Campagnolo 1x13 crankset (Ekar) with Sram Rival eTap AXS XPLR 1x12s Disc Groupset

Question

Can a Campagnolo 1x13 crankset (Ekar) be used with Sram Rival eTap AXS XPLR 1x12s Disc Groupset? I really dig the look of Campagnolo crankset, hence the question.

Thanks!

Answer 1

With its 12s AXS road groups (but not its 12s MTB groups), SRAM departed from the industry-standard roller size. SRAM felt they had to use larger rollers because the chain was now thinner - although Shimano and Campagnolo have somehow been able to make chains with standard size rollers.

An AXS chain will not mesh precisely with the Campy ring. It could cause faster and undesirable wear on the Campy ring. Adam Kerin of Zero Friction Cycling cautions that such a setup might cause the drivetrain to run rough. Thus, I would not do this. However, in practice, the setup might work - or it might appear to work, but it might wear faster than desired, and it might wear in such a way that it precipitates a failure under power. The probability of the latter is probably very low, but it also can't be quantified. If it's greater than zero but you can avoid it with trivial effort, then why not do so?