Campy Record ergo failure

[Jzwest]

In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
and twice with an 8 speed.

The cost for this recent repair was $78.

So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the ergo
shifters to last about a year or less?

 

[Res09c5t]

Mine have lasted a lot longer. I ride about 3000 miles/year.
I have a set of Athenas that are probably five years old and
are getting ready for a rebuild due to weak springs.

"JZWest" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
> has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
> failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
> and twice with an 8 speed.
>
> The cost for this recent repair was $78.
>
> So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
> ergo shifters to last about a year or less?

 

[Kenny Lee]

JZWest wrote:
> In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
> has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
> failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
> and twice with an 8 speed.
>
> The cost for this recent repair was $78.
>
> So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
> ergo shifters to last about a year or less?
I don't know what you mean by "failure", but my right Ergo
didn't need a rebuild until the 20,000k mark after which
they shift like knew again.

Kenny Lee

 

[Jzwest]

Sorry, I should have provided more detail. It's usually been
the springs going weak. But on two occasions its been an
additional part. I forgot to retrieve the parts this time
but it looked like a barrel of some sort that had broken.
I'll ask the tech for a breakdown of the replacement parts.

I ride 200 to 275 a week and the terrain is undulating. I
wish I could have a counter mounted to the shifter as it
would be interesting to know the frequency. I don't think
I'm doing anything wrong, but the rides are very aggressive
and often I'll need to ratchet many shifts at once. I don't
know, maybe it's just bad luck.

I do remember the old days when we used down tube friction
shifters and over the same terrain I'd be so cooked at
times that I didn't have the extra energy to move my hand
from the drops to the shifter and just grunt over the hill.
The average speed these days on the training rides and
races are much higher now because it so easy to click the
optimal gear.

 

[Peter Cole]

"JZWest" <[email protected]> wrote

> The average speed these days on the training rides and
> races are much higher now because it so easy to click the
> optimal gear.

Ride a fixer for a while, that might change your
perspective.

 

[Qui Si Parla Ca]

JZwest-<< In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right
shifter) has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have
had this failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9
speed and twice with an 8 speed. >><BR><BR>

What 'failed'..just ERGO springs? These are $5 each from us,
plus $25 for the ØVH...$35...not sure what you mean.

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali
costruite eccezionalmente bene"

 

[Bill K.]

My old 8 speed Chorus Ergolevers have yet to fail in anyway.
I'm not sure why having Ergolevers or STI would make you
faster. I seem to remember that with downtube shifters, you
had to just be a little smarter, and pay attention a little
closer, to what everybody else was doing at the moment.

 

[Paul Kopit]

On 28 Apr 2004 15:38:18 -0700, [email protected] (JZWest) wrote:

>In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
>has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
>failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
>and twice with an 8 speed.
>
>The cost for this recent repair was $78.
>
>So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
>ergo shifters to last about a year or less?

It's unusual for them to fail for no reason. The
warantee is 2 years so you can get replaced of repaired
free. Wear of the indexing springs is normal but not in
such a short period.

 

[Ronald]

> If ya use ERGO a lot, they need maintenance...At least
> they are
rebuidable. If
> the lever from another company truely 'failed', shell out
> $150-$200,
if you can
> find one.

Do the springs in Shimano shifters have the same live
expectancy as the Ergo's? So that with the same amount of
use a Shimano shifter will have to be replaced when an Ergo
needs new springs, or do the springs in Shimano last longer?
If it's comparable i wonder how Shimano gets away with it.

