# Where are Campagnolo components and wheels made?



## orange_julius

Since there has been much discussion on this subject, I thought I'd start a new thread instead. There has been discussion on other boards, but it seems the answer(s) to the question have changed since then.

Neo-retro, yet "correct": when did Campagnolo begin outsourcing?

Plus, the Bicycling article here: The Italian Job
Which, among other things, state: _A few years ago the company finally opened a second plant outside of Italy. It's not in China or Taiwan. It's in—get this—Romania._

But does the above necessarily mean that Campanolo-branded components and wheels are only made in two places? I sound like a lawyer now, but I claim it doesn't. It just means that employees of Campagnolo only exist in those two places. There can be sub-contractors and sub-manufacturers. 

So let's discuss and clarify here instead of derailing another thread. I'm not nearly the most knowledgeable, so I have a few questions:

 What is the relationship between Campagnolo SRL and Fulcrum? I recall reading years ago that Fulcrum is in fact a Taiwanese company that licenses Campagnolo's designs. See link: Rumors! 
 Which Campagnolo-branded components are made in Italy? Versus Romania? 
 Which Campagnolo-branded wheels are made in Italy? Versus Romania or Taiwan? 

Feel free to add questions, too, and thanks in advance for edumacating me.


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## kbwh

DiscoveryChannel at the Campagnolo/Fulcrum (aluminium?) wheel factory:






We don't get to see many faces, but the persons we see do not look like they're of Italian ancestory.


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## orange_julius

kbwh said:


> DiscoveryChannel at the Campagnolo/Fulcrum (aluminium?) wheel factory:
> 
> We don't get to see many faces, but the persons we see do not look like they're of Italian ancestory.


Thanks for sharing. At 1:32 there is a guy wheeling (ha) a cart full of rims into the oven. Can't tell if he's east asian, eastern european, southern european, or what. Plus, with so few sample points, it's hard to extrapolate any way, anybody can be of ethnicity X, born in Y, and living in Z. 

Vive le difference!


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## flatlander_48

At precisely 1:39 in the video...that guy does NOT look Asian...I'm guessing European...


From what I understand, Fulcrum is a wholly owned subsidiary. That stuff about aerospace engineers (or whatever) is marketing BS. Does anyone think it is coincidence that they are headquartered within walking distance of Vicenza?
When I recently upgraded to 11sp Chorus, I had my LBS in Taiwan return my 10sp componments in the 11sp boxes. Some of the boxes said Italy and others said Romania. Since I don't have access to the boxes right now, I don't remember which was which.
Don't know...


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## jmoryl

I had read somewhere that Campy assembles wheels at the Romanian facility. Where the parts originate, who knows? They still have a manufacturing presence in Italy. Also hear that the hubs on the lower-end wheels (ones with sealed bearings) are sourced in Asia.


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## bigbill

Italy and Romania. Romania was chosen for lower cost labor and product security. Campy is very secretive about their designs and processes. I have a wheelset built with lower end sealed bearing hubs and they were made in Italy. Campy is dedicated to keeping production in Europe and their stuff has a premium cost. That will keep them out of the OEM market.


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## rcharrette

*Another article*

I came across this a few weeks ago as well. A very good story on Campagnolo's old world values and how it makes it hard to compete with Shimano/SRAM.
CAMPAGNOLO - The full story - - JUST ENJOY IT -


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## orange_julius

rcharrette said:


> I came across this a few weeks ago as well. A very good story on Campagnolo's old world values and how it makes it hard to compete with Shimano/SRAM.
> CAMPAGNOLO - The full story - - JUST ENJOY IT -


That's a re-post of the Bicycling magazine article....


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## bikerjulio

I've been collecting Campy stuff for about 6 years now, and am used to seeing Centaur levers with logos looking like this:











I have not seen them for a year or so, but there used to be regular sellers in Taiwan with levers that looked like this:










Were Campy using different logos for the Taiwanese market, or is there some other explanation? I always wondered.


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## BLUE BOY

The 2nd (bottom) picture of Centaur lever is done in what Campy calls the century finish.
They only did this for 1, maybe 2 years with Centaur and was not logo'd the same.
It's not a Taiwan product or Romanian; Good ole Italy is it's home.


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## bikerjulio

BLUE BOY said:


> The 2nd (bottom) picture of Centaur lever is done in what Campy calls the century finish.
> They only did this for 1, maybe 2 years with Centaur and was not logo'd the same.
> It's not a Taiwan product or Romanian; Good ole Italy is it's home.


wrong.

I said I'd been collecting. I meant it. Here's 2 from the hoard in my basement - both century grey - nothing like the 2nd example above


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## flatlander_48

bikerjulio said:


> wrong.
> 
> I said I'd been collecting. I meant it. Here's 2 from the hoard in my basement - both century grey - nothing like the 2nd example above


Yes, my 2005 Centaur units look like yours, except that one of them (right side as I remember) says "10 SPEED".


