The workings of Campy Record



kjackbrown

New Member
Aug 16, 2005
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I am (relatively) new to cycling and had a Campy question...



I am currently building a bike and it seems my budget for it has taken a dramatic turn for the better! I have had a car sitting around my property for several years and somebody has made me an offer I just could not refuse. My wife says that since the car was mine (had it before the marriage), I could do anything I wanted with it. Up until now I have been "nickel and dime-ing" buying components (eBay Ultegra 10 stuff) as I have been saving up for them. The frame set I'm getting is a Kestrel Talon (waiting on the 2006 model to come out since they are supposed to bring back red as a color option) and I've always LOVED the way the carbon Campy Record components looked!



Currently, I have only been subjected to Shimano components and am used to the way they work. Since I now have enough money to buy all carbon Record stuff...I was wondering how they work (mechanically) compared to Shimano. For instance...on Shimano the brake lever (assembly) shifts the gears in one direction and the paddle thing behind it shifts it back. In looking at the Record levers, it seems the brake levers themselves don't move (in reference to shifting gears)? To make me even more confused, I (think) seen two different pictures of Record shifters, one shows a little lever at the thumb location (like Shimano Sora) and the other one did not have this feature (so it appeared).

Are there two versions?

Does Campy make a Record shifter set that mechanically operates in the same manner as Shimano (no thumb lever)?


Sorry for the long post!
 
I personally prefer Campy over Shimano. The two main reasons are that Campy hides the shift cables while Shimano runs the cables on the outside of the bars. The other reason is the way you need to crank the whole brake lever to change gears, Campy uses a thumb button and a finger lever to change gears which I prefer.
 
kjackbrown said:
I am (relatively) new to cycling and had a Campy question...



Are there two versions?

Does Campy make a Record shifter set that mechanically operates in the same manner as Shimano (no thumb lever)?
All campy works the same. Except for the flat bar shifters.....Buying record 10 and asking how it works...LOL... :rolleyes:
 
kjackbrown said:
I am (relatively) new to cycling and had a Campy question...



I am currently building a bike and it seems my budget for it has taken a dramatic turn for the better! I have had a car sitting around my property for several years and somebody has made me an offer I just could not refuse. My wife says that since the car was mine (had it before the marriage), I could do anything I wanted with it. Up until now I have been "nickel and dime-ing" buying components (eBay Ultegra 10 stuff) as I have been saving up for them. The frame set I'm getting is a Kestrel Talon (waiting on the 2006 model to come out since they are supposed to bring back red as a color option) and I've always LOVED the way the carbon Campy Record components looked!



Currently, I have only been subjected to Shimano components and am used to the way they work. Since I now have enough money to buy all carbon Record stuff...I was wondering how they work (mechanically) compared to Shimano. For instance...on Shimano the brake lever (assembly) shifts the gears in one direction and the paddle thing behind it shifts it back. In looking at the Record levers, it seems the brake levers themselves don't move (in reference to shifting gears)? To make me even more confused, I (think) seen two different pictures of Record shifters, one shows a little lever at the thumb location (like Shimano Sora) and the other one did not have this feature (so it appeared).

Are there two versions?

Does Campy make a Record shifter set that mechanically operates in the same manner as Shimano (no thumb lever)?


Sorry for the long post!
Campy does make a Record level bar-end shifter for aero bars and a conventional aero brake lever (without integrated shifting)-maybe that is what you saw.

Before you plunk down the $2000+ for a full Record-10 group and Campy compatible wheels, you should ride a bike with Campy a few times. Whereas the performance with Shimano DA and Campy Record are basically equivalent, most users have a preference. You may find that you like the Shimano better.
 
Oh, Lord - another Campy vs Shimano thread. Wear appropriate protective gear, and proceed with caution.

