Geek Warning - Ask a wrench - Mechanical Drivetrains

There was a question about mechanical drivetrains on the podcast, and I thought I’d chime in if that member is still looking for more info. I also prefer mechanical, and hope to never have to move to electronic.

If you want a high end mechanical drivetrain in 12 speed, Campagnolo makes both Super Record 12 in mechanical and Chorus 12 in mechanical. They also make each of those in hydraulic disc brake and rim brake. You can also set up the rim brake to work with a hybrid mechanical disc (like Juintech or TRP) or mechanical disc like TRP.

So, there are 4 mechanical 2x high end and ultra high end groupset options in the current Campagnolo catalog. As well, you can use the new Campy 12spd rear derailleurs with 11spd Campagnolo ergo levers, with a simple cable routing trick.

Further to this, when compared to electronic from any brand, the mechanical Campagnolo components are insanely good value. You can get a Chorus 12spd rear derailleur for about 120€ with a little looking, which is cheaper than most second hand 10spd record rear derailleurs go for.

I’m a basic, at home mechanic, and sure I like to tinker and try new things, and yes, I´ve long used Campagnolo, but I don’t think it’s so exceptional to have tried Campagnolo parts. Bike nerds play with countless tools, run ‘performance’ tests etc. and yet … There are people out there who have forgotten 10x what I know, but somehow I know more Campagnolo? Maybe you can have an ask an curmudgeon part of the show and I can talk about Campy.

Anyway, hope that helps.

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One Caveat - if it’s a newer frame, check that it has a stop for the front derailleur cable housing as the C12 front derailleurs don’t have a built-in housing stop like the Shimano ones. Also make sure you have somewhere to put an inline barrel adjuster for the front derailleur cable tension.

Otherwise, it’s great stuff, and there are bargains to be found. Love my Chorus 12 with Hydro brakes and mechanical shifting, even if routing the cables was nightmarish.

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I updated a 20yo Time VXR frame with 12spd Campy mechanical. Thrilled with the result. Easy to build up myself. Shifting is not finicky at all. Every time I ride it I rethink if I actually prefer my modern electronic/disc gruppo bike

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I think it got a bad reputation for being fiddly because it was the first 12-speed Road groupset to market. The others are just as sensitive, but people expected it by that point.

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