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## BLUE BOY

I do remember a LBS that carried bikes around the 2005 time period that came equipped
with the Centaur group, (century finish), and it stood out, to me, because the lever itself had no logo; The Campy 75th anniversary book doesn't make any mention of their products being produced in Taiwan. Based on all the information I have seen, this is not
a Taiwan product. 
I will admit though that once I acquired my 2000 Chorus 10 speed groupo I have not
purchased any newer Campy components. I'm real content with what I have.
Certainly no intent to mislead.


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## BLUE BOY

bikerjulio said:


> wrong.
> 
> I said I'd been collecting. I meant it. Here's 2 from the hoard in my basement - both century grey - nothing like the 2nd example above


Go to Campagnolo's website and look at the 2004 parts catalogue.


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## flatlander_48

Mine did have the *CENTAUR* logo on the lever. I'm sure because I was always worried about it flaking off, but it never did in 6 years (including rain, wind, max 98deg, min 25deg).


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## PlatyPius

Nothing Campagnolo is made in Taiwan or China. Everything is made in Italy or Romania. The Romania factory is owned by Campy. Campy also makes their own carbon fiber components. Basically, they trust no one and do it all themselves.

The exception is the new electronic shifting. I'm sure some of the electrical components come from Asia.


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## merckxman

I've been told that the new Campagnolo CX (cyclocross) brakes came in a "Made in Taiwan" box. Didn't see it with my own eyes so perhaps someone can chime in about this.


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## ultimobici

merckxman said:


> I've been told that the new Campagnolo CX (cyclocross) brakes came in a "Made in Taiwan" box. Didn't see it with my own eyes so perhaps someone can chime in about this.


I'll photograph a box today for you all!


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## kbwh

PlatyPius said:


> Nothing Campagnolo is made in Taiwan or China. Everything is made in Italy or Romania. The Romania factory is owned by Campy. Campy also makes their own carbon fiber components. Basically, they trust no one and do it all themselves.
> 
> The exception is the new electronic shifting. I'm sure some of the electrical components come from Asia.


Campagnolo states in the EPS material that the servo motors have been developed in cooperation with an unnamed Swiss company.


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## Mr. Scary

PlatyPius said:


> Nothing Campagnolo is made in Taiwan or China. Everything is made in Italy or Romania. The Romania factory is owned by Campy. Campy also makes their own carbon fiber components. Basically, they trust no one and do it all themselves.
> 
> The exception is the new electronic shifting. I'm sure some of the electrical components come from Asia.


I have a set of Campagnolo Scirocco wheels that I bought to use on the trainer in the winter and they have a "Made in Taiwan" sticker on them. Nothing on their groupsets may be made outside of Italy and Romania (and the jury is out on the electronic elements of EPS) but clearly they are sourcing some lower end wheels in Asia.


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## PlatyPius

Mr. Scary said:


> I have a set of Campagnolo Scirocco wheels that I bought to use on the trainer in the winter and they have a "Made in Taiwan" sticker on them. Nothing on their groupsets may be made outside of Italy and Romania (and the jury is out on the electronic elements of EPS) but clearly they are sourcing some lower end wheels in Asia.


Now that you mention it, I think I remember reading something about some wheels being assembled in Taiwan with hubs and rims from Italy/Romania....


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## Creakyknees

bigbill said:


> ... and their stuff has a premium cost. That will keep them out of the OEM market.


I can tell you haven't been cruising the Ribble.co.uk site lately... I've been playing with bike builds and a Veloce bike is coming in a few hundred less than a 105 bike, after GBP to USD conversion.


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## jmoryl

Creakyknees said:


> I can tell you haven't been cruising the Ribble.co.uk site lately... I've been playing with bike builds and a Veloce bike is coming in a few hundred less than a 105 bike, after GBP to USD conversion.


Veloce and Centaur (and even the lower groups) have always been great value for money - certainly competitive with Shimano. And they perform well. What we don't know is how much a bike manufacturer has to pay and how the various companines compare on supply and delivery times. That could be the essential difference as far as seeing these groups as OEM stuff.


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## strathconaman

bikerjulio said:


> wrong.
> 
> I said I'd been collecting. I meant it. Here's 2 from the hoard in my basement - both century grey - nothing like the 2nd example above


My centaur century levers have black logos on the levers as well. The funny thing is all the other century components have white logos. I was wondering if my levers were, somehow, copies. I guess not.


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## pete2528ca

I just went to check, I have a full Veloce 10 speed gruppo on my Colnago C-40 (mix of 2009 and 2010 parts purchased from my LBS and probikekit(, and 2011 Vento Reaction wheels (purchased from Wiggle.co.uk), and the boxes all say Made in Italy, even the box the wheels came in.


