Originally Posted by
hybridbkrdr
Can you explain what you mean by 8 speed is not compatible with friction shifting? I read many comments from people saying the thinner chain on a 9 speed drivetrain made it more difficult to change speeds. And on a 10 speed drivetrain, it was questionable whether you wanted to use friction shifting.
This is not about the Deore thumb shifters selling on eBay for $250. I am impressed though by the thinking of the other posters here. I'm relieved to see other people sharing my general point of vue on friction shifting. And I appreciate the variety of ideas expressed here.
Sorry I wasn't clear. I meant 8-speed shifters are indexed and therefore are
not friction shifters, although some 8-speed shifters can be switched to be friction shifters.
I actually use friction shifters on my commuter on an almost daily basis. The ones I use are designed by Suntour, revived by Rivendell for their purpose as
"Silver" shifters and manufactured by Dia Compe. I shift an 8-speed cassette with them and they've been trouble-free since day 1. I actually tried friction shifting with a 9-speed cassette and didn't like it as much because the shifting was a bit more finicky to get right. Modern cassettes with their shift gates and ramps narrow the working range, making the chain more "jumpy", so it is more challenging with friction shifting.
On another bike, I got some Shimano 9-speed DT shifters. If I have a 9-speed cassette on that bike, it gets switched to index mode. If I have anything else (8, 7, etc), it gets switched to friction. This way, I have a good compromise and flexibility of drivetrain mix-n-match. The Shimano shifters in friction mode don't nearly feel as nice as the Dia Compe's
Power Ratchet mechanism though.