"Qui si parla Campagnolo " <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
> JZWest-<< Sorry, I should have provided more detail.
> It's usually
been the
> springs going weak. >><BR><BR>
>
> Ahhh, not really 'failure' at all, more like when a
> car needs a
tuneup, and
> needs say new spark plugs. I guess that isn't an engine
> 'failure'...
>
> If ya use ERGO a lot, they need maintenance...At least
> they are
rebuidable. If
> the lever from another company truely 'failed', shell out
> $150-$200,
if you can
> find one.
>
> Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St.
> Boulder, CO, 80302
> (303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali
> costruite eccezionalmente bene"

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] (Bill K.) wrote:

> My old 8 speed Chorus Ergolevers have yet to fail in
> anyway. I'm not sure why having Ergolevers or STI would
> make you faster. I seem to remember that with downtube
> shifters, you had to just be a little smarter, and pay
> attention a little closer, to what everybody else was
> doing at the moment.

Yes, but if you're like me (and here I'm thinking mainly of
racing) there are important parts of the race where you're
so anaerobic or the race is so busy that being that smart
isn't likely.

Also, with brifteurs, you can shift in a sprint or while
standing, giving you a speed advantage there.

For touring or even fast-paced club rides where nobody gets
dropped, I don't think there's any notable disadvantage to
DT or barcon shifters. I happily ride a 12-speed friction DT
bike to work, on winter training, pretty much anywhere. But
for the races, I break out the brifteur-bike with slightly
taller gearing (50x14 on the commuter, 53x13 on the racer).

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email protected]
http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/ President, Fabrizio
Mazzoleni Fan Club

 

[A Muzi]

JZWest wrote:

> In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
> has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
> failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
> and twice with an 8 speed.
>
> The cost for this recent repair was $78.
>
> So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
> ergo shifters to last about a year or less?

No, that doesn't sound normal.

What did you get for your $78? How new is "new"?

Normal rebuild is a pair of G-springs ($10) and often a
spring carrier ( $5), $25 to do the job, usual interval 3-5K
miles. Maybe plus tape and cables. What was done inside?

--
Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1
April, 1971

 

[Qui Si Parla Ca]

paul-<< It's unusual for them to fail for no reason. The
warantee is 2 years so you can get replaced of repaired
free. >><BR><BR>

3 years....

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali
costruite eccezionalmente bene"

 

[John Everett]

On 30 Apr 2004 13:29:27 GMT, [email protected] (Qui si parla
Campagnolo ) wrote:

>ronald-<< Do the springs in Shimano shifters have the same
>live expectancy as the Ergo's? So that with the same amount
>of use a Shimano shifter will have to be replaced when an
>Ergo needs new springs, or do the springs in Shimano last
>longer? If it's comparable i wonder how Shimano gets away
>with it. >><BR><BR>
>
>Kinda depends...I just warrantied a left 7703 STI with 500
>miles on it. And I sent back one of Connie Carpenters right
>lever that didn't work outta the box...

As peter says, it kind of depends. My 7400 STI levers are
still going strong after 12 years, 50K+ miles, and two
bikes. My 7700 levers have been trouble free for about
four years now, and my girlfriend's (no name-dropping)
3300 levers (okay, here's some name-dropping; purchased
from Sheldon) have given three years of trouble-free
service. YMMV

jeverett3<AT>earthlink<DOT>net
http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3

 

[Paul Kopit]

On Fri, 30 Apr 2004 02:46:56 -0500, A Muzi <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Normal rebuild is a pair of G-springs ($10) and often a
>spring carrier ( $5), $25 to do the job, usual interval 3-
>5K miles.

I think that I get much more than 3-5k miles out of a set of
springs. That might be because I live in SoCal. I think I
get at least double that. I keep a spring carrier as a spare
but have only had to install one since '99. That was before
they reinforced the base of the post.

I ride with hands on the hoods and a pair of rubber hoods
needs replacement about every 8,000 mi. That costs about
the same as the springs, carrier, cables, housing and tape.
I'd probably wear the STI rubber as quickly but it costs ½
the price.

A set of Mirage levers used for parts doesn't cost much more
than the normal wear parts. I'm thinking rubber,G springs (2
pair), spring carrier, thumb lever, watch spring and thumb
lever spring.

