Shimano v Campagnolo

BUACHAILL

Ok I know this comparison is as much about personal opinion and feel as it is quality. Apologies if its already been done but would really appreciate opinions.

I am in the process of ordering my bike and have to choose between 2 groupsets !

Shimano Ultegra v Campagnolo Athena

A lot of people will probably suggest its all about what your used to and both are excellent. I have always used Shimano but that said Im only back in the saddle and am very open to change !!

So what do you go for and why !!

Cheers again guys

Seweryn

BUACHAILL wrote: »

So what do you go for and why !!

Sram Rival or Force.

Why:
- I am used to it,
- Very good build quality,
- I like the way that shifters work,
- Light weight.

BUACHAILL

OK put the Sram Force into the mix
Its is an extra 150 euro on top of the bike !
Other two mentioned are the same price !

feck sake lads

well i'm a shimano man meself i've been using dura ace this past 20 years not once has it failed before that when men were men and sheep were :rolleyes:i used campag super reckord also excellent but a lot more expensive than shimano. personally i would go with ultegra if its good enough for the pro's
best of luck with the new bike be careful out there.

dermur

You should decide which shifting system you prefer. Shimano STI, Campy ErgoPower or SRAM DoubleTap. Weight or Reliability not likely to be a huge issue although Campy drivetrains always seem a bit too fiddly IMO.

Do you want to do all your shifting on the brake levers or do you like the thumb shifters. If you don't want thumb shifters then do you like the double-tap system of SRAM or the two seperate levers used by Shimano?

Personally, I'm not mad about the SRAM system.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimano_Total_Integration
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campagnolo_ErgoPower
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SRAM_Double_Tap

BUACHAILL

Thanks for the breakdown on them all dermur and the links. To be honest having read them I understand how they all shift and none of them seem too complicated or annoying. I guess its just a matter of choosing one I feel I might prefer but until your actually working them you will never know !!!

Thanks again

morana

I feel shimano stuff is too soft! it doesnt last. I only had stuff for my training bike by shimano but it wasnt great compared to other makes/stuff in that price range.

OT I know but I got a pair of those shimano vacu fit shoes and to be honest they are ****! The rubbers fell off the heals and other parts and consequently the carbon soles wore down. Never again1 Sidi for shoes and Campag for bike bits...but Di2 I wold be tempted!

BUACHAILL

Thanks Morana

Can I ask what Shimano you used on your training bike ?

morana

BUACHAILL wrote: »

Thanks Morana

Can I ask what Shimano you used on your training bike ?

a mixture sora,105 and ultegra brakes afaik.

I now have campag chorus on my training bike kuota ksano.


The pedals are ok but not as good as speedplay.

granda

i also had this dilema for a new bike i'll be building up next year and after having a spin on a mate sram rival equiped bike i decided on this groupset , so if you can try out a bike with the different groupsets on them you'll find out what siuts you or your just go with your gut feeling

BUACHAILL

I think its just going to be a punt! Will physically go look at them in shop and see which one takes my eye etc and get an idea for the one I feel will suit me better but after that not much more I can do !!

Thats my reason in first place for posting this, I know guys on here have had several of them and know the pro's and con's !!

moby2101

My 2c

Sram

I'm currently on ultegra but my previous 2 bikes were Sram..Sram by a mile

J Madone

moby2101 wrote: »

My 2c

Sram

I'm currently on ultegra but my previous 2 bikes were Sram..Sram by a mile

Have the newer ultegra on my training bike and it's faultless, gear changes feel a tad better than my dura ace 7900 on my race bikes!
Only thing putting me off campy is the hassle down shifting on the drops.
IMO the campy has it on style

bcmf

J Madone wrote: »

Only thing putting me off campy is the hassle down shifting on the drops.

Never ever had an issue shifting campy in the drops.

J Madone

bcmf wrote: »

J Madone wrote: »

Only thing putting me off campy is the hassle down shifting on the drops.

Never ever had an issue shifting campy in the drops.

