By Jim Weaver, Service Manager

Fit Werx, Waitsfield, VT

 Last March, I attended a seminar in New York City providing training in the installation and operation of Campagnolo’s new electronic shifting system, dubbed EPS.  I wrote an article about this training, and the system, which can be found at https://fitwerx.com/category/new-bike-technology/page/3.   If you have not had a chance to read that article, you should do so for more detailed information about this new electronic system as that is not the focus of this article.  Since that initial introduction, I have been chomping at the bit to get my hands on the system.  We ordered an EPS specific custom Cyfac Absolu carbon fiber frame from France a few months ago for an athlete and it recently came in and I finally was able to put the parts that had been patiently waiting onto the frameset.  I just completed the build of that bike, and initial test rides, and thought I would write a quick article giving my impressions of the EPS system, both from both the installation and operation perspective.

First, I want to make it clear that this is the finest feeling and best operating shift system I have ever used.  I bring this up because I don’t want any of my partially tongue in cheek criticisms about the installation to detract from this fact – Campagnolo EPS has exceptional operation and feel.  So, getting this out of the way, here are some of the details on the installation.

The installation is classic Campagnolo.  For those who are Campy aficionados, nothing more need be said.   For those not (yet) initiated into the Campagnolo cult, Campagnolo does things in their own, sometimes esoteric, way.  Some examples:

• To install the system, it helps, (read: “requires”) that you have a proprietary magnetic cable pulling tool, made by Campagnolo.  However, if you use that cable-pulling tool, you must also get the very special tool necessary to separate the EPS cable junctions, also made by Campagnolo.  Without that tool, you cannot get the cable junctions apart.  Why they don’t sell these as a complete kit is beyond me…
• Campagnolo’s website provides many helpful downloads for the EPS system.  However, don’t bother clicking on the Accessories, or rather “Accessoires”, unless you speak Spanish.  Yes, all the other downloads in the English language section of Campy’s website are in English, except this one, which is in Spanish…
• The functioning of the front derailleur, when installed strictly in accordance with Campagnolo’s written instructions, website instructions, the instructions I received at the New York seminar, and the instructions on the YouTube videos, caused it to suck chain on the big ring about 50% of the time (very odd…).  So, a call to Campagnolo North America was in order, and additional instructions, that can be found nowhere else, solved the problem.  Well, at least now I know how to fix that…

Otherwise, the installation went as did my first installation of Shimano Di2 years ago, meaning very carefully and  tentatively, not wanting to mess up anything, but otherwise smoothly.  Derailleur programming was a bit confusing at first, however, having gone through it once, it is now a snap.  It is easy to micro-adjust either the front or rear derailleur while on the fly in order to dial out that last little bit of rattling that only appears when the bike is on the road as well.

So, how does it work?  Well, once the front derailleur issue was resolved, the system works great!  I remember my first ride of a Shimano Dura Ace Di2 bike, back in 2009.  I came back to the shop with a grin from ear to ear.  Well, this time my grin actually connected at the back of my head.  Well, not really, but you get the picture.  I like it a lot.  The shifting is spot on, and very fast.  The controls work almost telepathically and have fantastic feel at the lever – crisp and solid with no question as to what is going on.  The rear derailleur can sweep up and down the cassette by simply holding the shift lever, and it sweeps very fast.  I cannot sweep my whole 11 speed cassette this fast with my cable-actuated shifters and Shimano’s current Di2 has to have the button pressed over and over to shift multiple gears (Note: this is changing with Shimano’s 9070 series Di2 coming out in early ’13).  The shifting offers all the usual elements we have come to expect from electronic systems, such as auto-trimming of the front derailleur, and very powerful, foolproof front shifting.  Just keep those fingers away from the moving front derailleur.  It generates 52 nm of force, and I understand that is sufficient to break human bones!  I personally like the feel and operation, the action, of the Campagnolo EPS shift controls to Shimano’s Di2 shifters.  The “buttons” have a familiar feel, like a very consistent mechanical lever, but with lighter and more precise action.   The shift levers are also distinctly separate, so you cannot accidentally hit the up-shift switch when you meant to downshift, as can happen with Shimano’s levers, particularly with a glove covering the fingers.  I’ve always liked this about Campagnolo’s Ergo levers, but I really like it with EPS.

