Oh no, Shimano - say it isn't so!

   In the past I have had several incidents with incompatible Campagnolo parts, whether it was with products from rival companies, or even between different component lines from the Italian manufacturer’s catalogue. The folks at “Campy” wanted cyclists and their mechanics to use their products exclusively, and if you were using their latest innovative (and more expensive) parts, they also seemed determined to makes sure you would buy the complete new line and not be able to use it in combination with the older stuff!

   The affordability of Shimano products is certainly a draw, but simplicity and compatibility are also reasons that, unless you are shopping for an elite level bicycle, you will almost exclusively find Shimano components on any bike you find in a local shop. A cyclist who likes a new Shimano derailleur design, yet prefers the feel of his older model shift lever, can be sure everything will work fine on his bicycle if he decides to mix and match.

   Imagine my surprise when I was making the flatbar conversion on my Bianchi and found the Shimano Deore trigger shifters would not work properly with the Shimano Dura-Ace rear derailleur! I was able to make adjustments to make the first three gears shift smoothly, only to have the next four or five rattle through transition. I made a few more adjustments to make those middle four or five shifts correct, but messed up the first three in the process.

   I took the attitude of a responsible patient and “sought a second opinion” with my buddies at Bikesport, who confirmed my appropriate actions to remedy the problem. Through a conversation with customer service at Shimano, we found out Deore (the company’s mountain bike-specific line) and Dura-Ace (their top-of-the-line road group) components aren’t compatible. I have done many flatbar conversions now, and never experienced a problem combining Deore with the lower Shimano product lines of Sora, Tiagra or even Ultegra. I thought that perhaps, because the Deore shifters were from 2014, that this may be a new development within the company, but according to online guru Sheldon Brown, Dura-Ace drivetrain components have always been incompatible with mountain bike-specific parts.

   I have to admit that I am a bit of a Euro snob when it comes to my own machines, and although I frequently work with Shimano parts on customer bicycles, I had never worked with Dura-Ace. Italian and French designs have always had an aesthetic edge over their Japanese counterparts, but more often I have simply chosen to match up the country of bicycle design with the components from the appropriate geographical region.

   For example, if I had a vintage Colnago or Pinarello to build, I certainly didn’t want to slap some Shimano or SunTour components on it. I’ve always had a preference for Look pedals and Mavic wheels (both French products) on any bike I ride, but for my Vitus project, I tried out other Mavic components, which were absolutely beautiful, along with some vintage parts from French manufacturers Atax, Bador and Huret.

   Tulio Campagnolo was the inventor of quick release skewers and the modern parallelogram cage derailleur. His products functioned precisely and looked wonderful, and for decades his products dominated competitive racing. There has been a major shift over the years, as Shimano parts have become known for their reliability, and quality of design has improved significantly. The company’s recent developments in disk braking and electronic shifting have pushed the Shimano reputation to a level where their components come stock on many Colnago and Pinarello bicycles – sacrilege to many Italians!

   Well this was all a rather simple fix – all I had to do was order a Deore rear derailleur. The new “Shadow” design of this model (photo above) has the parallelogram and cage more aligned vertically, which ensures that the mechanism pivots closer to the frame and keeps it from snagging on branches, etc. when off-road.

   I decided to take advantage of the longer cage on this derailleur and further improve the bicycle’s “climbability” by swapping the 12x27t cassette I had installed previously with an even larger 11x34t version. Now the Bianchi should really perform like a mountain bike, should I want to turn to some more challenging singletrack riding.

   Here are some photos of the completed Cross Concept, which I finished off with some Shimano SPD pedals and an authentic Bianchi bottle cage.

   All of this exchanging of Dura-Ace parts has inspired me to jump into a project I have had my eye on for a while. I figured why sell off all of these quality components individually, when I’m only a few pieces away from completing a whole bicycle! For a few months, there had been an eBay listing for a wonderful Bottecchia frame painted for the ZG-Mobili pro team from around 1993. I made an offer for $100 less than the asking price, which was accepted.

   A great feature of this bicycle was that all of the appropriate component companies were listed on the bicycle itself, as sponsors for the team. All I had to do was read the decals on the chainstays - no searching the internet for resources on defunct pro cycling team “kit”! The Bottecchia frame has Shimano logos, which could only suggest Dura-Ace, so I will include the drivetrain components I already have, plus brakes and a wheelset of the same line.

