Old Campy Synchro DT Shift Levers



C

* * Chas

Guest
Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory gruppo.

Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
levers.

Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
pictures on
how to remove it but I lost the link.

I did an hour or so of reading on the web about how to make Synchros work
and 10 minutes of putzing with them before giving up on Sysiphos.

I don't want to waste any more time trying to make them index. The
release lever to switch them over to friction shifting is a clumsy design.

I have a set of Syncho II levers that I'm going to use instead - in
friction mode of course.

Chas.
 
* * Chas wrote:
> Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory gruppo.
>
> Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
> levers.
>
> Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
> pictures on
> how to remove it but I lost the link.
>
> I did an hour or so of reading on the web about how to make Synchros work
> and 10 minutes of putzing with them before giving up on Sysiphos.
>
> I don't want to waste any more time trying to make them index. The
> release lever to switch them over to friction shifting is a clumsy design.
>
> I have a set of Syncho II levers that I'm going to use instead - in
> friction mode of course.
>
> Chas.


Charles, Call me of an evening and I'll help you out with that. They are
unusual but not impossible.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971
 
* * Chas wrote:
> Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory gruppo.
>
> Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
> levers.
>
> Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
> pictures on
> how to remove it but I lost the link....
>

An angle grinder with a carbide cutting disc should work for removal. If
that fails, get a plasma cutter.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
"And never forget, life ultimately makes failures of all people."
- A. Derleth
 
On Jan 24, 12:02 pm, "* * Chas" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory gruppo.
>
> Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
> levers.
>
> Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
> pictures on
> how to remove it but I lost the link.
>
> I did an hour or so of reading on the web about how to make Synchros work
> and 10 minutes of putzing with them before giving up on Sysiphos.
>
> I don't want to waste any more time trying to make them index.  The
> release lever to switch them over to friction shifting is a clumsy design.
>
> I have a set of Syncho II levers that I'm going to use instead - in
> friction mode of course.
>
> Chas.


Dear Chas,

I wonder if your lost pictures were on this site:

http://www.tuttocampybici.com/

The site had (among other things) pdfs of old campy manuals, but it
seems to be down or dead now.

Cheers,

Carl Fogel
 
"A Muzi" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> * * Chas wrote:
> > Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory

gruppo.
> >
> > Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
> > levers.
> >
> > Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
> > pictures on
> > how to remove it but I lost the link.
> >
> > I did an hour or so of reading on the web about how to make Synchros

work
> > and 10 minutes of putzing with them before giving up on Sysiphos.
> >
> > I don't want to waste any more time trying to make them index. The
> > release lever to switch them over to friction shifting is a clumsy

design.
> >
> > I have a set of Syncho II levers that I'm going to use instead - in
> > friction mode of course.
> >
> > Chas.

>
> Charles, Call me of an evening and I'll help you out with that. They are
> unusual but not impossible.
> --
> Andrew Muzi
> www.yellowjersey.org
> Open every day since 1 April, 1971


Thanks for the offer. I figured out how to get the Synchro lever off but
the tiny lock screw escaped to my shop floor. What a Mickey Mouse design!

I got a copy of the 1988 Campy Synchro shifter guide. There is no color
code on the ratchet so I have no idea which one I have. A LBS has a box
full so I guess that I need to get a yellow one for the Victory RD. It's
the later S3 model RD.

I put on a new Synchro II lever. Out of the box with no adjusting the
Synchro II lever works much better than the original version. Now I have
to mess around with chain and freewheel combos.

I have a new Sedis Sport chain on it now and I have new 6 speed Shimano
105 and Suntour Winner 13-28 freewheels to play with. The rest of the
drive train is almost now new 1988 vintage Campy components so I should be
able to get it to work OK. The bike came with a Shimano 6 Sp FW and Sedis
Sport chain.

Have you tried any of the SRAM PC850 chains yet? They look like the late
70s Shimano original Uniglide chains with the wide side plates in the
middle of the links. I wonder how one of those would work with this
system.

Chas.
 
> "* * Chas" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> Bought an almost new 1988 Bianchi Giro bike with a Campy Victory gruppo.
>> Problem: It came with "Tullio's Revenge" 1st generation Synchro shift
>> levers.
>> Question: How do I get the right side lever off? I saw a web site with
>> pictures on
>> how to remove it but I lost the link.
>> I did an hour or so of reading on the web about how to make Synchros

> work
>> and 10 minutes of putzing with them before giving up on Sysiphos.
>> I don't want to waste any more time trying to make them index. The
>> release lever to switch them over to friction shifting is a clumsy

> design.
>> I have a set of Syncho II levers that I'm going to use instead - in
>> friction mode of course.


> <[email protected]> wrote
> I wonder if your lost pictures were on this site:
> http://www.tuttocampybici.com/
> The site had (among other things) pdfs of old campy manuals, but it
> seems to be down or dead now.


"* * Chas" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I broke down and bought a DVD with most if not all of the Campy literature
> on it for ~$25USD with shipping.
>
> http://campybike.com/
>
> I found the Campy instruction flyer on Synchro shift levers and it helped
> somewhat.
>
> This site below has some really good tips and how-tos on getting Syncro
> shifters to work??? MIC-KEY-MOUSE
>
> http://www.tearsforgears.com/2007/06/syncro-tips-and-tricks.html
>
> I didn't waste much time on the original Synchro shifters that came with
> the bike. I have several sets of new Synchro II levers and I put one of
> them on the bike last night.
>
> Out of the box with no screwing around they worked far superior to the
> original Synchro levers. My time playing around with creative anachronism
> is fast coming to an end. If I can't get the Synchro IIs working right
> after 20 minutes, I have some C-Record or Chorus DT friction shifters. The
> day I can't friction shift a 6 speed is the day I move to a single speed
> bent trike. ;-)


I own a 1985 Campagnolo prototype six downtube shifter which works
flawlessly - and violates a Shimano patent.

Being late to the game, Campagnolo developed the Syncro with a new
G-spring-with-sintered-gear format which they didn't perfect until the
1992 Ergo. That basic design continues to this day. Syncros can work
well but need rigor in setup. Older straight cut freewheel teeth don't
help Syncros at all, despite Campagnolo's charts.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971