The 'Un-Official' Campagnolo Ekar thread

[Velocipede]

And that pricelist isn't correct.

[gpl916]

So, I received my Merlin Sandstone with Ekar a couple of weeks ago and have put about 200 miles on it. It has been a little hit and miss so far....

When it functions correctly it's pretty sweet. Frequently though, it has an issue where I want to use the thumb button to shift to a smaller ring and it won't shift. I have to move the finger lever to move the internals a little, and then I can go back to the thumb and it shifts.

I have played around with it to make sure I am fully engaging the finger lever when shifting to a larger ring and that I am not sort of half shifting on the way up the cassette and causing the problem.

The shifting in general needs a little work in that it is hard not to shift two gears at once when you are trying for one. I have to really pay attention and then get two gears frequently anyway. And while I am trying to shift just one cog, I end up with a miss shift that just causes the DR to be out of alignment for whatever gear it is in. It skips gears on the way down the cassette as well.

I have made minor adjustments to the cable tension but haven't found the sweet spot yet I guess.

I am hoping that as the group wears in, these issues will go away. I guess these are the kinds of problems you have when you buy the first version of a product.

I would be curious to know if others have these same issues?

[Mike V]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

And that pricelist isn't correct.

Please post correct one thanks

[tuscanyswe]

Originally Posted by gpl916

So, I received my Merlin Sandstone with Ekar a couple of weeks ago and have put about 200 miles on it. It has been a little hit and miss so far....

When it functions correctly it's pretty sweet. Frequently though, it has an issue where I want to use the thumb button to shift to a smaller ring and it won't shift. I have to move the finger lever to move the internals a little, and then I can go back to the thumb and it shifts.

I have played around with it to make sure I am fully engaging the finger lever when shifting to a larger ring and that I am not sort of half shifting on the way up the cassette and causing the problem.

The shifting in general needs a little work in that it is hard not to shift two gears at once when you are trying for one. I have to really pay attention and then get two gears frequently anyway. And while I am trying to shift just one cog, I end up with a miss shift that just causes the DR to be out of alignment for whatever gear it is in. It skips gears on the way down the cassette as well.

I have made minor adjustments to the cable tension but haven't found the sweet spot yet I guess.

I am hoping that as the group wears in, these issues will go away. I guess these are the kinds of problems you have when you buy the first version of a product.

I would be curious to know if others have these same issues?

Could this possibly be an issue with the rubber hood interfering with the thumb button. I have a had this happen every now and then on 11s shifters but this will ofc make the thumb button stuck not free and doesent shift so if thats yr issue likely another cause..

[clarendon]

Originally Posted by gpl916

So, I received my Merlin Sandstone with Ekar a couple of weeks ago and have put about 200 miles on it. It has been a little hit and miss so far....

When it functions correctly it's pretty sweet. Frequently though, it has an issue where I want to use the thumb button to shift to a smaller ring and it won't shift. I have to move the finger lever to move the internals a little, and then I can go back to the thumb and it shifts.

I have played around with it to make sure I am fully engaging the finger lever when shifting to a larger ring and that I am not sort of half shifting on the way up the cassette and causing the problem.

The shifting in general needs a little work in that it is hard not to shift two gears at once when you are trying for one. I have to really pay attention and then get two gears frequently anyway. And while I am trying to shift just one cog, I end up with a miss shift that just causes the DR to be out of alignment for whatever gear it is in. It skips gears on the way down the cassette as well.

I have made minor adjustments to the cable tension but haven't found the sweet spot yet I guess.

I am hoping that as the group wears in, these issues will go away. I guess these are the kinds of problems you have when you buy the first version of a product.

I would be curious to know if others have these same issues?

I haven't ridden Ekar but had similar problems to the freezing you describe with Super Record. If there is any pressure from your hand on the upshift paddle the thumb shifter will freeze. Not an issue once I understood what was happening but good luck.
See here: https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=252295

[gpl916]

Originally Posted by tuscanyswe

Could this possibly be an issue with the rubber hood interfering with the thumb button. I have a had this happen every now and then on 11s shifters but this will ofc make the thumb button stuck not free and doesent shift so if thats yr issue likely another cause..