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## ericjacobsen3

The semi-skeleton Centaur and Veloce brakes come in boxes that say "made in Taiwan". Perhaps that is why they only cost like $40.

Having said that, they are awesome brakes -I like them better than my Record brakes, as they have a three coil return spring that has a lighter action at the lever and the pads seem stickier. I think Centaur is about 15 grams heavier despite the double dual pivots.


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## Bill Bikie

*Chorus 8-spd friction rear deraileur available*



bikerjulio said:


> I've been collecting Campy stuff for about 6 years now.


I have a Chorus 8-spd friction rear deraileur. It's the one with the adjustment for larger touring cogs. If interested I'll send it to you, and you can send me a twenty dollar bill.

-Bill in Minnesota


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## ultimobici

As promised CX brakes & bar-end brake levers are Taiwanese made


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## bikerjulio

Bill Bikie said:


> I have a Chorus 8-spd friction rear deraileur. It's the one with the adjustment for larger touring cogs. If interested I'll send it to you, and you can send me a twenty dollar bill.
> 
> -Bill in Minnesota


thanks for the offer. but other than one C Record bike, my stuff is all 10-speed.


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## orange_julius

ultimobici said:


> As promised CX brakes & bar-end brake levers are Taiwanese made


Very interesting. I'm going to look for my Veloce (road parts) boxes to see if it says where they are made. Thanks for sharing.


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## pete2528ca

I didn't think anything was made outside of the EU.


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## ultimobici

orange_julius said:


> Very interesting. I'm going to look for my Veloce (road parts) boxes to see if it says where they are made. Thanks for sharing.


To be fair these are items that it is probably better for Campag to outsource to TRP.

All the other boxes I looked at from Veloce all the way up to Super Record were marked Made in Italy,


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## cs1

ericjacobsen3 said:


> I think Centaur is about 15 grams heavier despite the double dual pivots.


And that's about 1/2 ounce. Not too bad for the extra stopping power.


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## Bill Bikie

*Wheels first!*

Rotating weight is the big deal, especially concerning accelerating and climbing. To me component weight like a few grams here and a few grams there are not that significant. Two full H2o bottles are about a pound. And think about your seat bag, which contains a couple of tubes, and maybe even a spare foldable tire.

weight isn't an issue for me If I'm on a longer solo training ride. If I'm on a spirited club ride I may eliminate the seat bag and a few items. I may cut down to one tube and a couple of tire "irons."

Obviously weight is more important in a road bike than a trial bike. A time trial is pretty much a steady state effort, with little need for repeatedly overcoming inertia. Aerodynamics trumps weight. Lift a trial bike sometime and you'll see how much heavier thay are. You don't "dance on the pedals" of a time trial bike.


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## pete2528ca

I just got a brand new Chours 11 speed carbon crankset (2010 model year) and it is maid in Romania. Kind of half ass pissed at that.


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## PlatyPius

pete2528ca said:


> I just got a brand new Chours 11 speed carbon crankset (2010 model year) and it is maid in Romania. Kind of half ass pissed at that.


They may be made in Romania, but they're made at a Campy-owned factory by Campy-employed and Campy-paid people.


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## flatlander_48

PlatyPius said:


> They may be *made in Romania*, but they're made at a *Campy-owned factory by Campy-employed and Campy-paid people*.


Better that than a nondescript factory in Anywhere Asia owned by Somebody other than Campagnolo and staffed by Nobody workers; infinitely better...

Plus, folks need to know that those knock-off Pinarello's didn'y happen by accident...


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## pete2528ca

i love it though. nice crank.


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## orange_julius

flatlander_48 said:


> Plus, folks need to know that those knock-off Pinarello's didn'y happen by accident...


Are you suggesting that those Chinarellos are made by ex-Pinarello subcontractor employees, or that they re-use molds from actual Pinarello production?


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## flatlander_48

orange_julius said:


> Are you suggesting that those Chinarellos are made by ex-Pinarello subcontractor employees, or that they re-use molds from actual Pinarello production?


Molds for carbon fiber monocoque bikes are very expensive and you need one for each size. I've read that one mold costs at least $100,000. If you did sizes 50cm, 52cm, 54cm, 56cm, 58cm and 60cm, that's 6 molds or at least $600,000. It would make you wonder how those folks came by those molds...


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## natedg200202

pete2528ca said:


> I just got a brand new Chours 11 speed carbon crankset (2010 model year) and it is maid in Romania. Kind of half ass pissed at that.


You should be thankful Campagnolo is making necessary changes to remain competitive and stay in business.