When I decided to go whole hog and build a road bike to my liking, I chose Campy Chorus, partially because I used to compete on a Record equipped bike in the 1980's, when Campy was king and Dura Ace was a bit of a joke. I also looked at Ultegra. Nothing wrong with it, probably the functional equivalent of Chorus. But being from the old school, the winged wheel logo of Campagnolo just has a magical appeal.

These days, Campy and Shimano are pretty much equivalent. Campy equipment costs a bit more, but is finished a bit better. There is a lot of fuss about which shifter is better. I've ridden both, and both shift the gears reliably. Personally, I don't find that either is markedly superior, although personally, I prefer Campy's crisper action. But that's a personal preference.

Campy gear tends to last a bit longer, although that isn't necessarily a huge advantage. I have a 1970's vintage Falcon cycle with Campy Record group that still works perfectly. Obsolete as all get out, but it still works.

If you have the dough, build what you want. Once you get beyond $1k-1.5k, it's as much personal jewelry as functionality, but it's pretty cool personal jewelry. Try to ride 50 miles on a bracelet...

Record carbon cranksets are horribly priced, but I'd love to have one just because they're so sharp looking. Also (you're going to hate me for this), check out a set of Cinelli RAM handlebars. Sinfully priced, but an absolute work of art. A black finish, but you can see the carbon weave deep in the finish. And they are molded to fit your hands, in several positions. Very comfortable. I bought mine used on ebay, but they don't turn up very often there.

In the 'cool looking but relatively inexpensive' department are the Campy Zonda wheels. A sharp looking aero wheel, in anodized black with silver lettering, but a modest $350-400 a set new at cbike.com. You could go the ultimate in cool with a set of Zipp 404 wheels, deep dish carbon fiber. Pretty pricey, though, and a bit fragile for casual use.

Have fun. If you have the bucks, and want it, go get it. It's an investment in your future health.
 
I have DA on my racing bike, and a lower-end Campy set (Mirage) on my commuter. I prefer the Campy set. The shifting is more snappy, and, I think, more intuitive: the downward thumb shift takes the chain down, and the upward 'paddle shift' (as you called it) brings the chain up. This works the same way both on the chain rings and rear cogset.

Can't really go wrong with either but I really do prefer campy.
 
JohnO said:
...check out a set of Cinelli RAM handlebars.
I've seen those as well... BEAUTIFUL! now that my budget permits...eBay does have some pretty good deals on these "integrated bar and stem" type systems. I was thinking of buying the ControlTech bars. I'm actually "watching" a set of Deda Elementi Synapsi bars right now. If they don't go (too much) over $300 I'll probably get them.




JohnO said:
In the 'cool looking but relatively inexpensive' department are the Campy Zonda wheels. A sharp looking aero wheel, in anodized black with silver lettering, but a modest $350-400 a set new at cbike.com. You could go the ultimate in cool with a set of Zipp 404 wheels, deep dish carbon fiber. Pretty pricey, though, and a bit fragile for casual use.
I kind of like the new Ksyrium ES wheel's. I have a thing for red.




JohnO said:
Have fun. If you have the bucks, and want it, go get it. It's an investment in your future health.
Thank's JohnO! I figure this is going to be a one time purchase and I want to do it right. I've ridden a BUNCH of bike the past year and a half (looking for "the right one for me") and I keep going back to the Talon. I haven’t ridden and SL version of it yet, I'll probably do so after the InterBike show (Sept. 28) when the bike shops start getting the 2006's in.
 
kjackbrown said:
I am (relatively) new to cycling and had a Campy question...



I am currently building a bike and it seems my budget for it has taken a dramatic turn for the better! I have had a car sitting around my property for several years and somebody has made me an offer I just could not refuse. My wife says that since the car was mine (had it before the marriage), I could do anything I wanted with it. Up until now I have been "nickel and dime-ing" buying components (eBay Ultegra 10 stuff) as I have been saving up for them. The frame set I'm getting is a Kestrel Talon (waiting on the 2006 model to come out since they are supposed to bring back red as a color option) and I've always LOVED the way the carbon Campy Record components looked!