I don't think so. It is a hard stop. I am pretty sure it's mechanical.

[gpl916]

I will pay attention to that on the next ride and see what happens...

Thanks for the tip!

Originally Posted by clarendon

I haven't ridden Ekar but had similar problems to the freezing you describe with Super Record. If there is any pressure from your hand on the upshift paddle the thumb shifter will freeze. Not an issue once I understood what was happening but good luck.
See here: https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=252295

[Applesauce]

Originally Posted by clarendon

I haven't ridden Ekar but had similar problems to the freezing you describe with Super Record. If there is any pressure from your hand on the upshift paddle the thumb shifter will freeze. Not an issue once I understood what was happening but good luck.
See here: https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=252295

All shifters will do this. When the little pawl that engages the gear is in the way, you can't engage the release that allows the return spring to do its thing. (It's tough to explain without common nouns to describe the small parts.) If you have a tiny bit of pressure on the trigger of XTR, the paddle won't move. It's slightly more exaggerated with Campy, I find, but I think it has more to do with hand position than anything else: it's hard with Shimano, for instance, to have the big lever slightly engaged while you're trying to hit the little paddle (try it though, and you'll have the same result: no shift).

In any case, it's NOT a fault of Ekar, or any other gear system.

[gpl916]

Originally Posted by Applesauce

All shifters will do this. When the little pawl that engages the gear is in the way, you can't engage the release that allows the return spring to do its thing. (It's tough to explain without common nouns to describe the small parts.) If you have a tiny bit of pressure on the trigger of XTR, the paddle won't move. It's slightly more exaggerated with Campy, I find, but I think it has more to do with hand position than anything else: it's hard with Shimano, for instance, to have the big lever slightly engaged while you're trying to hit the little paddle (try it though, and you'll have the same result: no shift).

In any case, it's NOT a fault of Ekar, or any other gear system.

That me be the cause but I have been using Campy for about 20 years, all the common groups, and haven't had the problem- until now.

I'll report back after the next ride...

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by gpl916

That me be the cause but I have been using Campy for about 20 years, all the common groups, and haven't had the problem- until now.

I'll report back after the next ride...

I had a chorus shifter that did this, it kind of locked the gears and I wouod have to wiggle it a bit and then it worked. This is not normal. I have had over 10 campy shifters of all kinds and only that one did that. I replaced it and problem gone away. You should get it replaced

[AngryScientist]

How about a glamour shot of the Merlin please!

[gpl916]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

How about a glamour shot of the Merlin please!

Ok!

[lavi]

Originally Posted by gpl916

Ok!

I mean wow. That 2nd shot of the filtered light through the furs....lovely. Also, the last shot, we have the same light. That thing is a weapon of a light!

The bike and build are great! Shamal Carbons (presumably mainly for the N3W fh)!!!

[lavi]

Originally Posted by gpl916

That me be the cause but I have been using Campy for about 20 years, all the common groups, and haven't had the problem- until now.

I'll report back after the next ride...

Also, not stoked to hear this being the owner of 3.5/5 of an Ekar build. I too have used Campagnolo for a very long time. While I have experienced this crap shifting phenomenon before with the groups, I'm not excited to hear you are experiencing with Ekar.

[Applesauce]

Originally Posted by lavi

Also, not stoked to hear this being the owner of 3.5/5 of an Ekar build. I too have used Campagnolo for a very long time. While I have experienced this crap shifting phenomenon before with the groups, I'm not excited to hear you are experiencing with Ekar.

Please. Grab any shifter you have in your garage. Push both buttons at once - nothing happens!

Alternatively, I’ll try this: everyone with faulty Campy shifters, please remove them from your bikes, clean them up, and send them to me; please include the connected brakes and derailleurs, just to be safe. Then you can buy new ones. Everybody wins!