Low end kit - Campag Question II

[GrumpyGregry]

Picture the scene....

Campag Race Triple Chainset with Veloce 3 x 10 Shifters, front mech and long cage rear mech.

I want, maybe, to convert to Campag Veloce or Centaur compact chainset to go 2 x 10.

Probably requires a new front shifter (unless I can set limit screws on front mech to 'blank' off the redundant shift a la 3 x 9/10 to 2 x 9/10 mtb conversions) Are the gaps between the chain rings the same size Campag compact vs triple?

Do I have to get a new front mech?
New rear mech?

Basically I'm transplanting the kit on one bike to a new frame and am trying to get the shopping list down to the bare minimum of bits short term until I've the bunce much later in the year to fit a new groupset.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

btw; all three lbs's I contacted played the "Dunno we don't do much Campag gear" card.

 

[accountantpete]

Campagnolo don't do double or triple left hand shifters - they are made to do both.

So just set your limiters and you will be fine - the gap is the same..

They do however make a triple specific front mech - which you probably have. I would imagine that this will work ok with the compact.

The rear mech will be fine as the Compact also requires a larger chainwrap just like the triple.

 

[VamP]

btw; all three lbs's I contacted played the "Dunno we don't do much Campag gear" card.

Just get the front mech, and see. I would be quietly confident that it can be made to work with your current shifter.

Rear mech should be unaffected by the changes you're making.

If you do end up buying new shifters, get the Centaur ones. They come in carbon

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Campagnolo don't do double or triple left hand shifters - they are made to do both.

So just set your limiters and you will be fine - the gap is the same..

They do however make a triple specific front mech - which you probably have. I would imagine that this will work ok with the compact.

The rear mech will be fine as the Compact also requires a larger chainwrap just like the triple.

Good to know and yes I have a triple specific Veloce front mech; cant see why it would not work on a compact but you never know.

Just get the front mech, and see. I would be quietly confident that it can be made to work with your current shifter.

Rear mech should be unaffected by the changes you're making.

If you do end up buying new shifters, get the Centaur ones. They come in carbon

I think I'll just get the compact and try what I've got with it.

The key (missing) question is existing setup is Veloce square taper new setup would be Power Torque. Will chainline be the same or will I likely need new front mech as a result of eveloving BB technology?

If I go carbon I'll have to go carbon seat post, bars and stem which defeats economy and will look a bit weird on a steel framed bike!

 

[fossala]

What is wrong with triple if that's what you have already got? It just seems to be spending money for the sake of it, why would you want less gears and less gear range?

 

[accountantpete]

The key (missing) question is existing setup is Veloce square taper new setup would be Power Torque. Will chainline be the same or will I likely need new front mech as a result of eveloving BB technology?

Power Torque is the Campagnolo version of Shimano Hollowtech with a solid one piece axle - not a square taper type chainset.

I have avoided Power Torque as it looked naff and they are only putting it on cheap gear - have a google around.

The alternative is to see if you can get square taper compacts on ebay (they go for around £30) or better still a compact Ultra Torque set (you would need UT BB cups as well (£20).

 

[VamP]

My first Power Torque cups lasted about 8000 miles. I thought that was reasonable for a £16 solution. The Veloce front mech that handled my square taper BB worked just as happily with the Centaur PT chainset, so I'm guessing the chainline is within tolerance.

I have now more or less upgraded my whole setup to Centaur. I think this is the sweetspot in the Campy range, for my purposes anyway. Total weight comes in midway between Ultegra and Dura-Ace (with SRAM Red brakes), it works faultlessly, and bits are relatively inexpensive in case of crash damage, which I have a bit of a propensity for.

I think the main advantage of the UT set is ease of fitment. You need special tools for the PT set up.

I didn't know it was a steel frame you were getting, which one?

 

[woohoo]

On my old "winter" bike, I swapped between compact and triple using square taper cranks. The Campag tech docs say to use a 111mm bb for the compact (and double) but if the seat tube was 34.9mm (as it was on my frame) then a 115.5 bb was required for the triple (which changed the chain line quite a fair bit). I followed these recommendations when I moved from compact to triple and back to compact (the latter being when I changed from 3x9 to 2x10). The front mech, after moving it up/down and resetting the limit screws was fine with all of these setups as were the front shifter and the rear mech, although I did change the rear shifter when I went from 9 to 10.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

My first Power Torque cups lasted about 8000 miles. I thought that was reasonable for a £16 solution. The Veloce front mech that handled my square taper BB worked just as happily with the Centaur PT chainset, so I'm guessing the chainline is within tolerance.

I have now more or less upgraded my whole setup to Centaur. I think this is the sweetspot in the Campy range, for my purposes anyway. Total weight comes in midway between Ultegra and Dura-Ace (with SRAM Red brakes), it works faultlessly, and bits are relatively inexpensive in case of crash damage, which I have a bit of a propensity for.

I think the main advantage of the UT set is ease of fitment. You need special tools for the PT set up.

I didn't know it was a steel frame you were getting, which one?

Genesis Equilibrium 853, when they ship....

Me no like special tools, may stick with the square taper triple setup off the donor bike on the new frame for a while longer.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

What is wrong with triple if that's what you have already got? It just seems to be spending money for the sake of it, why would you want less gears and less gear range?

I'm exploreing the options.... imagineering..... what's wrong is it is scuffed and battered and has a fudged crank bolt on the non-drive side (thank you LBS).

As to less gears and gear range, whilst it is true, tbh, I can't remember the last time I used the granny ring on the donor bike. I think my legs might have got strong enough to cope with a compact.

 

[fossala]

I'm exploreing the options.... imagineering..... what's wrong is it is scuffed and battered and has a fudged crank bolt on the non-drive side (thank you LBS).

As to less gears and gear range, whilst it is true, tbh, I can't remember the last time I used the granny ring on the donor bike. I think my legs might have got strong enough to cope with a compact.

I will either go with triples or "full fat". This is because compacts have too large of a jump between rings. You need to downshift 2-3 gears to be somewhere close to the next gear when you change chainrings. Obviously this doesn't bother people as much as it does me as compacts seem to be the cool thing.

 

[VamP]

Genesis Equilibrium 853, when they ship....

Me no like special tools, may stick with the square taper triple setup off the donor bike on the new frame for a while longer.

Sweet.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I will either go with triples or "full fat". This is because compacts have too large of a jump between rings. You need to downshift 2-3 gears to be somewhere close to the next gear when you change chainrings. Obviously this doesn't bother people as much as it does me as compacts seem to be the cool thing.

Hands up, my mentality is all 'wrong', on account of being an mtb-er at heart

Small ring = climbing
Middle ring = cruising
Big ring = mashing

and front chainring changes are only done when one switches from mode to mode rather than to maintain cadence. Hence I ride 2 x 9 or 10 these days, hardly ever mash it in anger.

I appreciate cadence is king for many on the road but old habits die hard. The Race Triple on current bike is 52-42-30. Current Centaur double is 53-39 (Compact 50-34) so in only using the two big rings on the Race Triple I'm up nearer "full fat" than "semi-skimmed" compact territory. I think. Albeit with a big cassette hanging off the back. So I guess I could simply go "full fat" up front?

This is all useful as it is making me think hard. Esp as twins are so much cheaper than triples in campag world.

 

[fossala]

If a bike isn't used for loaded use (touring/luggage) I would go 53/39 with a wide cassette on back (12-28). Should get most people up most hills, even here in cornwall.