Campy or Shimano?

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

Chorus > Ultegra. It is arguably greater than Dura Ace, too.

Chorus.

Campagnolo...accept no substitute!

Well, what did you expect me to recommend?😄

I have Chorus 10 on my CF Soloist and Ultegra 10 on my Raleigh Prestige. I prefer Ultegra 10. Otherwise, they're both good compared to SRAM, especially since SRAM charges too much for their shifters!

Campy has very expensive cassettes, so Ultegra would be cheaper (I guess).

And Shimano wheels are more popular on ebay!

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

I think that this question is one those questions that often has no answer. Simply due to the fact that people who answer are very biased.

Anyway - They both are very reliable.
They both change smoothly
They both way reasonably low amounts. Not that anyone but a top line cyclist could possibly notice much change in performance due to a few hundred grams anyway. Money can be better spent elsewhere.

Peoples answer tends to be biased exponetially with the price they paid. Hence perhaps the answers favouring campag despite the fact it is difficult to find a bike thats sold with campag.

The rider anmd bike fit is 10 times more important than any differrences between the groupsets.

One thing that does differentiate is in the hand grip b/n the two. Some people prefer that Campag hood feel while others prefer Shimano. Otherwise they are both race quality. Otherwise there's the issue of re-buildability and presence of absence of a cable running in front of the handlebar.

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

Just made the jump from Ultegra to Chorus about 2 weeks ago. And I'm not going back to Ultegra. Never had any problem with the Shimano group, worked almost flawlessly for 2 years.

However I just prefer the Chorus. The ability to change up or down multiple gears at a time is great. My hands sit better on the Campy hoods. Less cable clutter. There also seems to be a reassuring mechanical heaviness to the shifting, a rewarding "clunk" 😉

As one of the previous posters said, it's basically a matter of opinion. I'd suggest trying out both at your LBS to find out which you prefer.

Well, before 2007 the Shimano brakes were better than Campy's. But Campy's 2007 skeleton brakes look so cool and sometimes the price of record brakes is cheaper than Dura Ace. And aren't the 2007 Record brakes lighter than Dura Ace?

The only thing is it would be bad to mix Campy skeleton brakes with a Shimano group! Sounds like heresy!

To me, last place is SRAM.

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

I think the major difference you can feel between campy and shimano is the shape of the STI levers. Shimano has much bigger head on which you can put you palm. You may want to do this while climbing or cruising. I always put 2 or even 4 fingers on the metal brake level when i'm on Shimano hood to level my forearm. For using campy STI, most people tent to put 4 fingers behind the metal brake level. So, I think it's about your habit of position and gearing.

Somebody has already mentioned the handgrip is considerably different & many riders like Ullrich etc. found it hard to convert to the smaller modern Campy ergo hoods. Don't forget Campy have considerably downgraded the Ergopower mechanism in the Centaur shifters for 2007 , so go with 2006 alloy rather than 2007 carbon.
If you are riding more coffee rides than races go with Campy Centaur , visa-versa Shimano Ultegra.

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

I have 7 bikes, most of them are Shimano, mainly Ultegra, some 105. I recently had a special built with Campagnolo Veloce.

I won't get another Shimano bike unless there's some other compelling reason. I simply find the Campagnolo change much more predictable and sweeter. 'Nicer'. The ergo levers are hard not to like as well.

Definitely Campagnolo. And I have no reason to be biased, I would prefer that my other bikes were 'better' since they outnumber my lone Campy bike.

I have big hands and couldn't be comfortable without the shimano hood. The campagnolo hood isn't as holdable. The end of the hood (big ugly bumpy bit) on Shimano is what keeps me with it.

JTE83 said:

Well, before 2007 the Shimano brakes were better than Campy's. But Campy's 2007 skeleton brakes look so cool and sometimes the price of record brakes is cheaper than Dura Ace. And aren't the 2007 Record brakes lighter than Dura Ace?

What's the basis of your assessment of better? This above statement sounded as if it's the look that determined the goodness of the component. :eek:

caferacerwanabe said:

Somebody has already mentioned the handgrip is considerably different & many riders like Ullrich etc. found it hard to convert to the smaller modern Campy ergo hoods. Don't forget Campy have considerably downgraded the Ergopower mechanism in the Centaur shifters for 2007 , so go with 2006 alloy rather than 2007 carbon.
If you are riding more coffee rides than races go with Campy Centaur , visa-versa Shimano Ultegra.

The OP is also considering Chorus, which doesn't have the new Escape shifter mechanism (for weight reduction and mechanical simplicity) that's present in the 2007 Centaur and below groupsets.

The new Escape mechanism is only considered undesirable if you are seeing it from a racers' point of view. For general cycling use, the Escape mechanism and its limit of 2 gear step action really isn't that critical, especially considering that the weight reduction and simplicity of the mechanism.

Jcyclist said:

Im going to upgrade soon to 10 speed and i am deciding between ultegra or centaur or chorus. Help please.

Are you UPGRADING or UPDATING your drivetrain?

Almost everyone in this forum who espouses Shimano in favor of Campagnolo must be a Flatlander OR someone whose climbs are only ~100 yard long ...

I love Shimano ... if you are a Flatlander, the ONLY reason not to continue to use Shimano is probably/possibly because the 10-speed chain will need to be replaced with a slightly higher frequency than your budget prefers.

Some people will disagree with me in the following, but I found that the 9-speed Ultegra shifters were NOT capable of consistently downshifting when under load (i.e., going uphill) which necessitated MY briefly using a triple to ensure being able to find a lower gear ...

I actually like Shimano "stuff" so much that I bought a pair of 6603 shifters (but, have yet to install them) to test their downshifting-while-under-load capability -- Shimano's inability to consistently downshift on a long uphill climb is a serious handicap; BUT, I'm willing to give them ONE LAST CHANCE.

