Product Description
This is a rare 1970's and early 1980's shifters from the Campagnolo Nuovo Record Porta-catena 1013/6 downtube shifter system. It's largely a standard friction shifter, but the lever has a flip lever which shifts the derailleur onto the chain holder to make removing the rear wheel easier/quicker. This was designed for racing situations where changing your wheel quicker than the next rider wins the race. It's also helpful for general riding and wrenching. Many frames with Campagnolo dropouts from this era have one or two little holes in them identifying it's made for Porta-Catena shifters and chainrest. Its a great way to identify the age of a frame when these are present.
There is a lot of mystery around the Portacatena in the bike world, as it's just kind of wonky. Helpfully, portacatena translates from Italian to "Chain Holder".
Condition
Near mint or better with very low miles. Very very clean, and will likely appear NOS once installed.
