On 7/26/07, Chuck Schmidt <chuckschmidt@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>
> On Jul 20, 2007, at 7:40 AM, Jan Heine wrote:
>
> > As an aside, all the above-mentioned derailleurs shifted better
> > than the 1970s Campagnolo Super Record, and even that one wasn't so
> > bad. (The SR used a geometry that was developed for the much
> > smaller gear ranges of the 1950s, so by the 1970s, it had a hard
> > time to cope with 52-42 and 13-tooth or even 12-tooth small cogs.)
>
>
> Jan, I rode a Campagnolo Super Record (1st generation style) with a
> 52-42 chainrings and 13-21 freewheel all through the 70s and 80s and
> the shifting was fine. Most rode the same setup including most of
> the pros in Europe and back then I never heard any criticism of this
> racing derailleur having a hard time coping with the racing gears
> typical for those times. Can you elaborate on your statement above?
>
> I think it would make for a great article in Bicycle Quarterly... the
> reasons behind the complete dominance of Campagnolo equipment in the
> sport of racing starting with Hugo Koblet winning the 1951 Tour de
> France using a Gran Sport derailleur. This derailleur, with small
> design and name changes over the years, dominated the sport of bike
> racing right up through the early 1990s.
>
> Other opinions?
I've never had any complaints with a Nuovo/Super Record's shifting performance. The feel in friction shifting is a little different from a modern slant parallelogram, but either seems work great. I think the only real difference really is the slight overshifting one needs to do, especially on downshifts, with a S/NR, but that quickly becomes second nature and you can get any gear anytime with a little practice. I have a very modern Shimano rear derailleur on an off-topic bike I use in friction mode and I honestly have to say it is not really significantly better shifting with an old-style non-ramped freewheel than a vintage Campy unit. It does feel slightly better/more positive under load with a ramped cog casette but I suspect the ramped cogs in back probably account for most of the difference in shifting when I use them rather than the derailleur itself, though I haven't tried a S/NR with the ramped cogs yet.
Actually I've discovered a Nuovo will shift beautifully and effrtlessly even across a new 14-28 Shimano twist tooth FW. I guess I'm just not critical enough about shifting performance, that's the only explanation I can fathom why people seem to not like shifting vintage Campagnolo.
Kurt Sperry
Bellingham WA
USA