   I’m not looking to be exact with the team’s precise model for each individual part, and I may even stretch some of the choices towards the more modern side. The frame comes with the appropriate Miche headset already installed, and I have already started collecting an ITM stem and bars, as well as a Selle Italia saddle. A pair of Michelin tires will eventually finish her off, but that is looking ahead quite a bit towards the finish!

New Year, New Bike

   I must say that I appreciated a little writing break, although I certainly wasn’t away from the cycling world during that time, with all sorts of things going on. I actually got in some rides before temperatures became brutally cold, taking to the local rail trails on my Vitus with it decked out for the holidays. I love the double-takes, friendly honks, and especially the occasional rolled-down window, accompanied by a shout of “Merry Christmas!”

   The Pinarello Treviso paint job was completed shortly after my last blog entry and it looks fantastic (see photos below)! Bruce told me it's what is called a "candy" finish, which reflects different colors in the sunlight. I was cautioned by the folks at VeloCals to wait a couple of weeks before applying decals because of outgassing that occurs with new paint, but Bruce suggested at least a month to let the clear coat cure completely. Since I am certainly in no hurry at this point, and figuring that a sale on this bike is more likely when spring comes around, I will try to be patient before tackling the decal work and installation of the components.

   A local cyclist surprised me with an offseason (the best time to do it!) bicycle overhaul on a secondhand Motobécane. This was a modern U.S.-trademarked version, as opposed to a vintage machine made by the French company, but not a bad bicycle overall. It had been well cared-for generally, but some of the bearings and the drivetrain needed serious cleaning and lubrication. I had been doing so much building up “new” bicycles lately that I had forgotten about the getting dirty part! 

   I was also able to sell the Cervélo Soloist Team bicycle to a nice guy from NYC. I was a little annoyed that he haggled the price a bit after I drove to meet him halfway, but I was still getting a great return on a bike that was essentially given to me for free. The funny part was watching him give it a short test ride in a light snowfall - the road was only a bit wet at that point, but it still was an odd sight! A mountain bike or even some type of hybrid probably wouldn’t have created the same effect, but this aero racing machine looked totally out of place with snowflakes coming down around it. 

   My string of bicycle-buying bad luck continued when the seller of the Bianchi cyclocross bike simply disappeared. He replied to a couple comments initially about shipping, and from what we had discussed, I assumed the bicycle was being packed for a drop-off at UPS. After two weeks, during which time there was no response to my inquiries about arrival time or tracking information, I opened a case with eBay. Strangely, I received almost an immediate refund. I tried again to contact the seller just for some explanation, but got nowhere!

   It may have turned out for the best, as I ended up finding a better quality Bianchi ‘cross bike, even if I had to pay a bit more for it. The 2006 Cross Concept I purchased has a very lightweight scandium/aluminum frame with carbon fiber rear stays and fork. The bicycle was custom built with some top-of-the-line components, such as Shimano Dura-Ace shifters and derailleurs, a SRAM carbon crankset, Ritchey WCS stem and handlebars and a Vuelta Corsa Lite wheelset.

   The seller of the Bianchi even threw in a quality spare Cane Creek Volos tubular wheelset with the deal. The rear had a cassette with a better configuration of cogs for climbing, so one of the first things I did was switch its 12-27t cluster with the 11-23t version that was on the Vuelta wheel.   

   The bike had come equipped with a pair of Tektro carbon cyclocross brake levers, which are often called “interrupters” because they are attached mid-brake line, clamped to the top of the bars (see photo below). I disassembled this whole configuration to convert the bicycle to an upright, much like the arrangement on the other Bianchi that I had originally purchased.

   Because I like to match components as much as possible, I acquired some Ritchey riser bars and lock-on handgrips to complement the existing stem and also picked up a pair of Avid brake levers to go with the brand of cantilever brakes that were installed on the bike. For some reason the Bianchi had a mismatched pair of tires with different widths (32 mm front, 28 mm back), but since I preferred the “knobbier” Michelin Jet tire on the front, I bought a duplicate for the rear.   

   I have been waiting for the new set of Shimano trigger shifters to arrive, since they have to be slid onto the bar first during assembly, and then I’ll just need to purchase some cables to complete the conversion. I’ve already sold the Tektro levers, and I expect to recover a decent amount of funds from the wheels after I get the old glue off and clean them up. I’m going to hang onto the bars and Dura-Ace shift/brake levers for a little while, since I have my eye on another possible project - that is, once I clear some of my finished bicycles out of the shop.

Hopefully some pictures of the completed Bianchi next time!