Campy 11 Speed Crankset Compatibility

[conorb]

Hi,

I'm looking to help set up a friend with some new gear and she'd really like to move to the new Campy 11 speed components.

The major problem is that she needs a 165mm crankset and Campy doesn't make one that size with 170mm being the shortest length we can get that's designed for the 11 speed system.

Does anyone have any real-world experience using other cranksets; FSA, SRAM, etc., with the new Campy 11 speed drivetrain? Additionally we would like to get a compact chainring setup but I believe that's a secondary priority.

I would be interested in hearing your thoughts and caveats.

Thanks,

conorb

[Bluetree]

I an in a similar situation. I would like to upgrade to Super Record 11 but the lack of a <170 crank prevents me. I have been on the phone with my LBSs and with the folks at Competitive Cyclist, who talked to the US HQ in San Diego. They have heard no plans from Campy about making smaller cranks. The best they could give me were rumors that FSA will be making a compatible crank in the coming year, but no news if it's a compact or standard. In a polite way, they all told me I was SOL.

The good news is that there are compatible cranksets for Campy 10. I run Record 10 on my bikes with 167.5 SRAM Red compact cranks with the ceramic BB. It shifts beautifully and is actually lighter than the Campy counterpart. A 165 version was available as well. Better still, Record 10 prices now are the lowest I've ever seen. CC was recently selling Ti/S cassettes for under $200 and Record chains for $39. That might be the way to go.

[conorb]

Yeah, I agree this is an interesting problem.

Right now I'm trying to figure out what (if any differences) exist between the Record/Chorus 10 speed chainrings and the Record/Chorus 11 speed chainrings.

I believe that the chain itself is narrower - to work with the 11 speed cassette - but I'm starting to think that the '10' speed chainrings will work on an '11' speed system. If this is the cast then something like a SRAM Red 165mm crankset would also work. I mean, theoretically.

Well, I guess the other issue is chainring spacing. If that's too different there's a chance of dropping the chain between the inner and outer chainrings - or having just shifting problems in general.

Another option might be 11 speed Campy chainrings on a SRAM crankset but that doesn't look feasible because even though the bolt circle is the same (110mm for compact) the number of bolts is different 4 for Campy and 5 for SRAM.

I think I'm going to just have to try it and see how it works.

conorb

[Cataboo]

I don't know if this helps - but I use 9 speed cranks with my 10 speed shimano ultegra stuff - I just changed my outer chain ring for a 10 speed one and that seems to have helped any shifting or compatibility issues. (least that's what I read on various forums)

[fidlfreek]

And I have a friend who uses 9 and 10 speed Dura Ace together with no problems.... Often manufacturers do not quite tell you everything thats possible w/ the parts. This I learned from Sheldon Brown RIP.

[aicabsolut]

Tom Boonen used Campy 10-speed cranks and front derailleur with 11-speed rear derailleur and cassette at Paris-Roubaix. Seemed to work for him.

[conorb]

Tom Boonen used Campy 10-speed cranks and front derailleur with 11-speed rear derailleur and cassette at Paris-Roubaix. Seemed to work for him.

Good information to know - thanks.

I've been hearing/reading that a Campy 10 speed crankset would work with the Campy 11 speed drivetrain and I guess (by extension) other cranksets should work as well.

I guess I'll just have to try it.

conorb

[TxDoc]

Hi, Yes you can use the crankset from a campy 10sp with the other components of the super record 11sp. The main difference in size is size of the chain: the chain for the 10sp is 5.9mm the one for the 11sp is narrower at 5.9mm. Both work fine on a 10sp crank, but if you want a 11sp cassette then you should use the 11sp specific chain (5.5). Either way, it works fine with the record 10sp crank. Actually a few weeks ago I helped a friend who switched part of his components to the 11sp. He was riding campy veloce with a ttFSA crankset. He changed the campy to super record 11, but kept his FSA crankset that he liked. The narrowercampy chain worked perfectly with his crankset.
I think some FSA cranksets come in 165, so that could be a good choice right there. I like Campy cranks and Token cranks much better - and that's what I use, but they don't make anything below 170.
Good luck!

[aicabsolut]

Yeah I should add that Boonen used the 11 chain with the mixed rig, I guess b/c of the 11-sp cassette.

Photos of the bike are on cyclingnews somewhere...