Swapping campagnolo to shimano

StillGoing

Matthewfalle wrote:

cougie wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

cougie wrote:

I ditched campag decades ago as you needed expensive campag only spanners to service it. Shimano cane along and everything was done with an Allen key. Simple.

My Shimano stuff just keeps working. I can't honestly tell you what the last bit of tinkering I had to do with it was. It's reliable.

Bland is the word. The Ford Focus 1.6 of the groupset world.

I don't need my gears to have character. Just to work and carry on doing so.

A bike full of character sounds like a bike that doesn't work properly unless you know it's tricks.

No - it means that it's one that works perfect (which isn't difficult as it's a bicycle, not a rocket ship), that's cool, different from the 7,000 others, makes you smile, makes others turn heads and makes them jealous.

Something you'd actually be gutted about if you had it stolen/broke it, not just shrug, claim off the household insurance and order another off the internet.

A carbon bike with an Ultegra groupset doesn't really hit the character mark really. Especially if it's a Trek.

That's you and not "7,000" others. Personally, Campag does absolutely nothing for me. My old Basso had SRAM on it and stuff any fool that says it was sacrilege to put anything but an Italian group-set on an Italian bike.

naavt

I don't even think that the Focus analogy is a good one. A Ford Focus is a bland car but it works. Compared to an Alfa, which has a reputation of giving a lot of trouble, the Focus is the sensible choice to someone who cares less about character.

On the other hand, a Shimano group is not only bland, but is one that offers nothing more than that, not even reliability compared with a Campy group of the same tier. Which is something that someone who buys a Ford instead of a Alfa is looking for.

For a quick comparison, look at what the press is saying about the new released Centaur when compared with a 105 group. Here's what Starbike wrote bout it:

"Some websites are labeling this groupset as a SRAM Rival and Shimano 105 challenger, though I think that’s a little unfair. At least with Shimano, every time I use their 105 groupset I can’t escape the feeling that it’s just a cheaper version of Ultegra. It doesn’t offer anything more, apart from a cheaper price point. Campagnolo Centaur on the other hand, offers a well thought out groupset which offers privateers a wide gearing range. It’s not Potenza trickled down with cheaper materials, but rather a distinct groupset designed with a purpose."

Matthewfalle

Eh?

svetty

You can't beat the old Campag vs Shimano debate.....Yawn :roll: :roll:

fenix

I think some people are getting carried away with their bikes. Think of an epic bike ride you once did - might have had awesome climbs or hideous rain - the memory of it lives with your for years. Can you honestly remember the make of component - or even the bike you were on ?

It's about the ride. Not the branding.

Campah/Shimano/SRAM/whatever - it doesn't make much difference.

cycleclinic

veloce just works well and the bb's outlast ultegra BB's by a good margin. If the veloce cassette options are not to your liking miche offer more options. ultegra as good as it is does not do the fundemental job of the drivetrain - changing gear -any better than veloce does. they feel different but that does not mean better. campagnolo cables also need changing less frequently than shimano. better steel (higher nickel content) is used.

trivial_poursuivant

drlodge wrote:

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

Anyone mention wheels? or at least freehub?

Or can you run a campag cassette with Shimano shifters and derailleurs?

11 speed is interchangeable between the two, so you can run Shimano shifters/derailleur with Campag 11sp wheel/freehub and cassette.

Veloce is 10 Speed . There is no 11sp version. They brought Potenza out instead to fill that gap , which is probably the most cost effective 11sp Campag instead of moving to Ultegra

trivial_poursuivant

Btw, I have a full Veloce groupset on my VN7 I might consider selling.

davebradswmb

I am a Campag man myself, but I do have a Shimano BB on my winter bike. I am on my third now and it is looking like it is going to need replacing again soon. It shouldn't be a surprise really, the Ultegra BB is a crappy piece of engineering and I will probably replace it with a Hope BB this time to save the hassle.

shortfall

Fenix wrote:

I think some people are getting carried away with their bikes. Think of an epic bike ride you once did - might have had awesome climbs or hideous rain - the memory of it lives with your for years. Can you honestly remember the make of component - or even the bike you were on ?

It's about the ride. Not the branding.

Campah/Shimano/SRAM/whatever - it doesn't make much difference.

I think you're right up to a point in that just getting out and riding your bike is the main thing. However, having a rare or nice looking bike is part of the pleasure of ownership, as is personalising it by adorning it with exotic parts and wheels and so on. Matthew Faille makes a valid point with his Ford Focus analogy. There's nothing wrong with the car as such and it's reliable, comfortable and economical to run etc but it's also completely bland and uninvolving (and I should know about these things owning a 1 litre Skoda). I have nothing against Shimano but Campagnolo is every bit as reliable (YMMV) whilst being so much more stylish and tactile. I have Record on my good bike and it makes me feel just a little bit special everytime I look at it or use it and I enjoy it's rarity and the fact that I'm in quite an exclusive club of people who possess it. I may have used this analogy before but Shimano is like the Casio of the watch world. It's cheap, it keeps good time and when it eventually breaks down you throw it in the bin. But the watch you secretly yearn for and look at in the jewellers window is the Breitling or the Omega and when you eventually get to own one you love it and cherish it and keep it forever. That's my take on it anyway.

trivial_poursuivant

davebradswmb wrote:

I am a Campag man myself, but I do have a Shimano BB on my winter bike. I am on my third now and it is looking like it is going to need replacing again soon. It shouldn't be a surprise really, the Ultegra BB is a crappy piece of engineering and I will probably replace it with a Hope BB this time to save the hassle.