 

[Jzwest]

I seem to remember that with downtube shifters, you had to
just be a little smarter, and pay attention a little closer,
to what everybody else was doing at the moment.

Ah yes, looks good on paper. Tell you what, my experience
towards the end of the line with using down tube shifters
was back when Huber, Gaggioli and other 1's and 2's were
terrorizing our local training rides. I can still
remember the horrific pain of just trying to hang on and
the frustration of trying to go around any of these guys
for a sprint.

Some of us still talk about those times and it's funny now
to admit to lugging over the rollers in the wrong gear
because one is reduced to brain stem only activity. So when
those ergo's came out, I was first in line. Made a big
difference. Just like Ryan said, shift while standing and
sprinting and no reason for lugging.

paul-<< It's unusual for them to fail for no reason. The
warantee is 2 years so you can get replaced of repaired
free. >><BR><BR>

3 years....

Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali
costruite eccezionalmente bene"

I took the bike in to a popular shop and I asked about the
relatively sudden failure. The tech said "yeah this stuff
happens". He never said anything about a warranty, even
though I kinda press the issue. When I went to the front
desk to pay the bill I asked the same questioned. This guy
mentioned nothing of a warranty. Should I contact Campy USA?
I have the receipt for the ergo purchase.

> In less than one year of use my rear ergo (right shifter)
> has failed. This one is the new ten speed. I have had this
> failure occur 4 times, once with this 10 speed, a 9 speed
> and twice with an 8 speed.
>
> The cost for this recent repair was $78.
>
> So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
> ergo shifters to last about a year or less?

No, that doesn't sound normal.

What did you get for your $78? How new is "new"?

Normal rebuild is a pair of G-springs ($10) and often a
spring carrier ( $5), $25 to do the job, usual interval 3-5K
miles. Maybe plus tape and cables. What was done inside?

Yeah for $78 that included tape and cables in addition to
the springs and carrier. This model is the 2003. I trained
on rain bikes over the winter so this kit was used less
than a year.

 

[Pete Biggs]

JZWest wrote:
> So, the big question is; is it reasonable to expect the
> ergo shifters to last about a year or less?

I've also worn the springs out in less than a year. It all
depends on how many times you've changed gear. Time and
number of miles is hardly relevant. Obviously cyclists less
shifty than us make their Ergos last longer.

~PB

 

[Mike Latondress]

"Pete Biggs" <pclemantine{remove_fruit}@biggs.tc> wrote in
news:[email protected]:

> I've also worn the springs out in less than a year. It all
> depends on how many times you've changed gear. Time and
> number of miles is hardly relevant. Obviously cyclists
> less shifty than us make their Ergos last longer.
>
I am about as shifty as they come and my 1999 Ergos have
been across Canada, around BC, down the west coast to CA and
to the Alps twice with no rebuilds and still shift fine. I
am retired by the by.

 

[BaCardi]

The myth about Campy being long lasting is dead. Servicing a Campy lever is worse than going to have the BMW serviced.

 

[Pete Biggs]

Mike Latondresse wrote:
> "Pete Biggs" <pclemantine{remove_fruit}@biggs.tc> wrote in
> news:[email protected]:
>
>> I've also worn the springs out in less than a year. It
>> all depends on how many times you've changed gear. Time
>> and number of miles is hardly relevant. Obviously
>> cyclists less shifty than us make their Ergos last
>> longer.
>>
> I am about as shifty as they come and my 1999 Ergos have
> been across Canada, around BC, down the west coast to CA
> and to the Alps twice with no rebuilds and still shift
> fine. I am retired by the by.

Well, some people shift even more frequently than you do,
perhaps a lot more. That is the most reasonable explanation
as to why some Ergos need servicing more often.

~PB

 

[Jay Hill]

BaCardi wrote:
> The myth about Campy being long lasting is dead. Servicing
> a Campy lever is worse than going to have the BMW
> serviced.

non sequitur