Off the peg Campag equipped TT bikes

hammerite

I'm not yet in the market for a TT bike, but I'm keeping an eye out just in case.......

I've noticed that there are very few TT bikes which have a Campag groupset which can be bought off the peg. Does anyone know of any?

Also people like Ribble or PX who usually have a build your own spec don't seem to offer a Campag alternative, presumably as they get better discounts by only buying loads of Shimano kit.

Any reasons why Campag TT bikes seem to be so hard to come by?

I'm not actually anti Shimano, so I'm not trying to start the argument! It's just seems more practical for me to have Campag on a TT bike as my best bike is Campag, so I'd like to have a wheelset I could use on both bikes if needed.

flashman469

I've noticed a Wilier Lavaredo TT bike with Campag set up on Winstanley bikes I think. Not sure what sizes were available but they were also at a discounted rate because they were last year models.

Just checked the site and they are still available and at first glance appear a good deal. Veloce equipped for £699 and Centaur equipped for £899. The Centaur had small and medium available, not sure about the other.

STEFANOS4784

Geoffery butler(?) bike shop does Campag equipped planet x, maybe worth givin them a bell

STEFANOS4784

Sorry my spelling is shocking but this is the place;

http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/

STEFANOS4784

STEFANOS4784 wrote:

Sorry my spelling is shocking but this is the place;

http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/

Hangon, maybe i'm wrong but i swear i remember someone linking that site with a Campag groupset

hammerite

Thanks for the reply, yes I've seen the Lavaredo (there was one on the rack above my Izoard when I bought that!). I was ideally looking at a carbon frame, but it's definitely one to consider.

STEFANOS4784

They had the P-X Carbon pro with Veloce,



http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/eshop.asp?wci ... PRO+VELOCE


They should be able to souce the TT bike i would have thought?

pianoman

Surely if Ribble can't offer their TT bikes with a Campag groupset it would be possible to source them direct from Deda?

Then you could maybe save even more money to put shiny carbon aerodynamic cages on

I like the look of the Wilier though............just wondering what is the benefit of a full TT bike as opposed to a good road bike with tribars? Apart from the bar end gear shifting of course?

STEFANOS4784

Just had a thought, with bar end shifters what is guna be the difference between Campag/ Shimano :?


(No stupid answers please )

pianoman

stupid answers please )

Because my other bike has lots of Campag on it?!

hammerite

Thanks for replies.

Dunno about Deda, never thought of buying directly before, it's possible. The GB built PX is possible too.

I've considered building my own, but it's good to know what options are out there, especially as I'm not blessed with the best practical ability - and don't own all the tools!

Toonraid

I nearly bought a Ridley Dean earlier in the year and as standard it was fitted with Campag record groupset - supposed to be the fastest bike in the world (17% more aero than no 2) so not that unusual but you are right - shimano and SRAM have a much more aggressive policy towards OEM where as Campagnolo thinks of themselves as an after market parts supplier outside Italy and Benilux (I guess other sets don't last as long on Belgium cobbles).

hammerite

On looking I've found a couple of others, someone has pointed out a Colnago (not sure which model) and a Bianchi. They are all at he very top end, fine if you want to be spending £5-7k on a bike.

My budget would probably be around £2k, £2.5k if a bike came with a wheelset I wanted. I reckon I'm going to have to get creative and get frame and all the parts, then ask someone to build it for me - someone with more know how and all the tools. At least this way I can get the stuff in dribs and drabs and just build it once I had everything.

Toonraid

What size are you hammerite?

2.5K is probably pushing it if its a Carbon frame with Disc rear & high profile carbon front.

hammerite

I'd be a 54cm.

I wouldnt go for a disc rear, probably just 50mm front and rear.

I was thinking Dalkiia frame, forks and seat post (£500), gigantex 50mm wheels (£500 that people are keen to recommend on here), centaur group (£600??), then other bits taking up the rest - although I could be under estimating the cost of "the rest" it all depends how high I aim I suppose.

The thing about doing it this way, I can buy some wheels to use with my best bike anyway, then get the rest later (which means the total cost could increase ), or vice versa.

Toonraid

deleted

hammerite

Toonraid wrote:

Not sure if custom made is the best way to go for a newbie - better off to get some miles under your wing and allow you body to find its position before pulling the plug on a custom made - I also had bad advice from one of the top fitters in London and while I am sure there are some great fitters out there you'd be better off trying to figure it out yourself - its not rocket science!

Possibly not best to go custom. When I'm closer to actually being able to buy I'll try and work out what is best.

blackrockracer

Argon 18 E80 is going to be supplyed with Campagnolo equipment for 2010 . Not too sure on the RRP but you cold contact the gents , jim walker and they should be able to point you in the right direction.

Toonraid

PianoMan wrote:

just wondering what is the benefit of a full TT bike as opposed to a good road bike with tribars? Apart from the bar end gear shifting of course?

Road bikes have a seat tube angel of around 74, TT bikes its 76 and Tri bikes 78. Other differences are stiffer frame (less comfortable but better power transfer) and of course the aero profile of the frame.

On a budget I would stick to an alu TT frame but get the best aero bars and Helmet I could together with a deep profile carbon wheelset and then for future upgrade go for a Disc rear wheel and then an Oval Jetstream fork and only then upgrade to carbon when and if the funds become available.

You will find that cheap carbon frames are actually heavier and more flexy than a good alu frame. But I guess Carbon is the bling!!!

pianoman

So maybe a Catlike Chrono would be the way to go then? My standard road bike already has tri-bars that go under the handebar stem, and I'm buying a skinsuit when my club's kit order is submitted for 2010. Maybe a full-on TT bike isn't really worth the money in my case, given that I could simply make my equipment more aero?

As for wheels, there's a lot of alloy rims out there around 30mm, the deepest I've seen are 34. Would I be right in saying that you need far deeper rims to get an aero benefit over my current wheelset that uses 24mm rims?

Toonraid

Unfortunately its a little more complex than that!

As already stated SP angels are different, also most tend to sit a tad lower on their TT bikes meaning that you'd be using slightly different muscle groups when on proper aero bike - to build them up to a competative level and fine tune your body position you will need to do atleast one ride a week in that position even if its on a trainer and that is just too much hassle for most to switch bars/cables.

But if you have an old road bike and can reverse the seatpost to mimick the angels then that would be great.

As for wheels - you really need to have atleast 50 mm rim profile to see any decent aero advantage.