My impressions of EPS can be summed up simply.  The new Campagnolo EPS system has great functionality – shifting is smooth, fast and unrestricted.  The shift levers have the best tactile feel of any shifter I have ever used – electronic or mechanical – they work great.  The integrated battery pack and computer control center on EPS is bigger than Shimano’s separate battery and control and thus has more limited mounting points on the bike.  However, it works fine and has fewer loose connections than Shimano and I’m sure that additional options will continue to be created in the future (as they did with Shimano, companies like Calfee are already offering alternatives).   If you want your system to work as well as possible from the get-to, installation is best done by someone with experience.   Once adjusted, EPS even overcomes Campagnolo’s long standing reputation for sometimes finicky front derailleur function 100%.   Even with the usual Italian character we have grown to “love” from Campagnolo, EPS works great.   We might be a bit disappointed if it didn’t require special tools to install and if all the instructions were in English!  Being a Campy acolyte, and the current state-of-the-art in electronic shifting, my next bike is definitely going to have the EPS system.

Things seem to come in waves here at Fit Werx.  Just as I finished our initial EPS installation, a very pretty Seven 622 SLX frameset arrived that also will be equipped with Super Record EPS.  Now that I have installed the first one, I expect this second installation to go quicker and more smoothly, and so far it has.   The Cyfac is a fabulous bike (look for pictures on our blog/Facebook soon), and the Seven should be equally wonderful.  For now, until I get my hands on the soon-to-be-available new, revised Shimano Dura Ace 9070 11 speed Di2 system, the Campagnolo EPS is the top-of-the-heap in my book.   This competition back and forth between Campagnolo, Shimano and SRAM is radically changing the component landscape.  Changing it for the better in my book.

CAMPAGNOLO EPS FOLLOW-UP

By Jim Weaver, Service Manager

Fit Werx, Waitsfield, VT

               Last March, I attended a seminar in New York City providing training in the installation and operation of Campagnolo’s new electronic shifting system, dubbed EPS.  I wrote an article about this training, and the system, which can be found at https://fitwerx.com/category/new-bike-technology/page/3.   If you have not had a chance to read that article, you should do so for more detailed information about this new electronic system as that is not the focus of this article.  Since that initial introduction, I have been chomping at the bit to get my hands on the system.  We ordered an EPS specific custom Cyfac Absolu carbon fiber frame from France a few months ago for an athlete and it recently came in and I finally was able to put the parts that had been patiently waiting onto the frameset.  I just completed the build of that bike, and initial test rides, and thought I would write a quick article giving my impressions of the EPS system, both from both the installation and operation perspective.

First, I want to make it clear that this is the finest feeling and best operating shift system I have ever used.  I bring this up because I don’t want any of my partially tongue in cheek criticisms about the installation to detract from this fact – Campagnolo EPS has exceptional operation and feel.  So, getting this out of the way, here are some of the details on the installation.

The installation is classic Campagnolo.  For those who are Campy aficionados, nothing more need be said.   For those not (yet) initiated into the Campagnolo cult, Campagnolo does things in their own, sometimes esoteric, way.  Some examples:

• To install the system, it helps, (read: “requires”) that you have a proprietary magnetic cable pulling tool, made by Campagnolo.  However, if you use that cable-pulling tool, you must also get the very special tool necessary to separate the EPS cable junctions, also made by Campagnolo.  Without that tool, you cannot get the cable junctions apart.  Why they don’t sell these as a complete kit is beyond me…
• Campagnolo’s website provides many helpful downloads for the EPS system.  However, don’t bother clicking on the Accessories, or rather “Accessoires”, unless you speak Spanish.  Yes, all the other downloads in the English language section of Campy’s website are in English, except this one, which is in Spanish…
• The functioning of the front derailleur, when installed strictly in accordance with Campagnolo’s written instructions, website instructions, the instructions I received at the New York seminar, and the instructions on the YouTube videos, caused it to suck chain on the big ring about 50% of the time (very odd…).  So, a call to Campagnolo North America was in order, and additional instructions, that can be found nowhere else, solved the problem.  Well, at least now I know how to fix that…