BTW. I posed the question in another thread as to whether-or-not SRAM's new shifters can downshift when under load, and no one has replied -- consequently, I suspect that they cannot.

ALL of the Campagnolo shifters can EASILY downshift to a larger cog when under load ... THAT may not be a consideration for your style of riding ... it should be a consideration for riders who tour, IMO.

The front derailleur generally needs to be "matched" to the chain-type if you are using a triple crank when using Shimano shifters, whereas the Campagnolo shifter is indifferent to the space between the front derailleur's cage plates.

The difference in the shape of the hoods is significant, but not as meaningful as some would have you think. IMO, the OLDER Campy shape is better if you like to drape your hands OVER the front of the levers the way Ullrich does, but otherwise the "horn" on the older lever style intrudes when your hands are on the hoods (again, IMO). While there is a "right" way to set up Shimano shifters, it is clear that they can be placed in MORE places and different angles on the bars (often, to the unsuspecting detriment of the rider).

I have read OTHERS indicate that they can't shift Campagnolo shifters from the drops -- nothing could be further from the truth UNLESS their levers & bars are not set up properly to the point of absurdity. I can actuate/shift the thumb shifters from the drops, when my hands are on-the-hoods AND when my hands are on "middle" portion of the handlbars by simply tapping the thumb shifter with my middle finger ... if you have larger hands you can probably use your ring finger.

If you want to upgrade, then MY recommendation is for Campagnolo shifters -- Shimano-to-Campagnolo conversion cassettes are available to allow use of wheels with Shimano/-compatible freehubs & Campagnolo shifters can be indexed to/with Shimano compenents without too much heartache if that is the route you want to take rather than dropping $1000 all at once.

If you want to update your components AND/OR be-like-Lance (et al), then there is nothing wrong with the Shimano 6600/6603 components. HOWEVER, if you go with Shimano, do yourself a favor and spend the miniscule additional amount for the 6603 shifters even if you don't think you will ever be getting a triple crankset -- having a triple capable front shifter meant that I was able to mate a 9-speed 105 shifter with an 8-speed XT front derailleur (with a double crankset) because I had the extra indent-click which allowed me to move the cage sufficiently when using a 9-speed chain.

I like the thumb-shift of campy and the hood-shape. Otherwise they both shift very well. My first bike was ultegra the last two have had campy and I doubt I'll buy shimano again.

Having a bike with Record and a bike with Ultegra I balance use on, the only difference I notice is the hoods.

I bought the bike with Record use and many componets need to be replaced. I have no idea how many miles are on it. This causes some anoyances on rides but when talking to the LBS they tell me it is a wear issue. The Ultegra was brand new and I know how many miles are on each component. So I figure any thing that does not seem right with the Record is probably due to wear. I am happy with both.

I will convert one of the bikes to the same set up when I replace stuff. Right now I am leaning towards record. My concern is the hoods. I too have big hands and the Ultegra hoods feel a bit better. I do not know if I just need to change the position of my Record hoods or not. When I bought the bike I put the bars on so that the hoods were the same height as the Ultegra. I do not feel comfrotable on long (7% and greater) decents with the Record. I feel as if I am going to fall off the front of the bike. I do not know if this is the angle of the hoods or that the hood cover is not as "tacky" as Ultegra of what. Before I make the commitment to Record I will adjust this.

Another bid difference to me IMHO is the shift levers. The Record's lever to shift to a bigger sproket pivots. This allows me to place the lever where I want it when shifting. The Ultegra I have to place my hand (finger) where the lever wants it when shifting. The control to shift to a smaller sproket is different too. The Record shifts with the thumb. The Shimano you need to reach out to the front to shift. Most of the time I have to move my entire hand to shift (not a problem, just a comment).

One knock I heard about Shimano is breaking while shifting and shifting while breaking. I have not had this problem at all in many thousands of miles.

I do not have a problem shifting on hills with either. I shift before I get bogged down and by the time I get bogged down, there aint no shiften left to do.

I do not do suddent jump on the peddle sprints so I cannot comment on that.

In shopping for both DA and Record, I have found the groups to be about the same advertised price, and about the same weight for each. Components vary a lot but the whole group is compatable.

The Campy levers are rebuildable. My LBS says the Shimano are not.

I would suggest trying to ride a bike with each. Flat, up, and down hills.

vadiver said:

I bought the bike with Record use and many componets need to be replaced. I have no idea how many miles are on it. This causes some anoyances on rides but when talking to the LBS they tell me it is a wear issue. The Ultegra was brand new and I know how many miles are on each component. So I figure any thing that does not seem right with the Record is probably due to wear. I am happy with both.

Record is built for weight reduction and uses many CF and Ti parts, so it does wear faster. While Chorus is optimized for both durability and weight reduction and is the group that many smart shoppers go for.

Quoted post said:

One knock I heard about Shimano is breaking while shifting and shifting while breaking. I have not had this problem at all in many thousands of miles.

I think you meant "braking".

sogood said:

I think you meant "braking".

No, it's Shimano. He means "breaking". 😄

alfeng said:

Almost everyone in this forum who espouses Shimano in favor of Campagnolo must be a Flatlander OR someone whose climbs are only ~100 yard long ...

Wow. I guess you do know it all. After all, there's no way I can be satisfied with my Campy stuff on all the climbs around here, including Mt. Lemmon, which despite your concise, obviously empirical, science-based analysis, is 25+ miles long....dang! Imagine that: a climb of 7000 or so feet over 25 miles and the Campy works fine. Dang! It even works fine on the 15%+ climbs around here! Dang!

Remind me not to stop in your shop, because you obviously don't know anything about Campy stuff.