Bianchi bike with Shimano or Campag?

spadey
spadey Posts: 54
edited December 2008 in Workshop
If you were going to buy a new Bianchi bike, would you go for Campagnolo equipped or Shimano. I have always been a Shimano man and don't know anything about Campag. Is it worth the change? Are parts as easy to service as Shimano?

Cheers

Comments

  • I went from ultegra on my focus to chorus on my cervelo. I reckon that once you get used to the operation, campag has a couple of advantages over shimano and shimano a couple over campag. Most importantly though is which fit your hands best: campag seem to fit smaller or slimmer hands, whereas shimano is a bit chunkier (v much personal opinion though).

    Campag, at least Chorus vs. Ultegra, has a "clunkier" or more direct feel when changing gear, Ultegra is smoother and slicker. I prefer the positiveness of campag, but if I was racing then the snickiness of the shimano may be better. I find the thumb operation on campag more of a faff than the shimano shifters - difficult to get to if deep in the drops for example.

    The two advantages of campag are the indexed front shifter which lets you trim the mech and avoid brake rub even at extreme chain angles, and the brake release system which works off the levers rather than on the calipers (doesnt effect the working of the brake if you happen to forget in the way shimano does). Shimano has a wider range of rear cassette sizes - 12-27 for example, which campag doesnt provide.

    I made the change purely for a change - I just wanted to give campag a go. I find the chorus ergolevers more comfortable than the ultegra shifters, and I prefer the more positive/clunkier feel. Maybe find a test bike - anything with ergo levers attached, take it out for an hour or so, and just get feel for whether it works for you.

    Cheers

    Jon
  • Lagavulin
    Lagavulin Posts: 1,688
    Haven't tried it yet but I reckon my mitts would love Campag '09 Ergos.

    Have '08 Centaur on my Wilier and while it's very good (shifting and braking wise) the Ergos themselves are a little shallow for me. There's a couple of hand positions from my Tiagras that I miss when on the Wilier - though I don't miss the external cable routing fromthe STIs.
  • Sacrilege question brother.

    Another one sees the error of their ways.

    Welcome to Nirvana.
  • st68
    st68 Posts: 219
    ive got 09 centaur ergos on my bianchi they are a lot better than the older models they have a really crisp shift & feel great
    cheesy quaver
  • Thooms
    Thooms Posts: 66
    Campag would be my choice, I went that route and haven't regretted it one bit - but ultimately it seems to be more of a personal choice.

    Maybe see if you can ride both and see which you prefer?
  • Rich-Ti
    Rich-Ti Posts: 1,831
    Lagavulin wrote:
    Haven't tried it yet but I reckon my mitts would love Campag '09 Ergos.

    Have '08 Centaur on my Wilier and while it's very good (shifting and braking wise) the Ergos themselves are a little shallow for me. There's a couple of hand positions from my Tiagras that I miss when on the Wilier - though I don't miss the external cable routing from the STIs.
    +1 8)
  • I have Campag Veloce on my Bianchi and Shimano Ultegra on my Trek. I rate them both very highly indeed. I like the the thump shifters on my Bianchi but I prefer the hoods on my trek. I love both bikes and both sets of components!
  • spadey
    spadey Posts: 54
    ok, what about servicing? Are Campag as easy to service as Shimano?
    Also what is the campag equivalent of 105, is it the veloce?

    Cheers
  • sicrow
    sicrow Posts: 791
    spadey wrote:
    ok, what about servicing? Are Campag as easy to service as Shimano?
    Also what is the campag equivalent of 105, is it the veloce?

    Cheers

    Veloce is the equivalent of 105 but generally costs a little more, from a servicing poit of view there will be little or no difference