# 2010 Chorus or 2010 Athena



## sigepf94 (Apr 30, 2003)

To all the Campy experts. My next bike is going to be Campy. I'm tired of shimano and don't like SRAM. What are the difference between Chorus and Athena, besides the crankset? Is it just weight or does one have more bearings than bushings, etc. Thanks in advance. 

Mark


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## Topher (Jun 5, 2005)

One of the biggest differences are the shifter levers - Chorus are carbon, Athena are aluminum wrapped in fake carbon fiber covering. 

Seems like you have a choice between the more traditional alloy look of Athena (no carbon on the rear derailleur, front derailleur, option of alloy crank, etc), or the black/carbon look of the Chorus. It is too bad that the Athena shifters aren't bare alloy... 

To me that (and the price) is the biggest difference... what do you want your bike to look like?

Performance-wise, I haven't ridden either - still stuck in the stone age of ten speed


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## mriddle (Nov 16, 2005)

*Not much difference other than weight*

I have three bikes with 11 speed, one with SR, one with a mix of Record and Chorus, and one with Athena.

On the Athena bike I have a converted 2009 10 speed alloy Centaur shifter to better match the Athena finish (I have the alloy crankset). So I cannot comment on the actual Athena shifters. Overall the Athena is really very good, there is no difference vs. my other bikes in the rear shifting. The Athena front derailluer seems just a bit slower than the other two bikes. It might be due to my left shifter being a 10 speed, not sure.

The finish on the Athena is not as nice as the other groups, it looks good but when put next to the same component in Chorus/Record/SR you see some manufacturing differences. But if you want the alloy look, the Athena is really nice stuff. I have no idea what they were thinking with the carbon wrap shifter/no alloy option.

I wanted the alloy look, if you don't care about that I would pay the small amount more for Chorus.

Good luck.


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

As was stated previously, it's a real bummer the Athena levers come in that carbon-wrap finish. Currently I'm running 10 speed Centaur w/ Centaur Ultra Shift alloy levers and Athena 11 speed RD. When it's time to replace the cassette & chain I'll likely convert to 11speed. Unless Campy gets it right and offers Athena shifters in alloy finish (to match the rest of the group), I'll be _highly_ tempted to have 11speed indexing retrofitted to my Centuars. FWIW, personally, I think my Athena RD is _absolutly gorgeous!!_ But... it's true the machining isn't quite as nice as some of Campy's other higher offerings (or even 10speed Centaur for that matter), but to the casual eye, it really won't be noticed.


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## pigpen (Sep 28, 2005)

Does anyone have the Athena shifters?
What is the carbon wrap? It is really carbon or a sticker?
Can it be removed?


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## C-40 (Feb 4, 2004)

*info...*

Campys says it's a carbon brake lever with an aluminum core. That tells me that the carbon is more than cosmetic and contributes to the strength of the lever. Trying to remove the carbon would not be wise. Campy still lists aluminum Centaur brake levers as spare parts and of course Veloce brake levers are black finished aluminum. 


http://www.campagnolo.com/jsp/en/groupsetdetail/item_ComandiAthena_catid_13.jsp

http://www.campagnolo.com/repository/documenti/en/Spares10-A-010909.pdf


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

*any difference in shifting?*



mriddle said:


> On the Athena bike I have a converted 2009 10 speed alloy Centaur shifter to better match the Athena finish (I have the alloy crankset). So I cannot comment on the actual Athena shifters. Overall the Athena is really very good, there is no difference vs. my other bikes in the rear shifting. The Athena front derailluer seems just a bit slower than the other two bikes. It might be due to my left shifter being a 10 speed, not sure.
> 
> 
> Good luck.


If I'm reading this right, you retrofitted your Centaur Ultra Shifts to 11speed (right?). How did the shifting feel/perform when it was 10speed compared to when it was converted to 11speed?


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## mriddle (Nov 16, 2005)

*Never used them w/10 speed.*



jpdigital said:


> If I'm reading this right, you retrofitted your Centaur Ultra Shifts to 11speed (right?). How did the shifting feel/perform when it was 10speed compared to when it was converted to 11speed?


I bought the Centauer shifters specifically for the Athena bike. Thus I immediately ordered a new internal mechanism and converted them to 11 speed. I did not want carbon shifters on the bike. The converted shifter has a 2010 11 speed Record shift body/internals, so it shifts like Record. Pretty firm clicks up and down. Very easy to convert, parts were about $100 US.


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## dhfreak (Sep 12, 2009)

I have the Chorus 11 drivetrain, minus the brakes, and could not be happier. I have seen the Athena, have not ridden it, but it looks great; very classic. If you have the money I would say buy the best you can afford, but if money is to be considered, the Athena group is deffinetly a good group.

Mike


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