Campag Skeleton Brakes - rapidly diminishing returns?

[brockers]

I've just picked up some very low mileage Chorus skeleton differential brakes for a song. And lovely looking things they are too. My question is, does anybody know what difference there is between these brakes in the Centaur - Super Record range? All I can see is that the top two groups use a bit of titanium, and ball bearings in the pivots, and there are minor bits of bling in the finishing hardware. The weight differences are hardly worth talking about, as the forged arms appear to be the same across the range. So what could possibly justify the 350% price difference between the lower and upper groups?

Edit: Athena. Centaur is no more. And I've taken a look at Campag's website where you get to compare and contrast, but I'll be buggered if I can spot much difference!

 

[accountantpete]

Ah grasshopper you should ask yourself - do the likes of Shimano/Campagnolo make the upper groups better than the entry level or do they make the entry level worse than the expensive parts?

Re the brakes - the springs etc in the Record give a slightly smoother operation so if you were a pro and using them for 5 hours a day you woulld probably notice the difference.

 

[brockers]

Indeed, it is so, Master Po. The gods of marketing are often mysterious in their ways.

I'd think the smoother operation of Record is due to using bearings in the pivots, and not the bushes you find in the lower groups.

All I do know is that (having just got back from a noodle around the lanes), the single pivot rear hardly stops the chuffin' back wheel unless you grap a proper handful of brake! Eeek...It's like the old days!

 

[fossyant]

Shouldn't be anything wrong with the single pivots really.

I've got old Dura Ace and 600 single pivots and they are just as powerful as my dual pivots.

Check your pads and clean the rim.

 

[brockers]

Virtually new pads and clean rims! But it's possible I haven't toed them in perfectly, so not all the pad surface is being used.

I have read elsewhere that a lot of riders weren't happy with the stopping power of the single pivots, which is why Campag reintroduced the dual jobbies.

 

[fossyant]

Strange, would have thought they'd be fine, but it maybe that Campag reduced the leverage ?

 

[brockers]

On close inspection one of the pads wasn't aligned at all well. *Facepalm*

 

[fossyant]

On close inspection one of the pads wasn't aligned at all well. *Facepalm*

Doh.....

PS - You can't have my vintage Dura Ace 7400 series 20 year old callipers.. dog danglies - stop on a sixpense, and I've seen the prices on ebay recently...OMG, gone are spares at a reasonable price.


PPS Campag is on my next bike (if I ever save up)

 

[Lozatron]

Did you fit these yourself? Reason I ask is...i've just picked up some similar brakes to fit to my commuter - has on it athena gruppo with rather naffy tektro brakes so I saw these for a good price and...

Anyway - I am perfectly happy to pay my LBS to fit them but if it's something I can relatively easily do I'd rather try it myself...it's one thing I haven't been able to find videos for on youtube which suggests is may be a bit tricky. I'm pretty happy doing things like adjusting the indexing, changing the handlebars or stem and changing a cassette but that's probably the limit of my experience to date...

 

[brockers]

Did you fit these yourself? Reason I ask is...i've just picked up some similar brakes to fit to my commuter - has on it athena gruppo with rather naffy tektro brakes so I saw these for a good price and...

Yes, I did fit them myself. It takes about about five minutes. All you need to do is let the brake cable loose by undoing the clamping nut with an Allen key, and then poke and turn another or possibly the same key into the brake bridge to remove the brake from the bike. Installation is merely the reverse of the above. Then you need to play around a bit with making sure the pads line up with the rims, centreing the rear with a 15mm spanner, and then taking the slack out of the cable by means of the circular adjuster.