Not sure I’m entirely sold on the new Ergo levers but I’ll be open minded and try them out first.

…the hand-built lugged frameset market w/ it's old school nuances has been religiously growing over the years & it's not going to go away…the success of the north american handbuilt bike show has exponentially fueled the market w/ it's popularity…

…the other side of the coin is that campagnolo is the only large component company w/ the panache to really cater to it…they'll either "get it" or they'll drop the ball & someone else will pick up on it & not do as good a job as needs to be done…

…of course, someone like chris king would do a creditable job if he chose to go in that direction…

…just thinkin'…

However they will need a normal reach brake (and or maybe a nicely sculpted forged canti) for fenders and wider tires and a crank based on Campy’s new compact BSD so 48/36 and 46/30 chain ring combos can be had.

…in it's day, nothing came near campagnolo…record, nuovo record, super record, the 50th anniversary gruppo, back to record, all had an amazing elegance (you're quite correct to use that term, james) not found in anyone else's product line…

…shimano's road products have always functioned very well, no doubt about it, but i personally still don't think they've achieved as pleasing a look as campagnolo…

…that being said, the tables are turning in the sense that while shimano is going for a more stylized look, campagnolo's new 11-speed ergo has a less elegant yet highly functional "race" look to it…

…i certainly have no need to switch out parts as mine will function great for years to come but i find campagnolo's new look to already be growing on me (despite that rear derailler)…

…i would like to try the new ergo levers, as i tend to ride from the hoods a lot & i'd like to know if they are as comfortably ergonomic as they look…

…i will say this…those derailler pulley wheels couldn't have been designed to be harder to clean if they tried, especially considering how inaccessible they are w/out taking the rear cage apart…

…reader 'hank' has a great idea if it could be economically feasible…cater to the hand built, old school, lugged frame bike crowd w/ a specifically designed, high end 'elegant' alloy gruppo…wonderful thought…

I’m reserving judgment on the new Ergo levers. I’m not crazy about the looks and I find it hard to believe they could improve the comfort of the current Ergo levers. However, that’s exactly what I said last time they changed the shape of Ergo so you never know.

I get the whole carbon thing for Record. It’s a racing group first and foremost so stiffness and weight savings will always come first. However, the vast majority of Campy customers never race and many of us have fond memories of shiny silver Campy parts.

Probably be a huge hit with those with custom built or vintage lugged steel bikes.

It all started going fast down hill when they re-designed the hubs to be all black and chunky instead of the polished and smooth looking old variety.

Then they dropped alloy cranks from the Record group and went all carbon (it’s not that the carbon cranks are really bad looking, they’re just another example of the exaggerated love of carbon fiber parts), before now making the rear derailleur look like a black chunk sitting at the drops. Also the new look of the Ergos is a great step back.

From what I have seen in tests of the new groups they have also made the shifting mechanism smoother with less pronounced clicks. In my opinion this is also a leap in the wrong direction.

light bikes, I don’t know about the Ducati example. Sure the engineers work on the engine with pure function in mind, but you can bet that industrial designers have a big hand of the overall motorcycle design.

jimmythefly, great quote. I don’t like it when people discount beauty in man made objects as superficial. I would elaborate (if I weren’t about to get on a plane) but that attitude is the reason we have a landscape in the US full of junk architecture. Aesthetics do matter.

peter (and others), good points and well said.

It’s great that I can repair/rebuild myself, tho usually there’s a bit of sticker-shock associated with rebuilding.