Campagnolo 2015 chainset combos

[0w3n]

I'm off to the Alps in July for a couple of weeks riding including L'etape du tour & to see the penultimate TDF stage on Alpe d'Huez.

I'm a bit over geared at the moment & I think I'm going to need a 34t inner but I don't really want to change my 52t outer unless I have to.

On the campy website & knowledge base the chainrings are listed in pairs 50/34 52/36 53/39 & described as '50t for 34t' but they are available individually. Does any one know if there will be any issue with using them in different combos eg 52/34? I really don't want to shell out £200 for a pair of chainrings I'll use a couple of times unless I really have to. Thanks

[c50jim]

I think the 52/36 combo just wouldn't work very well. The jump is huge and I wonder if your front derailleur could handle it well.

What about just picking up a Chorus cassette with lower gearing than your usual? Screw it on for the trip, take it off when you get home and stick it in the box until you go to the big mountains next year. I'm not familiar with UK prices but it might be cheaper than a couple of rings as well and certainly would work well. I have Record and Chorus 11 bikes that seem to work well with 11-25, 12-27 or 12-19 cassettes without adjustment. I did 12 days in the Alps last year with a 34-29 as my low gear and I'm old and fat (64, 85 kg).

[jekyll man]

Just buy a shimano 105 compact or semi compact chainset. 60 odd quid at the moment if you look around for the new 4 arm ones, plus a bottom bracket (£20)
Shifting is fantastic (im on a 35/52 on the hack bike).

hand it down to the winter bike when you're back.

other alternative is go to a cassette with a 29 on it, although i've ridden alps/ dolomites numerous times with 39/25 as bottom gear and been fine..

[Sjoerd]

I think the 52/36 combo just wouldn't work very well. The jump is huge and I wonder if your front derailleur could handle it well.

This combo gives no problems whatsoever, I bought it from Campa like this. I later changed the 52T outer ring with a 50T outer ring and although it has 50-34 stamped on it, it works great with a 36T inner ring. I always understood that the front derailleur is not capable of handling a bigger drop than 52-36, so that means 52-34 won't work. Maybe somebody on this forum has tried it and he / she can chime in.

Please note that I am using a pre 2015 crankset though.

[shinzomaeda]

Very interested to read this thread, I too am heading to the Alps next month for the Etape and currently have a 53/39 crankset and hoping that a 52/36 would be suitable with a 12/29 rear cassette?!

I rode some biggish (for me anyway) hills on Sunday in north west French coast and managed to climb ok but had no more gears left

If the 52/36 works out ok, I'll probably replace the standard one for ever.


Miles

[0w3n]

Thanks for the replies. It sounds like the front mech can't cope with the difference between 52 & 34. I've ordered a 12-29 cassette today £100 hopefully I'll be OK with that.

[Attermann]

some have reported it works flawlessly, i'm going to try it these days, then i can report back

[ferrarista]

Campy front derailleur doesn't work well with a gap of more than 16 tooth between the big and small chainrings.

you could also do 50-34 with the new 11-29. 50-11 is taller than 52-12.

[sedluk]

I think the FD will work fine, but you will probably have a problem with finding a good chain length with 52/34 and 11/29.

What will happen is that you will have a good chain length for 52/29 and then when the chain is in 34/11 the chain will be very slack. The RD will not be able to take up the slack. If you shorten the chain so that 34/11 is good, then 52/29 will be too tight.

52/34 will probably work with 11/25 and maybe 11/27, I doubt it will work with 11/29.

[BlackMadone]

I'm running 53/34 on my 2015 Campag Record with 11/27 and no problems at all.

[kkibbler]

Unfortunately Campag do not have a mid-cage RD (or do they?). That would take care of the chain length and slack problem.

[BlackMadone]

Unfortunately Campag do not have a mid-cage RD (or do they?). That would take care of the chain length and slack problem.

Its not needed.

[0w3n]

Thanks Blackmadone that's just what I needed, I'll see how I get on with the 12-29 then maybe get the 34t as well. Just wish I had some comparable climbs around here to test it out

[ToffieBoi]

On my 2015 Chorus I'm currently riding with 52-36 and 12-29 combo.
Which is fast enough for long, not steep descents and also great for +20% climbs.

Before that, on my Shimano setup I had 53-39 chainset and I am kind of missing the close range between small and big chainring. So I can't even imagine how huge it will be with a 52-34 setup. I wouldn't like it for sure, even if it works properly.

[Calnago]

I agree with @Sedluk about the chain length issue. With a proper length chain setup with any of the 3 stock chainring combos the rear dérailleur has enough capacity to handle any cassette range from 11 (smallest cog) to 29 (largest cog). Meaning you could have several wheels with various cassette choices and just quickly change them without worry about the chain being too short or too long.
But man, I'm with the previous poster that the jump between a 52 and 34 would be a huge annoyance while shifting, particularly with a large range (11/29) cassette. I don't like even a 50/34 for that reason. Find myself constantly jumping between big and small rings searching for the next appropriate gear. I haven't tried the 52/36 combo yet and was hoping that might be better in that regard. But sounds like the previous poster still misses his 53/39 for the same reason.