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Are there more people on Campy in CX than Road? Who's gonna run the new ergos? And other Campy stuff.

Ok, so I've been diggin' through the forum and article archives and finding good stuff. but more importantly a lot of people who ride Campy! Here in the wilds of Maine if you tell someone you're building a CX bike with Campy they pretty much call you an idiot. So who many here ride Campy? Please sound off. But those with Campy shifters cabled to Shimano parts (eww) and giant red, hideous seats, need not. :D See, I have been catching up.

Some of you may know this already so please skip on:

Now Surly Bastard and others, may be glad to know that the Escape mechs are all but dead for '09. You can get escape as an optional set of Veloce ergos, but I think they are just trying to get rid of old stock. Now, the 'Ultra Shift Veloce (black levers) and Centaur (all shiny alloy, or carbon/black) are 10s. And the design seems really well thought out ergonomically. There may be much more leverage available, from the hood position, to apply to the brake lever. Which I would assume (I'm a noob) would be much better for CX racers. Can anyone comment on this? Also the new FD with the new US ergos seems to shift much better from what I read in a review (either Velo news or bike radar, can't remember). Although, the ramp system on the rings has been improved and I'm sure contributes. Will that be enough to get pros from using Shimano FDs with their Campy drive trains? :D And what about 11s? Will there really be issues? [ducking for cover] On a good note, it looks like Athena is coming back, and it's going to an 11s group under Chorus. It might me rather affordable in comparison to Record.

Ok, is there anyone out there using Ultra Torque cranks? If so STD or CT? And what size chainrings with what cassette. Where did you get it and what brand is it? Would you recommend them? I have seen a lot of people mention that 48s were too big, but what cassette were you using? Is it just me, or do most Campy riders use a 13-26 cassette? And where do I get a TA nerius (campy compact) 46T outer ring. Everyone is selling 48T, but not a 46T. Does TA even make one any more?

What if someone were to put together a Campy CX kit, with stuff like a 2m derailleur cable, extra derailleur housing, CX size chainrings, ect. What would you want in that kit? Other than a wipperman chain, Surly. :D

And, what are the downsides to riding Campy in cross?

For myself, I made a little gearing chart with different gearing options available either from or for Campy (as far as I could tell) to come up with the best/easiest/cheapest options for properly gearing a Campy powered CX bike. It is notepad and I am going to attach it to this thread. I've worked on it off and on over the past year as I built my Bianchi up. If you have the time or want, please go through it and critique it/rip it apart.

And lastly, wouldn't the new 5.5mm 11s chain cut through the mud faster? :D [ziiiip]

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Rich, don't forget about PMP. They make 36/46 chainrings that fit Campy CT cranks.
I posted this before I got your reply on the Campy forum. Thanks for the heads up though!
Rich
Hey man, don't dis my Shimanolo :-) It works awesome.

That article in CXM Issue #1 changed my life.
nice to hear - you running 8 or 9? we've got a v2 article coming sometime...
I'll whisper quietly so the Campagnoloids don't hear...

I run 8 speed. 105 derailleur/Chorus shifters. I found a very light 8 speed cassette in the discount bin at the LBS, which further blinged out the setup.
Hey! This is a Campy only thread! So you and you readily available and easy to find parts can go and start your own thread. :D
whoa that's a lot.

first barrier (no pun intended) is that campy doesn't recommend their stuff for anything off-road and thus apparently won't warranty it or sponsor 'cross racers either. so I'm not sure if sunweb buys their stuff or what, but that's their stance according to mark legg.

you might try xxcycle for TA rings.

long hoods/levers are a personal preference right? it's kinda funny how the new campy looks like the old shimano and the new shimano looks like sram.

i'm not that strong and use a 38/48 on one bike and find it fine. it's a better choice for an all-terrain bike IMHO for the times you're on the road or have long downhills, but a 46 is fine for 'cross racing. with 11t cassettes a 46 is plenty for almost everything but I typically do 12-25 or 26.

campy's ability to jam through a cassette is a big plus...and it's a bit more enclosed and re-buildable. that thumb lever is not for everyone though, esp if you like to raise your hoods and use ergo bars and have short fingers.

that's all i got for now.
What is a lot?