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## orange_julius

flatlander_48 said:


> Molds for carbon fiber monocoque bikes are very expensive and you need one for each size. I've read that one mold costs at least $100,000. If you did sizes 50cm, 52cm, 54cm, 56cm, 58cm and 60cm, that's 6 molds or at least $600,000. It would make you wonder how those folks came by those molds...


This is off-topic for this thread, but oh well. From some pictures I have seen of the Pinarello clones, clearly most of they are not made from the same mold. There are small variations, which if a mold had been used, won't be there. So let's be careful a bit with the extrapolation ..... plus the Pinarello clones topic brings a lot of anger.


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## pete2528ca

I can't believe I said "Maid in Romania" and not Made. I should not be allowed to own Campagnolo after that blunder.


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## Seagoon

pete2528ca said:


> I can't believe I said "Maid in Romania" and not Made. I should not be allowed to own Campagnolo after that blunder.


That's allwrite wheel leight you off!


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## orange_julius

A bit off topic, but I just noticed my Campa bibs and jacket say "Designed and Engineered in Vicenza Italy" and "Made in Croatia". These are the low-end and mid-range models. 

Are the top-end models made in Italy? 

Realcyclist had some good deals on Campa clothing, which I really like. Any other places with good deals on Campa clothing?


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## jmoryl

orange_julius said:


> A bit off topic, but I just noticed my Campa bibs and jacket say "Designed and Engineered in Vicenza Italy" and "Made in Croatia". These are the low-end and mid-range models.
> 
> Are the top-end models made in Italy?
> 
> Realcyclist had some good deals on Campa clothing, which I really like. Any other places with good deals on Campa clothing?


Hey, it's right next door! Every piece of Campy clothing I've seen is made outside Italy, although I have seen some advertized as Italian made. I've heard very mixed reviews of how well Campy clothing wears, which is more of a factor for me than where it is made.


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## orange_julius

jmoryl said:


> Hey, it's right next door! Every piece of Campy clothing I've seen is made outside Italy, although I have seen some advertized as Italian made. I've heard very mixed reviews of how well Campy clothing wears, which is more of a factor for me than where it is made.


Yeah, you're right: Croatia / Dalmatia was the retirement place of Roman Emperors of old, right? 

The jacket is really awesome, although it runs on the small size. The bibs are interesting. The pad and cut is excellent, except the part that straps run really wide (horizontally). The straps on all my other bibs run through my nipples, the Campa bib straps run well outside. Looks a bit odd, and feels a bit odd, but I always use summer or thermal base layer anyway, so it's not a big deal. 

These Italians really like to show off their chests, eh?


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## flatlander_48

orange_julius said:


> Yeah, you're right: Croatia / Dalmatia was the retirement place of Roman Emperors of old, right?
> 
> The jacket is really awesome, although it runs on the small size. The bibs are interesting. The pad and cut is excellent, except the part that straps run really wide (horizontally). The straps on all my other bibs run through my nipples, the Campa bib straps run well outside. Looks a bit odd, and feels a bit odd, but I always use summer or thermal base layer anyway, so it's not a big deal.
> 
> These Italians really like to show off their chests, eh?


There's another brand like that. Castelli, maybe?


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## orange_julius

flatlander_48 said:


> There's another brand like that. Castelli, maybe?


Maybe this is how most Italian brands are, taking a cue from Cipollini himself?


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## flatlander_48

I think it has to do with reducing weight by minimizing the amount of material and increasing cooling; also by minimizing the amount of material...


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## Eyorerox

I have just bought a complete Chorus 11 from Ribble all the boxes read "Made in Italy" except for the crankset (172.5 50/34) which was made in Romania
what "made in" means I have no idea


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## Salsa_Lover

All my Campagnolo Record and Super Record stuff is "Made in Italy"

The Fulcrum Cranks a friend has, say "Made in Romania" on the box.


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## QQUIKM3

*Thanks. . .*



rcharrette said:


> I came across this a few weeks ago as well. A very good story on Campagnolo's old world values and how it makes it hard to compete with Shimano/SRAM.
> CAMPAGNOLO - The full story - - JUST ENJOY IT -


That was a fantastic article. Really gives insight to Campagnolo, and really gives insight into their core principals. I'd NEVER ride anything else.


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## Richard

Eyorerox said:


> I have just bought a complete Chorus 11 from Ribble all the boxes read "Made in Italy" except for the crankset (172.5 50/34) which was made in Romania
> what "made in" means I have no idea


Just received a complete Chorus 11 group from Ribble myself. Every piece, including the crank, was in a box labelled "Made in Italy."

By the way, I saved almost $300 (lower intial cost, free shipping, no tax as opposed to higher cost, 10% to the shop and 7.75% sales tax) getting it from Ribble rather than any one of our wholesale distributors.


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