Otherwise, the installation went as did my first installation of Shimano Di2 years ago, meaning very carefully and  tentatively, not wanting to mess up anything, but otherwise smoothly.  Derailleur programming was a bit confusing at first, however, having gone through it once, it is now a snap.  It is easy to micro-adjust either the front or rear derailleur while on the fly in order to dial out that last little bit of rattling that only appears when the bike is on the road as well.

So, how does it work?  Well, once the front derailleur issue was resolved, the system works great!  I remember my first ride of a Shimano Dura Ace Di2 bike, back in 2009.  I came back to the shop with a grin from ear to ear.  Well, this time my grin actually connected at the back of my head.  Well, not really, but you get the picture.  I like it a lot.  The shifting is spot on, and very fast.  The controls work almost telepathically and have fantastic feel at the lever – crisp and solid with no question as to what is going on.  The rear derailleur can sweep up and down the cassette by simply holding the shift lever, and it sweeps very fast.  I cannot sweep my whole 11 speed cassette this fast with my cable-actuated shifters and Shimano’s current Di2 has to have the button pressed over and over to shift multiple gears (Note: this is changing with Shimano’s 9070 series Di2 coming out in early ’13).  The shifting offers all the usual elements we have come to expect from electronic systems, such as auto-trimming of the front derailleur, and very powerful, foolproof front shifting.  Just keep those fingers away from the moving front derailleur.  It generates 52 nm of force, and I understand that is sufficient to break human bones!  I personally like the feel and operation, the action, of the Campagnolo EPS shift controls to Shimano’s Di2 shifters.  The “buttons” have a familiar feel, like a very consistent mechanical lever, but with lighter and more precise action.   The shift levers are also distinctly separate, so you cannot accidentally hit the up-shift switch when you meant to downshift, as can happen with Shimano’s levers, particularly with a glove covering the fingers.  I’ve always liked this about Campagnolo’s Ergo levers, but I really like it with EPS.

My impressions of EPS can be summed up simply.  The new Campagnolo EPS system has great functionality – shifting is smooth, fast and unrestricted.  The shift levers have the best tactile feel of any shifter I have ever used – electronic or mechanical – they work great.  The integrated battery pack and computer control center on EPS is bigger than Shimano’s separate battery and control and thus has more limited mounting points on the bike.  However, it works fine and has fewer loose connections than Shimano and I’m sure that additional options will continue to be created in the future (as they did with Shimano, companies like Calfee are already offering alternatives).   If you want your system to work as well as possible from the get-to, installation is best done by someone with experience.   Once adjusted, EPS even overcomes Campagnolo’s long standing reputation for sometimes finicky front derailleur function 100%.   Even with the usual Italian character we have grown to “love” from Campagnolo, EPS works great.   We might be a bit disappointed if it didn’t require special tools to install and if all the instructions were in English!  Being a Campy acolyte, and the current state-of-the-art in electronic shifting, my next bike is definitely going to have the EPS system.

Things seem to come in waves here at Fit Werx.  Just as I finished our initial EPS installation, a very pretty Seven 622 SLX frameset arrived that also will be equipped with Super Record EPS.  Now that I have installed the first one, I expect this second installation to go quicker and more smoothly, and so far it has.   The Cyfac is a fabulous bike (look for pictures on our blog/Facebook soon), and the Seven should be equally wonderful.  For now, until I get my hands on the soon-to-be-available new, revised Shimano Dura Ace 9070 11 speed Di2 system, the Campagnolo EPS is the top-of-the-heap in my book.   This competition back and forth between Campagnolo, Shimano and SRAM is radically changing the component landscape.  Changing it for the better in my book…