The 'Un-Official' Campagnolo Ekar thread

[Newtoekar]

Worse case scenario: Does anyone know where an Ekar caliper by itself can be purchased?

[Velocipede]

Originally Posted by Newtoekar

Worse case scenario: Does anyone know where an Ekar caliper by itself can be purchased?

Campagnolo does not offer the disc brake calipers separately. They're only sold with levers.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Newtoekar

So does the batch number indicate whether the item is a second?
Are euro purchased items excluded from warranty repairs in the USA?

That wee sticker on the component will determine the distribution 'path'. No sticker-no warranty.

Depends on where it came from. There are many Campagnolo authorized distributors and resellers in Europe and yes, a warranty in the US is no problem.

Call or email Jerry and ask..

[Newtoekar]

The East coast rep contacted both myself and the LBS this week. Appears that this issue may not be an issue- numerous calipers have shown signs of a "sweating" mineral oil, but in fact not actually leaking. So they advise thoroughly cleaning the caliper with isopropyl alcohol and compressed air and then leaving the lever for 24-48 hours in the braking position with a velcro or similar band. If there is no fluid that appears, then all is well.... Will bring bike to shop on Monday...

[dpmackey]

@newtoekar - what were the symptoms you experienced that led you to the potential cause of caliper leak / sweating?

Loss in power? Lever pull? Just visible oil?

[Newtoekar]

Oil in the crack.... very minimal barely visible
No loss of brake response....

I am hoping that this is nothing... fingers crossed

[JWB475]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

Campagnolo does not offer the disc brake calipers separately. They're only sold with levers.

Hope RX4 calipers are allegedly compatible with Campy, if you can find them (although Ekar is not specifically listed last time I checked).

[Newtoekar]

They may not sell the calipers individually but they do have them for replacement, if needed....

[morrisond]

Hi - I have EKAR on my 650B x38mm Rando bike, but am contemplating building a new bike based around the Rene Here 650B x55 Untanum Ridge Tires. This bike would also have fenders.

I'm pretty sure with Normal 142 Rear hub and EKAR crank I will probably have issues with the Chain hitting Fender/Tire.

What is the latest with EKAR compatible Cranks/chainrings? Did White Industries ever do anything?

What about a rear boost hub that can take an N3W free hub? I would be doing a custom steel front and using a SON SL hub so that could be boost as well.

Could I use EKAR crank with Boost rear? I may want to go with different crank anyways for lower gearing - but just curious if it might work.

Thanks

Current EKAR Rando Bike below - BiLam, SON SL, Berhtoud sans decaluer front bag.

[aydraper]

Originally Posted by spaghettispokes

Anyone have issues with the clutch getting stuck? On upshift it starts getting really noisy and more vibration than usual. I contacted Campy but they don't always get back to me. I couldn't find any info on servicing the clutch or removing the cover...

I can manually nudge it or downshift and the noise goes away. It's not pulleys touching cogs and everything is shifting well, and derailleur shifts well. I checked the hanger and torqued everything to spec. The unit is functioning just really loud. I realize a clutch will make some noise when it's working, but this is beyond that.

Did you get this figured out? I too had this issue and contacted Campy NA rep. Here is the trick.

Peel back the hood cover and you will see a small hole on the side of the shifter. I can't recall exactly which letter it lines up with. Anyway, you need a long 2.5mm Allen wrench. You may have to clean out some gunk with a pick to open the hole. Inser the Allen wrench (it's pretty far in) and turn clockwise a half a turn. See if that fixes it. If not, do another 1/2 turn. Keep doing that until it stops. I had to go about 1 1/2 turns. I guess some shifter left the factory with the screw not in far enough and something catches. Fixed it for me!

[aydraper]

Originally Posted by jmr_santa_fe

I am looking into Ekar as a replacement for my current GRX mechanical 1x drivetrain. My rides in Southern California cover pavement and a few very steep dirt sections, and the 13 speed range of Ekar would be a meaningful improvement in both low and high gearing compared to my current setup.

Now that folks have had more time to put miles on Ekar, how is it holding up?

Is it sensitive to staying in adjustment, especially under conditions of vibrations and jostling that comes from off road riding? Since it has 13 speeds, I would imagine it is more sensitive to cable tension, limit screws, etc needing to stay within a more narrow range of parameters.

I'm loving mine. See previous post about thumb shifter getting stuck. But once I got that worked out, its been great. I haven't had to fiddle at all with shifting about the first week or so of getting it tuned right. Everything just works. And I switch between two wheelset (road and gravel) with different cassettes. Same chain. Seamless switch and haven't touch the derailleur for shifting even with well swaps.

[Jared Purdy]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

The brake calipers, the front, it's now like Shimano flat mount. You can use an adaptor to go from 140 to 160mm rotors. OR, they still offer the original version, with the tabs built into it.

The graphics, it's designed to be a stand-alone group. Minimal Campagnolo branding. EKAR is supposed to not be the stodgy old Campy for the new generation riders.

Nice post, thanks. And so it goes an entirely different system that will invariably mean sub groupos (low, medium and high), different cassette and front chain ring sizes, some with titanium, some not..... This is the system, once developed that will come to dominate the peloton, providing the gear ratio can be matched to a two chain ring, 12 cog cassette.

The rest of us will be relegated to scrounging for two chainring cranks, those obsolete, mechanisms of days of yore, rim brake callipers and the associated brake pads needed, cables, those ghastly things from the past....

[Plum Hill]

Originally Posted by morrisond

Just a little tidbit from a UK Campy Tech Specialist.

Sorry if this has been posted before.

My question to him when I was contemplating putting Mech brakes on a new Rando bike I'm having built so the fork could have flexier blades (I've since decided on EKAR 1x Hydro).

"Have you looked into the theoretical possibility of gutting a Mechanical Brake 12S lever and putting Ekar guts into it to get 1x13 Mechanical Brake?"

His reply which took a few months as he has been super busy "It looks possible, I've pulled all the bits out and transplanted them but I haven't had an opportunity to test the system."

Ever hear back on this?
I’d be interested in Ekar but don’t want to mess with hydraulic brakes.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Plum Hill

Ever hear back on this?
I’d be interested in Ekar but don’t want to mess with hydraulic brakes.

Knowing Campagnolo, I'll bet the 13s shifter guts and 12s shifter guts are essentially identical except for shift disc and probably toothed bushing in front..just like 12s is almost identical to 11s...

BUT, somebody send me a 13s and 12s RH shifter, I'll take 'em apart and let y'all know.

[morrisond]

Originally Posted by Plum Hill

Ever hear back on this?
I’d be interested in Ekar but don’t want to mess with hydraulic brakes.

No sorry I never did.