campag brake hierarchy

fred22

To the uninitiated like myself the various campag models' brakes seem very similar whereas other elements of their groupsets seem quite differentiated e.g. Shifters.

Are the top range brakes better than, say, centaur performance -wise, and which is the best pound for pound campag brake

Thanks

Monty Dog

There is greater difference between the 2012 models - Athena, Chorus, Record and Super Record stick with the Skeleton design, whereas Centaur and Veloce have a more 'closed' design. With top end models, you get titanium fasteners, ball-bearing pivots and machined-out pad-holders. Performance-wise, Chorus is very similar to Record, just doesn't have the titanium fasteners.

g00se

Veloce and Centaur (2011/12) look similar but the Centaur come with alloy pad cassettes, whereas the Veloce are single units. This means replacement pads for the Centaur brakes will be cheaper and they'll be greater options to choose from.

Also, look out on Ebay for 'new' or nearly new 2010 Centaur skeleton brakes (pre 2011/12, there were skeleton options for Centaur and Veloce). Can be had for prices similar to the solid models. They're the same as the higher spec group brakes, just less lightweight materials.