt]

i am a longterm campy fan, but i am having second thoughts. the rebuildable feature is overated. i have had two sets rebuilt and both had numb spots in the shifting. the 11spd thing has not peaked my interest. i am thinking about changing my rides to sram with their new medium cage derailleurs.
i use a 50-34 crank and will run a 12-25 rear until it get's nasty, and then, i will run a 12-32 ird cassette. what do you guys think? which level should i consider? i am a "chorus" guy.
don c.

[zank]

This needs to be moved to the general discussion. Mods?

If it were my money and I was buying a SRAM parts kit, I'd get Force and sub in Red for the levers.

[davids]

Moved from the Gallery.

[pdmtong]

This needs to be moved to the general discussion. Mods?

If it were my money and I was buying a SRAM parts kit, I'd get Force and sub in Red for the levers.

what zank said. I love my campy 10sp bikes BUT went 2010 force on the last one because the bag o'money shrunk. red levers woulda been nice, but the whole thing does work great. Levers/hoods feel good, shifting easy to get used to.
I havent dropped my chain yet. got the ceramic BB on a deal. it spins better in my head than in reality.

[Erik.Lazdins]

I open vino with my Campagnolo opener, have my main bike with Record 10 new bike with Chorus 11 - rain bike is Shimano
Campagnolo still resonates very strongly with me even though I'm not against Shimano or SRAM

[GrantM]

ride what you like.


g

[SteveP]

ride what you like.


g

wtf?
you are always trying to stir things up...

[Elefantino]

Chicks dig Campy. Fact.

Other than that, it's mouse ears vs. double taps vs. swinging brake levers.

You pick it.

[dcpdpayne]

You're in the same boat that I was at this point about a year ago. I loved my Campagnolo and had used record and Chorus for years without any major headaches. When I had a new bike build the opportunity to switch to Sram was taken and I'm not the least unhappy. Sram is not as “sexy” as Campagnolo to be sure, but it is every bit as functional. Having small hands I like the adjustable reach on the Sram levers, a feature that they've nicely incorporated throughout their lineup. Currently my road bike built up with Red, but I've ridden Force, Rival, and just the other day Apex, and like it all. My cross bike will be built up with a mixture of Rival, Force and Apex. For my money Sram wins the value shootout between the brands and though I've not needed it, I hear that their customer support is pretty top notch. Just my two cents worth.

[JoB]

Ride the one with the hoods that you like best. I have big mitts, Shimano works well for me, older Campy hoods, not so much.

[rec head]

I'm in the same boat. I want a new bike next year and although I've almost always used Campy I'm really leaning towards Sram. One thing that I think about is that almost nobody I ride with rides Campy so I can't borrow their wheels which can be nice when you are far away from home and didn't bring extras. Even at home between my wife's bike and my brother's bikes we have way more non-Campy stuff to swap things out.

[Saab2000]

On the other if you use Campagnolo you won't have to loan your stuff out to the unwashed masses who don't use God's own component gruppo.

[pdmtong]

I started my road life on 9sp ultegra. then campy 10sp. Picked up a CX bike that had '08 Force on it. hmmmm not bad. I got used to it. When 2010 force approximated red, I was all over that for my budget build. look at the weight delta too. it's the hands-down winner for value at price/weight.

only two issues for me, both just habitual (relative to cmapy) and will be overcome withmore saddle time.

1) I am not 100% as intuitive with quickly making consistent single gear downshifts across the cassette with force. it's just a matter of needing more practice for the lever feel. If I am being deliberate about oit, never any issues

2) if you are in the last/lowest gear and go to shift thinking there is one more gear, the doubletap lever will actually upshift due to it's design...the lever has to move through the upshift to get to the downshift...but in this case there isn't one left. It doesnt have a stop like campy. so you better know if you are in your last cog on that 14% grinder

[El Chaba]

I like Campagnolo for a lot of reasons. I don't give a shit what anybody else uses. I worry about people who give a shit about what I use.

[TJ]

On the other if you use Campagnolo you won't have to loan your stuff out to the unwashed masses who don't use God's own component gruppo.

Post of the day!

[wasfast]

I've only used Campagnolo on my bikes since the 70's. All 3 current bikes are 10 spd. My biggest gripe is still the wheel compatability issue mentioned above. WHen you go looking for wheels, you're either looking for a moderately rare item or will be buying another freehub body. 80% of the public has shimano/sram "stuff" it seems. Unfortunately, I'm have 7 great wheelsets and not going to change now. Conversion cassettes are an option on wheels as well.

[Pete Mckeon]

ride what you like.


g

Yep, ride what puts that smile on your face and that you personally like.....PETE

[AngryScientist]

i love campy and have too much "invested" in the gear at this point. i have two (for me) very nice wheelsets which i need to be compatible between bikes. that, plus, if you do your shopping smartly from europe, campy stuff really isnt all that expensive anyway. i like the feel of the hoods, especially the new ones, i like the refinement, and i dont see myself ever switching over for what would amount to a marginal (if any) monetary savings.

[CyclesNoir]

Wheel compatibility can be an issue. What's funny, at least to me, is the number of Shimano riders with 8, 9 & 10 speed setups. While the wheels may be compatible, the cassettes aren't - so they never swap wheels.

[SeanEasley]

I had campy graphics applied UNDER the clearcoat on my vanilla road bike...calf tattoo might be next