Best course of action. It infuriates me that to remove Shimano BB’s you need that stupid bloody plastic adapter to fit in the tool whereas the Hope (or FSA I’ve also used in the past) fit the tool prefectly without the need of an easily stripped bit of plastic.

trivial_poursuivant

Shortfall wrote:

Fenix wrote:

I think some people are getting carried away with their bikes. Think of an epic bike ride you once did - might have had awesome climbs or hideous rain - the memory of it lives with your for years. Can you honestly remember the make of component - or even the bike you were on ?

It's about the ride. Not the branding.

Campah/Shimano/SRAM/whatever - it doesn't make much difference.

I think you're right up to a point in that just getting out and riding your bike is the main thing. However, having a rare or nice looking bike is part of the pleasure of ownership, as is personalising it by adorning it with exotic parts and wheels and so on. Matthew Faille makes a valid point with his Ford Focus analogy. There's nothing wrong with the car as such and it's reliable, comfortable and economical to run etc but it's also completely bland and uninvolving (and I should know about these things owning a 1 litre Skoda). I have nothing against Shimano but Campagnolo is every bit as reliable (YMMV) whilst being so much more stylish and tactile. I have Record on my good bike and it makes me feel just a little bit special everytime I look at it or use it and I enjoy it's rarity and the fact that I'm in quite an exclusive club of people who possess it. I may have used this analogy before but Shimano is like the Casio of the watch world. It's cheap, it keeps good time and when it eventually breaks down you throw it in the bin. But the watch you secretly yearn for and look at in the jewellers window is the Breitling or the Omega and when you eventually get to own one you love it and cherish it and keep it forever. That's my take on it anyway.

The thing with the Campag/Shimano boils down to pretty much the last bit. A Breitling or Omega does look a lot nicer than a Casio. But does it tell the time better? Is it more accurate? Not really. It’s shiny and expensive but it’s really only doing the same job for a lot more money. If you have cash to burn Campag is nicer to look at but day to day Ultegra still does just as good a job and your not shelling out loads to do so. That money saved could buy so much more other stuff, if your budget isn’t that large. It’s one thing looking at a bike, but your meant to ride it, not hang it on the wall.

naavt

Trivial poursuivant wrote:

Shortfall wrote:

Fenix wrote:

I think some people are getting carried away with their bikes. Think of an epic bike ride you once did - might have had awesome climbs or hideous rain - the memory of it lives with your for years. Can you honestly remember the make of component - or even the bike you were on ?

It's about the ride. Not the branding.

Campah/Shimano/SRAM/whatever - it doesn't make much difference.

I think you're right up to a point in that just getting out and riding your bike is the main thing. However, having a rare or nice looking bike is part of the pleasure of ownership, as is personalising it by adorning it with exotic parts and wheels and so on. Matthew Faille makes a valid point with his Ford Focus analogy. There's nothing wrong with the car as such and it's reliable, comfortable and economical to run etc but it's also completely bland and uninvolving (and I should know about these things owning a 1 litre Skoda). I have nothing against Shimano but Campagnolo is every bit as reliable (YMMV) whilst being so much more stylish and tactile. I have Record on my good bike and it makes me feel just a little bit special everytime I look at it or use it and I enjoy it's rarity and the fact that I'm in quite an exclusive club of people who possess it. I may have used this analogy before but Shimano is like the Casio of the watch world. It's cheap, it keeps good time and when it eventually breaks down you throw it in the bin. But the watch you secretly yearn for and look at in the jewellers window is the Breitling or the Omega and when you eventually get to own one you love it and cherish it and keep it forever. That's my take on it anyway.

The thing with the Campag/Shimano boils down to pretty much the last bit. A Breitling or Omega does look a lot nicer than a Casio. But does it tell the time better? Is it more accurate? Not really. It’s shiny and expensive but it’s really only doing the same job for a lot more money. If you have cash to burn Campag is nicer to look at but day to day Ultegra still does just as good a job and your not shelling out loads to do so. That money saved could buy so much more other stuff, if your budget isn’t that large. It’s one thing looking at a bike, but your meant to ride it, not hang it on the wall.

Irony aside, I hang mine in the living room wall after every ride. It does make part of the living room decor and it lives there when it's not on the road.

But then again, that's nothing to do why I really prefer Campy groups over Shimano ones but you're right. It really looks better than Shimano on my living room.