Currently, I have only been subjected to Shimano components and am used to the way they work. Since I now have enough money to buy all carbon Record stuff...I was wondering how they work (mechanically) compared to Shimano. For instance...on Shimano the brake lever (assembly) shifts the gears in one direction and the paddle thing behind it shifts it back. In looking at the Record levers, it seems the brake levers themselves don't move (in reference to shifting gears)? To make me even more confused, I (think) seen two different pictures of Record shifters, one shows a little lever at the thumb location (like Shimano Sora) and the other one did not have this feature (so it appeared).

Are there two versions?

Does Campy make a Record shifter set that mechanically operates in the same manner as Shimano (no thumb lever)?


Sorry for the long post!
I have just put Record 10 on my bike. Switched out Chorus 9. The Record stuff works very nicely, feels really good in the hands and the Record carbon cranset is excellent. It all shifts very well, feels really positive, and durable. I have been a Campy user for years so there was nothing really new for me here other then new components. My Chorus 9 was really an old mid 1990s 8 speed system that I upgraded. The comment about spending $2000 for Record is not completely accurate. The Record cassette is really expensie because of the titanium and paired large rings. I went with a Centaur 10 speed cassette for somewhere between $50 and $70 vs $300 for Record. Otherwise all the rest of the set up is Record. The Campy Record and Chours breaks are excellent, very strong and have nice modulation. As for the post about preference for Shimano vs Campy.... this is a very personal thing. I, personally, do not find Shimano STI levers to be as intuitive as Campy Ergo levers, but that's me and a number of others who prefer Campy. Many people use Shimano out of preference and that's what came on the bike that they bought. An interesting side story here has to do with my wife. I just bought her a road bike and it came with Shimano Ultegra on it. It's a Blue Competition carbon bike and her first experience with break shifters. While out riding on her second time out on the new bike, she commented that the Shimano shifters were not intuitive to her. I did not bait her, she just blurted this out. I smiled to myself and muttered, "jep!"
 
Most of the major points have been covered. I'll add a couple from my own personal experience.

1) Chorus is a great value

2) My Campy parts have always lasted. My current bike just turned 10,000miles and the only thing I've done with the Chorus 9s parts is keep them clean, lubed, and I replaced the chain and a cog set. I could have kept the cog set if I weren't lazy and changed my chain more often. The stuff works great. I'm on to building a new bike now and it occured to me that I've got a complete Chorus grouppo that is just fine - any takers?

3) I have smaller hands. When racing and coming to the finish in a sprint, I find it much easier to acctuate the Campy "thumb button" from the drops as compared to reaching for the Shimano down-shift lever. This is critical when in the heat of the battle. A few years back I raced for Trek-Volkswagon and we were on 5200's with Ultegra - this was all newer stuff than the Chorus 9s I had on my personal bike. The bike worked pretty well and I never had any problems with it except for the down-shifting issue described above. (off topic - I really didn't care for the OCLV frame)

4) I also like the clean look of both cables routed inside the bar tape.

5) Campy can sometimes present a wheel compatibility issue. Most of the big wheel makers have a campy compatible hub body, but not all. Also, if you are racing sometimes nuetral support teams found at bigger events don't have a lot of, or any, campy wheels.

6) You can almost always get spare/repair parts for your Campy. That is one of the most beautiful things about their design. They designed it for function, form or looks, and serviceability. Their parts are designed to be taken apart and put back together.

7) I just found this next tidbit out becuase I am building a new bike with Record 10s. The 9s and 10s freehub bodies are the same! That means I can continue to use all of my current 9s wheels on my new 10s bike - all I need is new cogs. That was great new and I thank Campy for considering their customers who may be upgrading to 10s.

8) I'm not sure what the current market is like, becuase I haven't bought or sold any used bike parts for year, but it used to be that Campy parts would tend to hold their value a little better than Shimano.

Good luck! I wish I had a couple of cars to sell to fuel my new found love for bikes....