Here's where I am coming from. Right now I am trying to open a bike shop out of my house. Just a small repair shop. All I am waiting on is permits from the town. Anyway, if I can get this going then I am going to work on getting distributors and I'd like to sell Campy items and Campy specific CX parts, and maybe even make up kits. I'd probably make an Ebay store. You have to make the distributors happy, and of course everything would be available in my shop (if you wanted to drive to Pittsfield, ME). I was just trying to get an idea of how to package or not package stuff as the case may be. I'm not thinking I'll make a whole lot of money, but a little side business would be nice.
Campagnolo won't warranty any components used off-road. When you read the fine print you'll see "not intended for off-road use."
Sunweb team like us buys their Campy. We had too many shift issues with Campy to continue to use it at the World Cup level where the courses are more demanding than US courses. We also saw some issues with mud clearance on the Record rear ders that caused us some problems in a few races. The Sunweb guys regularly snap their rear derailleurs on heavy mud courses due to the tight tolerances in the rear derailleurs using carbon cages.

On another note, not only does Campy use a 112bcd for their compact cranks but the tab that bolts onto the crankarm is also thinner than the rest. If you bolt on a TA ring you'll find the ring will wobble due to the increased tab thickness. Another issue is Campy Bottom Bracket bearings only have one seal per bearing which allows for accelerated mud contamination into the bearings.

While I've been riding Campy since the early 80's they are painting themselves into a very narrow corner with specific Campy only parts. There is less brand interchangeability with Campy than the old days which forces Campy riders into do or die situations.
As a solution to the cranks you will want to try Fulcrum cranks instead, Campy's universal cross-over brand.
Thank you for your reply Mark, it's nice to hear from the top echelon.

Are the Fulcrums standard 110 BCD? And what about the alloy RDs? And a nit-picker question: How much weight gain is there if you rob the Ti bolt and pivot from the record RD and put them in like a Centaur alloy RD?

I do have to argue with you about the off road use statement. It's not in fine print at all. :D It's actually the 3rd thing listed on the first page of every instruction manual I have. It comes after 'please read all the instructions' and 'only qualified mechanics should work this stuff'. I always get a chuckle because "is forbidden" is in bold. Actually if you follow their intended use to the letter then Maine roads void my warranty. :D

Just a side note for those uninitiated. I had some really good communication with TA about a month ago and they now have 2 different outer chainring models for UT CT cranksets. The Nerius is for Ultra Torque compact (and older carbon compact) cranksets that came with machined chainrings, and the Solano for Ultra Toruqe cranksets that came with stamped chainrings which are thinner than the machined ones. Interesting to know, the smallest a Nerius outer comes in is 48T, but you can get a Solano in a 46T. Generally speaking Nerius is for carbon UT CT, and Solano is for alloy UT CT, so who's gonna buy carbon cranks to beat up in CX anyway, unless you're top level. Also, the inner rings come in Nerius model only as the inner rings thickness is of no consequence.
I run older 9 speed Chorus with an FSA compact crankset.

It seems to run just fine by me. I'm thinking of moving to Centaur 10 Sp even though I'll lose the ability to dump the cogset.
Hold it right there Michael! As in don't go and buy the 10sp stuff in haste.

I said above but, escape is gone for '09 (except for optional Veloce ergos you can order). The new '09 ergos can dump 5 gears at a time and the new shapes allow for more braking power from the hoods. Mr. Zanconato has a set of the new '09 ergos (Centaur Mike?) and he echos the opinion I've been hearing and thinking that the new ergos are going to much better for CX. The Veloce and Centaur '09 ergos are 10 speed not 11, so you can get all older 10spd parts if you want, although I would look at getting an '09 FD.

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