11 Speed myths!

Chrissz

Unfortunately I am unable to afford to buy a complete Campagnolo 11 speed Super Record groupset in one go so I've had to buy the components separately.

Consequently I've got as far as buying the cassette, chain and Ergo levers. Along the way I've come across all sorts of stories about compatability issues, special tools etc.- it seems that many of them are little more than myths put about by crafty market men and people who haven't actually tried it out!

1. You need a Campag pin and special (£120 special) tool to joint he 11 speed chain - wrong! Ice Toolz make a £20 chain breaker that does the job beautifully and a SRAM Powerlock works beautifully in joining the chain (no fouling, doesn't get caught in between the cogs etc.).

2. You have to use an 11 speed front mech or it will foul/rub on the chain - wrong! I have a 10speed front mech operating beautifully!

3. You have to use the special 11speed rear mech - wrong! My 10 speed Record mech works fine!

OK, so the result is that I seem to have saved a rather large bundle of cash (or numbers on the credit card) in order to upgrade from 10speed to 11speed. I will be replacing both front and rear mechs with 11SR in the very near future but I doubt very much if I'll end up 'invesiting' in the Campag chain pins (£5 ea) or the Campag chain tool at £120 or so.

The set-up's been 'bench tested' in my shed and will get it's first proper run during Sunday's club run - I'll report back afterwards.

Bugly

I havent tried running 11 speed and I thank you for your input. A lot of people with little or no engineering talent get hung up on the issues you discussed. In my experience as long as the range of motion is adequate then the front and rear derailleurs will work regardless of the number of cogs. The reason is simple the indexing is done by the shifter not the mech. Now I suspect this may be one reason why Shimano is pushing its electric serve shifters - the mech and the system will need to be be matched therefore requiring the purchase of a complete system.

Bugly

I havent tried running 11 speed and I thank you for your input. A lot of people with little or no engineering talent get hung up on the issues you discussed. In my experience as long as the range of motion is adequate then the front and rear derailleurs will work regardless of the number of cogs. The reason is simple the indexing is done by the shifter not the mech. Now I suspect this may be one reason why Shimano is pushing its electric serve shifters - the mech and the system will need to be be matched therefore requiring the purchase of a complete system.

Bugly

I havent tried running 11 speed and I thank you for your input. A lot of people with little or no engineering talent get hung up on the issues you discussed. In my experience as long as the range of motion is adequate then the front and rear derailleurs will work regardless of the number of cogs. The reason is simple the indexing is done by the shifter not the mech. Now I suspect this may be one reason why Shimano is pushing its electric serve shifters - the mech and the system will need to be be matched therefore requiring the purchase of a complete system.

bob_summers

does the ice tools breaker peen the head of the joining pin? if it doesn't, i'm not sure i'd trust it.

i also baulked at the cost of the campag tool, so i had a shop join the chain for me. hopefully by the time i need to do it again, the pedro's 11 spd tool will be on sale, along with the kmc 11 chain. haven't seen either in a shop yet though,...

Chrissz

bob_summers,, no, The Ice tool is just an 11speed chain breaker - no peening ability.

Bugly, I can report that it worked on the road like a dream:) I went out on the usual Sunday club run (sprints, blasts up hill, long drags, chains etc.) for 45 miles and the system behaved faultlessly

I will eventually get SR mechs but at least I can ride my summer bike now (well, it is dry out)

domhnall_dearg

no, The Ice tool is just an 11speed chain breaker - no peening ability.

The metal that needs peening is very soft, so by gently using the ice toolz breaker in reverse (if you see what I mean) you can peen the joining pin quite easily.
The SRAM Powerlink working OK is ceratinly interesting!

Bugly

sorry for the reposts dont know what happened :oops:

Velonutter

Chrissz does the normal UT 10 Speed Chainset work with the 11s?

So can I assume that you split the chain as normal to the right length and then use the SRAM powerlink to connect up? Does KMC do an 11s joining link as well?

So with a new Cassette, Shifters and Chain I could then run 11S for about £300?

And then sell my 10S Record stuff on Fleabay and get 11s for not much more as it appears cheaper than good 10s 8)

Chrissz

Slow-N-Old wrote:

Chrissz does the normal UT 10 Speed Chainset work with the 11s?

Yes

Slow-N-Old wrote:

So can I assume that you split the chain as normal to the right length and then use the SRAM powerlink to connect up?

Yes Use a less expensive 11speed chain tool.

Slow-N-Old wrote:

Does KMC do an 11s joining link as well?

So with a new Cassette, Shifters and Chain I could then run 11S for about £300?

And then sell my 10S Record stuff on Fleabay and get 11s for not much more as it appears cheaper than good 10s 8)

Not sure on the KMC stuff

Velonutter

Chrissz, if you are using a quick link, why do you need an 11 s chain splitter as most pins are similar, I thought it was just the width that had changed on the 11s chain.

Cheers for your advice 8)

Chrissz

Slow-N-Old wrote:

Chrissz, if you are using a quick link, why do you need an 11 s chain splitter as most pins are similar, I thought it was just the width that had changed on the 11s chain.

Cheers for your advice 8)

My old chain splitter was for a 9 speed chain and wouldn't fit! I figured I owed it to myself to get a decent quality 11 speed jobbie

Pirahna

Going the other way, I put an 11 speed front mech on my wifes 10 speed setup and it works without any issues. The 10 speed is too wide to run with a Tune crank, the 11 is about the same dimensions as a Shimano 10.