After spending four years with Dura Ace 7700 and four more years with 7800, I thought I'd give Campagnolo Record 11 a try. Now that I've got over 1K miles on it, I must report that I sure miss my Dura Ace stuff!
To begin, I certainly miss that half pound of extra weight. Now I have to drop a whole gear to get the same work! I also miss the trimming I had to do so often - practically every shift. The shifting precision I now have leaves me with nothing to do but focus on the road! I also miss the out-of-sight warrantee program Shimano has (Campy guarantees this new line for 4 years). Once you're out of site of the shop, you're on your own. I probably went through three right shifters and even a left shifter during my Shimano days. Nothing rebuildable here. One notable design quality of Shimano that I'll be missing is every time the shift cable breaks the tiny nub risks droping down into the tumblers - shifter is done! Campy, try and beat that design - it's ingenious. Finally, I'm sure gonna miss that shiny metal look - especially once it gets scratched. That scratch remains for life.
See ya Shimano. (OBTW, congrats to shimano on hiding the shifter cables on your new 7900 line - wonder where that idea came from??)
Strengths: The 8-ramp pins on the chainring worked like a charm when going from small to big. The Ergopower is very crisp and from previous experience, gets better with age/use. The dual pivot front and rear brakes felt very good. I really noticed how quiet the 11-speed group is. I have heard a lot of great things about Dura Ace from friends, but, just like Andy at Competitive Cyclist - Campy is built by artisans, and Shimano is built in a laboratory.
Weaknesses: None so far, except perhaps for the price of the group, but you wouldn't expect anything less from Pablo Picasso, would you?
Bottom Line:
Most of the people I spoke to recommended that my LBS install the groupset. Because of the tight tolerance on the 11 speed, made sense. After seeing a few videos on youtube, decided to install myself. Aside from the new cable-routing on the ergo levers, the rest was straight forward, but you do have to take some time. After all, Campy is a piece of art. As I was familiar with Campagnolo 10 speed, I knew what to expect.
I took the Look 585 on its maiden voyage today and I have one word to say - PRECISE. The Look 585 was very stable, and the groupset worked flawlessly. It only took about 5 km for me to get a rhythm going and actually felt comfortable with the shifting.
Similar Products Used: Campagnolo Record 10 Speed, Campagnolo Chorus 10 Speed.
Bike Setup: Look 585 Ultra, Mavic R-sys SL, Selle Italia Flite Gel Flow, U.S.E. Alien carbon seatpost, Ritchey Evolution bar and FSA SLK stem, Keywin CRM pedals.
Strengths: precise when adjusted correctly and often
Weaknesses: finicky and prone to problems if you are a sloppy person without a car following you from a pro-team.
Bottom Line:
I just have to add, in response to the previous review, that I am about to build up a Ridley, '10 Damocles ISP frame and have been researching the Dura ace vs. Record/super record or even chorus debate for some time. Based on my analysis I am definitely going with da 7900. My best friend and main riding partner just got a new Ridley helium and record/super record combo gruppo and has been having nothing but problems. It keeps coming out of gear on steep climbs. We go to perhaps the best lbs in the city of fresno, and it still has problems.
The basic information I have gathered is that campy is more precise when it is working perfectly, but shimano is a workhorse that will keep working under harsh conditions and is so much less finicky. It is kind of like a ferrari compared to a honda. I am going with the honda because I am not on the tour and I don't have a car following me when I ride!
Weaknesses: Cost - look around, it's not that expensive. I paid less that SRAM Red for my Record group
Bottom Line:
After spending four years with Dura Ace 7700 and four more years with 7800, I thought I'd give Campagnolo Record 11 a try. Now that I've got over 1K miles on it, I must report that I sure miss my Dura Ace stuff!
To begin, I certainly miss that half pound of extra weight. Now I have to drop a whole gear to get the same work! I also miss the trimming I had to do so often - practically every shift. The shifting precision I now have leaves me with nothing to do but focus on the road! I also miss the out-of-sight warrantee program Shimano has (Campy guarantees this new line for 4 years). Once you're out of site of the shop, you're on your own. I probably went through three right shifters and even a left shifter during my Shimano days. Nothing rebuildable here. One notable design quality of Shimano that I'll be missing is every time the shift cable breaks the tiny nub risks droping down into the tumblers - shifter is done! Campy, try and beat that design - it's ingenious. Finally, I'm sure gonna miss that shiny metal look - especially once it gets scratched. That scratch remains for life.
See ya Shimano. (OBTW, congrats to shimano on hiding the shifter cables on your new 7900 line - wonder where that idea came from??)
I am looking to purchase a 2010 Record 11 Compact crank, will it work with my 10 Speed set up? Would I need to change the FD? Will the wider chain wear out the chain rings faster?
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Hello all Campy lovers,
A few months ago I started to put together a mixed Campy road gruppo with Record, Super Record, and Centaur components.
I initially intended to go for Read More »
Ok, I know that Record 10 speed FD works with Sram but what about Record 11 speed. Competitive Cyclist has a good price on the 2010 models. Read More »
I have a 2010 and a 2011 Campagnolo Super Record Rear Derailluer; I want to remove the upper pivot bolt. All of the manuals on Campagnolo's web site show a c-clip that must be remo Read More »
Sike! :cryin: But wouldn’t it be nice!
[url=http://ruedatropical.com/2009/01/bring-back-engraved-polished-c-record/]Bring Back Engraved Polished C-Record : La Rueda Tropical[/ur Read More »
