ergopower vs STI

Please do a search, you will find a veritable plethora (I like saying that) of threads on the Campagnolo vs. Shimano debate!

numbskullishome said:

I am sure that it has been a topic here but I am throwing it out as well. Campy vs Shimano - particularly I am interested in functionality - having not been a Campaganolo user before .. I wonder what the diference is b/t Campy ergo's mirage and veloce - again functionally and strength/durability.

Functionality and performance are the same across brands. The shifting motions and overall feel are different though. The only difference between Veloce and Mirage is plastic brake levers on Mirage instead of aluminum.

numbskullishome said:

I am sure that it has been a topic here but I am throwing it out as well. Campy vs Shimano - particularly I am interested in functionality - having not been a Campaganolo user before .. I wonder what the diference is b/t Campy ergo's mirage and veloce - again functionally and strength/durability.

I will take the bait. They both work fine. I prefer the cleaner look of Campy (no antenna like cables), but folks with smaller hands complain you can't shift while in the drops with Campy. You know what they say about guys with big hands?... they ride Campy. 😉

numbskullishome said:

I am sure that it has been a topic here but I am throwing it out as well. Campy vs Shimano - particularly I am interested in functionality - having not been a Campaganolo user before .. I wonder what the diference is b/t Campy ergo's mirage and veloce - again functionally and strength/durability.

The PRIMARY difference between the MIRAGE & VELOCE shifters is cosmetic ...

The brake & shift lever blade on the MIRAGE shifters are composite.

The brake & shift lever blade on the VELOCE (and, CENTAUR) shifters is aluminum.

The brake & shift lever blade on current CHORUS & RECORD shifters are carbon fiber & composite (i.e., the shift lever blade is composite with a faux carbon fiber decal), respectively.

An advantage that the Campagnolo shifters have is that you can ALSO use the thumb levers from the handlebar tops.

You need to be in the drops or on the hoods to shift the Shimano STI levers.

Of course, you need to be in the drops or on the hoods to use the Campagnolo shift lever blades.

You may read (or, have read) elsewhere that shifting the Campagnolo levers is intuitive -- they are right!

If you want to move the chain down to a smaller cog OR to a smaller chainring, you press the thumb lever down.

If you want to move the chain OVER to a larger cog OR to a larger chairing, you move the respective shift lever OVER in the direction you want the chain to move ...

With Campagnolo ERGO levers, you can be moving UPHILL at an excrutiatingly slow speed (e.g., 3-to-4 MPH) and effectively downshift to a larger cog (if you have one, still!) without the drivetrain balking. I have not found that to be true with Shimano Ultegra (6500) STI shifters; but, others tell me they don't have trouble downshifting ...

NB. I'm generally shifting on an 11-32 XT cassette instead of a cassette with a narrower range ... I've found that the ERGO can readily handle a downshift with an 8t "jump" ...

At normal speeds, when going uphill, the downshifts to larger cogs are so smooth that I have had to look back-and-down to verify that the chain has moved to another cog.

I think that the entire Campagnolo range (XENON may be the exception, but that is not available in the US) is now available for either 9-speed or 10-speed.

wilmar13 said:

... but folks with smaller hands complain you can't shift while in the drops with Campy.

I've never really understood this one. You need to be pretty big to get a good grip on the thumb lever, but the downshift lever pulls right back to the bar and you don't have to reach at all.

artmichalek said:

I've never really understood this one. You need to be pretty big to get a good grip on the thumb lever, but the downshift lever pulls right back to the bar and you don't have to reach at all.

OKAY. Maybe I am the only person who has downshifted the Campagnolo ERGO thumb levers from the handlebar tops ...

The thumb levers do FEEL stiff when they are not attached to a derailleur ... but, the derailleur's return spring actually assists with the shift.

Shifting -- for BOTH Shimano & Campagnolo -- is more easily performed when your hands are ON the hoods, BTW.

artmichalek said:

I've never really understood this one. You need to be pretty big to get a good grip on the thumb lever, but the downshift lever pulls right back to the bar and you don't have to reach at all.

Yeah, me neither... it seems like a stretch to me (pun intended), but the only one reason people can come up with to justify riding STI. Little handed sprinters can't reach the thumb shifter while in the drops, that and Lance rides STI 🙄 .

Maybe the new SRAM will bridge the gap with the clean lines of campy, and allowing small handed people the advantages of full sweep shifts without struggling to reach.

FWIW even though I do have large hands, it seems to me that your hands would need to be pretty small to have trouble reaching the thumb shifter from the drops for Campy.

alfeng said:

Shifting -- for BOTH Shimano & Campagnolo -- is more easily performed when your hands are ON the hoods, BTW.

Yes but you must have opposing thumbs to use Campy, thus the popularity of STI 😄

wilmar13 said:

Yeah, me neither... it seems like a stretch to me (pun intended), but the only one reason people can come up with to justify riding STI. Little handed sprinters can't reach the thumb shifter while in the drops, that and Lance rides STI 🙄 .

Lance has pretty small hands too. Hence the popularity of traditional rather than ergo bend handle bars amongst the pros.