Campag Mistral shifters - replacement
Cheshire Mackem
Posts: 5
Does any one know if Campag Xenon shifters (10 speed) are compatible replacements for Campag Mirage shifters - has anyone used this as a replacement?
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If they are the same speed, then they are compatibleleft the forum March 20230
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Hi
Short answer - Mirage are a straight replacement for Xenon if both sets are 10s and contemporary ...
Longer answer (possibly worth reading especially if you are not looking at new kit) - Mirage are a straight replacement for Xenon if both sets are 10s .... however, there are a couple of provisos. All 10s is not necessarily smoothly compatible with all 10s (sorry, Ugo ...).
If both sets of levers are "Escape type", that is to say, have a three sprocket downshift & one sprocket upshift function, then yes, you can do a like-for-like swap if the original set of levers was paired to the correct derailleur.
If both sets of levers are "Full ErgoPower type", that is to say, have a three sprocket downshift & five sprocket upshift function, then again, yes, you can do a like-for-like swap, if the original set of levers was paired to the correct derailleur.
Campagnolo 10s rear derailleurs from 2007 had two different return spring rates - Xenon through to Centaur used a lower spring rate to work better and impose less strain on the internals of Escape levers, wheras Record and Chorus retained the same spring rate that all Campagnolo rear derailleurs had prior to 2007.
If you have one of the lower spring-rate RDs it won't always work as well with "Full Ergopower type" levers, wheras the higher spring rate type work fine with "Escape type" levers but you may see decreased shifter life.
We say "won't always" because there are plenty of instances where it works fine, but we do sometimes see problems in older levers with wear and tear or corrosion in the central pivot in addition to which more complicated cable runs and sometimes internal cabling add too much friction to the system overall for the lower return spring tension to be able to pull the cable back through the system and assist in turning the internals of the lever. Such set-ups are also less tolerant of dirty cabling or worn cabling.
These lower spring rate RDs will also not work well with 2009 UltraShift control levers. A special edition "old shape" Veloce and Centaur RD was made in 2009 to work with those levers.
If you need to check the spring type in the RD, this is simple - look inside the paralellogram and you'll see the return spring. There is a coiled end and a "free" end which presses against the inner plate of the parallelogram. If the free end is curved into a simple semi-circle, that's the higher-rate spring. If it's a 3/4 circle, that's the lower-rate spring designed for "Escape Type" levers.
Current shape Veloce and Centuar RDs work well with Escape Levers as the mechanism inside the current PowerShift levers is essentially the same as Escape.
FDs should also match - Escape levers work best with "QuickShift" FDs which give a full shift from small ring / against the low limit screw to big ring / against the high limit screw (assuming the limit screws are correctly set on Campag chainrings / chainset), with correct cable tension in 3 clicks. Non-QS FDs won't do this - they don't move enough per movement of the lever. You can still use a non QS FD, but you will probably see reduced lever life as the rider needs to take a full lever movement and a half to do from small to big ring and part way through the second "swing" the FD comes up against the high gear limit screw, so the rider is still applying full force to a lever that can't go anywhere - done often enough, this will lead to lever failure. Too low a cable tension will give the same end result, even with a QS FD.
Sorry it's a long & very full answer, but hopefully it'll also help others with similar (if not the exact same) query to the OP. We get questions around this area quite frequently (although we do also cover it in our FAQs on our website).
Graeme
Velotech Cycling Ltd
Campagnolo Main UK Service Centre
http://www.velotech-cycling.ltd.uk0 -
I have tried many combinations and they all work... some are better than others, not necessarily the ones you would expect.
I had great shifting from a set of Centaur 2008 Ergos 10s with an old 8 speed Avanti RD... really sharp, much better than the matching 2008 Centaur.
However, when you are looking at Mirage and Xenon, I think functionality and price should be the priority, hence if the OP cannot find the original spare, any 10 speed will do the job. The Escape Ergos (like the 2008 I mentioned) are particularly bad and to be avoided altogether, but they are no longer in use, I believeleft the forum March 20230