I must have short thumbs

bcmf

:)
Was gonna make a comment something along the lines of the size of your hands but decided it against

J Madone

bcmf wrote: »

:)
Was gonna make a comment something along the lines of the size of your hands but decided it against

Less said the better , :0)

Wheely GR8

I was talking to a guy today and he kind of has me sold on a campagnolo groupset and I'm thinking of some spanky colour frame along with it

bcmf

Wheely GR8 wrote: »

I was talking to a guy today and he kind of has me sold on a campagnolo groupset and I'm thinking of some spanky colour frame along with it

Good choice. You know what they say about Campy. It wears in rather then out

Chips Lovell

I don't think any groupset manufacturer is so vastly superior to others that it warrants automatically choosing it.

I use Campagnolo. It's what I had on my first bike and after a year or two on Shimano I went back to it, mostly because I liked the shifters better, both the shape and the fact that you've got multiple upshifts.

However the chief selling point on Campag for me now is something I discovered after a few years on it, which is that its stuff is more serviceable. You can completely strip down their components and small parts are easily available. So instead of having to bin sealed bottom bracket once it's toast, you can clean and regrease their bearings. Same with the headsets. You can even take the shifters apart. So while you may pay more inititally with Campagnolo, you could save on maintenance and have it last longer.

Downsides: The 11 speed chain tool is ridiculously expensive, although that's less of an issue now third party chains are available. Also, the fact that top end Camapgnolo groupsets are 11 speed makes getting wheels from neutral service in races a bit trickier. The rumoured arrival of 11 speed Dura Ace could make that less problematic too over time.

Mycroft H

Suntour FTW!

padjo5

Buachaill, it might be worth taking a short spin up on bikes with SRAM and with Shimano, if possible. The hoods are differently shaped, so will feel different. Some say the SRAM hoods can feel a bit shallow, and that you feel your hands will 'pop' out of them. I use SRAM but have never really found this to be the case. Worth seeing which is most comfortable for you though. Best of luck.

BUACHAILL

Thanks for all the advice people, have spent a lot of time looking at different group sets the last few days and researching as much as I can !! I will be making a decision tomorrow I guess when I visit the store. Will just go with what I think is gonna suit me the best.

To be honest I am pulling away from Shimano and leaning towards the Sram !!

Hope Im doing the right thing ;-)

PCX

Well let us know what you go for and how you get on with it.

BUACHAILL

Will do, I will give the low down on bike and spec if interested tomorrow !!

feck sake lads

BUACHAILL wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice people, have spent a lot of time looking at different group sets the last few days and researching as much as I can !! I will be making a decision tomorrow I guess when I visit the store. Will just go with what I think is gonna suit me the best.

To be honest I am pulling away from Shimano and leaning towards the Sram !!

Hope Im doing the right thing ;-)

BIG MISTAKE :rolleyes:you have been warned.

BUACHAILL

Really why ?? ha ha ha ha
I hate bikes far too much to think about ! bring back me old bmx
Everyone telling me different things, Nightmare

feck sake lads

all im saying shimano has proved it self it all grand tours its been around for donkey years:D its pure class choose wisely ,the dura ace is the top of the line but expensive mind you there all expensive but i think the ultragra groupset is well within reason for a top of the line shimano groupset ,anyway best of luck with your new buy

TinyExplosions

feck sake lads wrote: »

all im saying shimano has proved it self it all grand tours its been around for donkey years:D its pure class choose wisely ,the dura ace is the top of the line but expensive mind you there all expensive but i think the ultragra groupset is well within reason for a top of the line shimano groupset ,anyway best of luck with your new buy

All the groupsets have 'won' grand tours, so I don't think that's really worth considering tbh -whatever you like the feel of will do you grand OP

bcmf

BUACHAILL wrote: »

Everyone telling me different things, Nightmare

That because everyone is different. Some people love and swear by Campy others Shimano and others Sram and others maybe even Microshift.
In reality the difference is looks and any mechanical changes are subtle.
Shimano has a 'smoother' feel to the shift where as campy has a more defined 'clunk'
At the end of the day the do the same job. Saying on gruppo has won more races is misleading. (Would Cancellara not have won so many monuments if he was riding a different gruppo!!!)

