Advice - Shimano Ultegra 6800 Groupset vs Campagnolo Athena Carbon Groupset

Fwiw I went from an old campag (veloce I think) to ultegra 11 sp from Merlin. Lovely shifting, and I no longer try the wrong shift action when I change bikes.

Throughout the time I've owned campagnolo stuff, I've found a lot of it quite fiddley and could never get mine set up right on my own. Not to mention as someone that built their first bike, I struggled needed specific tools along the way which is frustrating. But when it is set up right it does feel very nice and looks great too. Saying that I've ridden neither shimano or SRAM before

I may very well be flamed for this but why all the matchy matchy Campy wheelset must have Campy groupset, Italian bike must have Italian components rhetoric? You can wear an Armani suit with a Comme des Garçons tie and Berluti shoes and look great instead of like you just mugged a mannequin in head-to-toe Dolce & Gabbana. Just saying.

I've always had Shimano for MTB and road bikes. I like the seamlessness of the STI shifting. It's cleanly integrated into the brake lever and you can double shift with the front and rear derailleur at the same time for bigger jumps in gears with no problems. I've never not known what gear I'm in even though the clicks are so smoothly subtle as you get clear feedback from pedaling as to how much you've jumped up/dropped down as you would expect from the company that makes the quietest hub ever. Easy maintenance and worry free. I hear people complaining/seeking advice about the finickiness of their Campy components not infrequently while with Shimano it either works or something needs to be replaced. And that's fine 'cause some of my friends aren't happy unless they're tinkering around with their bikes. That said, if you don't like tinkering with your bike tune on a regular basis, you may be happier sticking with Shimano. And you can have your cake and eat it too with Shimano groupo and Belgian HED wheelset

It's just one of those things - it either matters to you or it doesn't . For me it doesn't feel right to have wheels saying Campagnolo matched to a Shimano gruppo. It doesn't really matter anymore as if you want Campag wheels that don't shout 'Campagnolo' you can get the equivalent Fulcrum version.

Both Ultegra and Athena are very good. As there is little to separate performance-wise, other more subjective factors come in to play...

I ride Campagnolo because I prefer how it looks.
I ride Campagnolo because I have to replace stuff less often than my Shimano riding pals
I ride Campagnolo because its what I used when I discovered that even Cat2 was likely to evade me and it reminds me of my yoof.
I ride Campagnolo because as much as I like sushi, I'm really a pasta lover at heart.

For me it is Campag all the way, I have ridden bikes with Shimano 1055 back in the 80/90's and it was ok but I did break a lot of things. Things like bottom bracket cups, axles, replaced several cranks and even a hub (well the bearing cups) with Campag CDA/ Record I never had any issues. I have recently started replacing my old record items for more modern parts, I found that as usual Campag build quality is second to none and you have to admit it looks so good. But it looks nicer and I actually like the clunky gear change as I find it a help for me to know I have changed gear, as I had to come away from the old levers on the down tube to them being on the brake levers.

Personally you want the silver groupset as it will stand out perfectly, you want everyone to know you have Campag on your bike.

Every current Shimano 10-speed system is compatible with every other. So you can use cheaper wearing parts (cassettes, chains, chain rings) and splurge on the shifters, front and rear derailleurs etc.

AFAIK you can't do mix and match crank parts with Campy.

That said, I'm leaning to a Super Record gruppo on my next Bianchi. It's just the 'super' name. And it's lighter than DA. And both bike and frame will be Italian. I have Ultegra on the current one, it's fine and works well, but...

I think you might start a philosophical conflict putting Campag on an American frame Surely it needs SRAM.

I think the 6800 is the way to go, great feel, precise shifting (which i have never experienced with Campag) and a plus is that the braking on the ultegra is IMO much better than DA anything campag have made. Plus you won't have to change everything for your bike.

For Scots readers, we can use this loafy comparison:

Campag - plain
shimano - pan

Campagnolo all day long! I swapped to an Athena equipped bike 3 years ago and would never go back! Have ridden Shimano equipped bikes since and it's still a great system, just not as great feeling as the Italian stuff! As I mock my pals with: "Shimano is a fishing tackle manufacturer!!" But all down to personal preference at the end of the day. (get the campag!!!) I got my first bike with Super Record last month and can probably never ride anything without it now!

Nobody else has tried to service Athena crank bearings then?
I did on a hire bike last year after it started to make horrible noises, it was a total faff.
A friend who rides a Chorus assures me that's not the case for that groupset, so why have two different systems?
That would put me off more than the long travel for front shifting with the Ultegra does..

Don't worry about the wheels, a Shimano 11 speed cassette works perfectly with Campag, it was an issue with 8 speed but since then the non compatibilty thing has just been a myth.

Oh and get Campag, I accept that it needs a little bit more love for your bike in the shifting but that's not a bad thing, it's your bike after all and feels more natural and organic after a few rides than Shimano's mechanical feeling.

Speaking of which, Stumps' Felt AR5 is indeed BB30, so that adds £30 to his Campag price...

I maintain my own Campag equipped bikes. All you need is an Allen key to remove the UT crankset bolt and it pops right out, I manage just fine thanks.

Does nobody here do their own maintenance? Campagnolo is in a right muddle with its two (soon to be three) bottom-bracket variants. Shimano chooses the right engineering solution and sticks with it. If only Campa had done the same with Ultra-Torque...sorry Ultra - Torque™

And when it gets right down to it, whose electronics you gonna trust?

Campag looks prettier. It is elegant. Shimano is beefy and brash. Campag it is.

It's down to personal choice. I've got bikes with Campag, Shimano & SRAM. All are really good products in their own rights.

As folks have said Campag has a positive clunk when you shift down wheras Shimano is a lot smoother.

Personally I prefer Campag because it's more iconic and I'm a sentimental old git at heart, plus I think their chainsets are easier on the eye.

Went through exactly the same decision - although I was choosing between upgrading an existing Rival groupset to Force, or switching to Athena/Chorus or Ultegra. Was pretty certain I knew which way it would go - then a friend suggested going to my local bike shop where they had one of each set up on a display bike. They let me have ten minutes on each on, strapped into a turbo trainer, just working the shifters and feeling the hood shape. Ended up buying Ultrgra (which was originally third choice) as it suited my hand shape. Without that test - using looks and other important but non-functional tests I would have gone silver Athena or Chorus. Worth finding out if there is somewhere local who will do that. Obviously, you will need to buy it there too - otherwise it's just rude, but compared to getting the wrong group...

You don't lose much with power shift in all honesty, getting the whole set from Comtat or Ribble is the cheapest way to go generally so I'd just live with Athena levers.

A good option is to get Campag Athena but with Chorus shifters so you have the ultra-shifting. This is what I have on my summer bike (the silver Athena group is gorgeous)!