The Zeus Criterium was Zeus' workhorse derailleur throughout the 1970s and, amazingly, into the 1980s. It followed the basic Campagnolo geometry of the time, but Zeus used different mixes of steel and alumnium from those chosen by the Italians.
As with the Zeus Gran Sport, from which it was derived, the exact history of the Criterium is a little unclear to me, but may go something like this:
- In 1969 Harm Ottenbros won the World Road Race Championship riding a Zeus Gran Sport. The victory gave Zeus new prominence (and new market opportunity), and it is possible that using such a blatantly 'Campagnolo' name as 'Grand Sport' was no longer tenable. So the derailleur was then rechristened as a 'Zeus Criterium 69' in honour of Harm's ill-fated achievement. It's a derailleur with a steel parallelogram and aluminium pulley cage plates.
- Possibly in 1972, the Criterium 69 got new pulley wheels with metal dust covers.
- In about 1977, it seems that the '69' was dropped from the name, but it gained a new model number, 22100. More importantly, the derailleur gained a 5mm aluminium spacer between the p-knuckle and the pulley cage. This appears to allow the existing adjustment screws to better cover a 6-speed freewheel.
- Also, probably in 1977, a 'lightweight' version was introduced. This had drilled pulley plates, and, surprisingly, a titanium p-pivot bolt.
- At long last, in 1980?, the Criterium got aluminium parallelogram plates.
- As in 1977, 1980? also saw a lightweight version with drilled pulley cage plates (but this time it did not have a titanium p-pivot bolts).
- Finally, possibly in 1984, the knuckles are upgraded from steel to aluminium - so all the major parts were aluminium. It is worth noting that the, rather similar, fully aluminum, Campagnolo Nuovo Record was first released in 1966.
This is a 1972? version of the Zeus Criteruim 69. It has pulley wheels with metal dust seal washers.
- Derailleur brands: Zeus
- Categories: Zeus - the good stuff
- Country: Spain
- Date of introduction: 1972?
- Date of this example: unknown
- Model no.: unknown
- Weight: 207g
- Maximum cog: 36 teeth? (stamped on the inner pulley cage - but nobody believed it)
- Total capacity: 28 teeth?
- Pulley centre to centre: 46mm
- Index compatibility: friction
- Chain width: 3/32”
- Logic: top normal
- B pivot: unsprung
- P pivot: sprung
- Materials: largely steel, with aluminium pulley cage plates
Ref. 2250
