Campagnolo 2004 Centaur Century Group

Price Paid:  $850.00 at ebay

Favorite Ride:
everything

Bike Setup:
Bianchi Handmade Steel Lugged - Campione d'Italia
Campy Centaur
Fizik Arione Saddle
Rolf Sestriere wheels
Look Keo Sprint pedals

Summary:
Came with my Bianchi steel road bike (custom deal, purchased online at ebay).

Quite simply, I couldn't be happier. I loved the look and "image" of Campy...was thoroughly impressed with Campy, even at the Veloce level, but my LBS's lowest priced campy equipped bike was a veloce 928 for $1800. Bleh. Love campy stuff, but not the high price tag.

Well, I managed to find a NOS classic Bianchi steel lugged frame, with brand new components...full Centaur and rolf wheels with celeste fizik arione saddle....needless to say, I was excited to get it for $850 shipped.

The gruppo is incredible. I can't complain at all. Shifts flawlessly, noiselessly, with no issues of maintenance or what not. Love the trim feature; makes for a pleasant riding experience especially in that awkward void between the two rings up front.

I just can't say enough about how excited I am to have a fantastic gruppo I can find nothing wrong with...at the $850 price point! The gruppo new goes for nearly the price of my bike!

If you can afford to get it, do. please. You'll never need another gruppo again.

Strengths:
ease of shifting
reliability
SEXY LOOKS
just an overall great gruppo across the board

Weaknesses:
none that I can find...

Similar Products Used:
none

Price Paid:  $2800.00 at Competitive Cyclist

Favorite Ride:
Pinarello Galieo

Bike Setup:
I have a Pinarello Galieo with a Record Crankset and Chorus Bottom Bracket, Centuar Brakes and derailluers and two wheelsets. Mavic SUP with Ultegra hubs and an American Classic Cassette and Campy Pronto with Chorus Cassette.

Summary:
I have been riding for roughly 25 years and I have riden both Campy and Shimano. Having raced for a long time I have rarely paid full price for my own equipment. I have been riding Shimano until a three years ago. I think both Shimano and Campy are great with thier own unique advantages.

A couple of years ago I stopped racing and my Shimano 8spd group had seen better days so I decided to replace it. Shimano 10 spd was not out yet so I took a chance and went with the Centaur group.

Virtually indistinguishable to the alloy Chorus groupo Centuar offered a good bang for the buck. I did not like the old style Centaur bottom bracket so I upgraded to the Chorus BB and got a great deal on a $169 record crankset, which has a much narrower q factor as compared to Centaur or Dura Ace 7800 for that matter.

I think Centuar is great, it shifts nice even with an American Classic Conversion Cassette. The front derailluer and brakes are better than Shimano and equivalent to Record in function.

True the group does weigh more but with the money you save over Chorus or even a Ultegra groupo you can lose the weight elsewhere. I find that the criticism regarding the shifters to be over done, the shifters once broken in are fine but if its an issue you can upgrade to Chorus Alloy for about $100.

I believe by 2007 Carbon Fiber Centuar groups will be available in the US and that group should be a big improvement as far as the weight penalty is concerned.

Strengths:
Low cost, Great looks, Very good funtionality and easy to maintain. If you are not out to impress this group is great deal.

Weaknesses:
Clunky shifting, weight, minor lapses in quality as compared to Record or Chorus.

Similar Products Used:
Shimano, Mavic, Shimano Dura-Ace,Ultegra and 105

Price Paid:  $0.00 at Bicycle Express, Ade

Bike Setup:
CAAD7 Optimo
Mix of Campy Record & Centaur
Zonda G3 Wheelset
FSA Pro Team Issue Cranks
FSA K-Force Bars

Summary:
Came with the bike.
A lot better than my old shimano sora. Have tried 10spd dura ace and personally prefer the smaller hoods of campy, and the robust/positive feel of the shift.
Havent had any problems yet.

Strengths:
Looks good, very reliable, comfy, rebuildable if need be, cheaper than chorus/record.

Weaknesses:
Not as light as Chorus/Record.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Bike Setup:
LandShark

Summary:
This describes 2002 Centaur which is the mechanical equivalent of 2004 Centaur.
I personally prefer the ergoshifter feel and mechanism over the Shimano equivalent. It has most of the functionality of Chorus and Record at considerably lower price but with some weight penalty (no such thing as a free lunch.

I have had 2 failures:
Bottom bracket at 3000 miles. Not very expensive. This is often noted as the weakest part of the group but will be changed in 2005
Right ergoshifter at 4000 miles. This was a disappointment. The manual suggests a checkup at 10k miles.
This led to the discovery though rebuildable, the Centaur levers aren't worth it. Parts and labor cost more than a new lever. Parts and shipping for do-it-yourselfers are ~2/3 the price of new

Strengths:
Campy functionality about as good as Chorus at a more sane price point.

Weaknesses:
Weight and possibly longevity compared to Chorus and Record. I don't yet know if my failed Ergolever was a fluke.

Similar Products Used:
Chorus, Ultegra, old SIS Shimano 105 and even older friction 600.