Lumen

BUACHAILL wrote: »

Everyone telling me different things, Nightmare

You'd get the same response to a "what sandwich" thread. Opinions differ.

BUACHAILL

Lumen wrote: »

You'd get the same response to a "what sandwich" thread. Opinions differ.

Yes I knew opinions would differ.

However I am getting people telling me Shimano all the way they are flawless then speaking to someone else they tell me dont touch Shimano far too soft, and generally speaking the same for the others also. I know personal experiences will deictate these opinions but I guess as advised earlier in the thread just make up your own mind there is no right or wrong , any one of them are very competent !!

bcmf

Buachaill if you are anywhere near North County Dublin you can try out the Campy equipped bike so at least you will have a 'feel' for it.

BUACHAILL

bcmf wrote: »

Buachaill if you are anywhere near North County Dublin you can try out the Campy equipped bike so at least you will have a 'feel' for it.

Thanks BCMF
I am southside dublin so wont get a chancewith work and everything.
Hitting the shop in the afternoon and will just decide when in there but very kind to offer.

bcmf

no problems.
One big difference between the 2 grupppo's is that with Campy you can multple shift (depends on what year the gruppo they have fitted on the bike) where as with Shimano it 1 click 1 shift. 3 shifts 3 clicks.
It may sound a bit odd and think you may never use it but you would be surprised after a while you use the multiple shift

rurs

Nice article about Campag, the history and the current state of the groupset rivalries.

As regards your question, try to get your hands (literally) on the hoods of the different brands, you'll be spending a lot of time there.

BUACHAILL

Thanks everybody for your input.

Having been at the shop today, taking everything into consideration and looking at them in the flesh I have decided to stick with the Shimano Ultegra. I loved the look of the others but having used Shimano before I just cant fault them. I guess its just a case of better the devil ye know !

I ordered up an Orbea Orca Slt in carbon grey / black with the Ultegra.

http://www.thebikelist.co.uk/orbea/orca-slt--2011

I went over my original budget but I dont plan on buying again so money well spent me thinks. Went for the Orbea as I just fancied something a little different from the rest and cannot wait for it to arrive.

Thanks again

Idleater

BUACHAILL wrote: »

I ordered up an Orbea Orca Slt in carbon grey / black with the Ultegra.


I went over my original budget but I dont plan on buying again so money well spent me thinks. Went for the Orbea as I just fancied something a little different from the rest and cannot wait for it to arrive.

Thanks again

lovely bike - I've the sfr in white. They are different to a lot of brands all right and congrats on the purchase you won't regret it.

feck sake lads

jasus dont but that bike :D
only joking enjoy every pedal stroke and every smooth shift.;)

BUACHAILL

feck sake lads wrote: »

jasus dont but that bike :D
only joking enjoy every pedal stroke and every smooth shift.;)

I took a good month or so looking at all the bikes, ratings, and visiting lots of shops and can honestly say I spent more time over this bloody bike than I did buying my house ha and I am deadly serious :eek:

Wont change my mind on the choice of bike regardless of opinions ha ha, I love it
As a lot of people mentioned on here you could spend a year looking and considering everything just get to a LBS and take advice on board, Its been a headwreck trying to decide ha

fat bloke

Don't sweat the small stuff man. The most unreliable piece of cycling equipment I've ever used is my own set of legs. Keep your mechy bits clean and oiled and in good shape and they'll serve you well for years, regardless of manufacturer labels.

Nice bike btw.

BUACHAILL

fat bloke wrote: »

Don't sweat the small stuff man. The most unreliable piece of cycling equipment I've ever used is my own set of legs. Keep your mechy bits clean and oiled and in good shape and they'll serve you well for years, regardless of manufacturer labels.

Nice bike btw.

Thats a fact ha, if I can even resemble a cyclist at some stage I will be happy enough , bike is far to good for my ability but sure I like my toys:)

Cheers