Touring - Bar-cons or Down tube shifters?

Bar-cons or Down tube shifters?

Which do you prefer and why?

When I got my first 10 speed it had down tube. I stopped riding when I went into the Army and just started again a couple of years ago. Now I just bought a 1984 Trek 720 that has Bar-cons.

I think I will try the bar-cons for awhile, but may switch them to down tube, not sure yet. I will not upgrade to any thing more modern, until I bought this bike I forgot the joys of friction shifters.

Which do you prefer and why? is there any advantage of one over the other for touring/commuting? My race/go fast bike has STI so I am only asking about touring/comutting type riding.

Bar-end shifters. I can't believe how much nicer they feel compared to the indexed thumb shifters I used to have.
Haven't tried downtube shifters, but I would think shifting is slower, as you have to move your hands all the way there.

Front is friction, but the rear is still indexed, but I'm thinking of testing friction there as well.

Downtube shifter pros: Cleaner looking, don't have that onerous extra cable weight, and easier to wrap them handlebars ;)

Downtube shifter pros: Cleaner looking, don't have that onerous extra cable weight, and easier to wrap them handlebars ;)


This is kinda of what I was thinking, mostly cleaner looking. I think my Bar-cons can be converted to downtube, or maybe I just read that wrong. If I decide to change it, down tube shifters are pretty cheap to buy I think.

Still undecided

Bar-ends for a loaded tourer. Down tube shifters require your hand off the bars and this can compromise handling.

Bar-cons or Down tube shifters?

Which do you prefer and why?



Bar end'ers !!
If you need to shift often and quickly its the only way to go !

Bar-ends for a loaded tourer. Down tube shifters require your hand off the bars and this can compromise handling.
Doh!
Good point! I demand a revote, I couldn't understand the voting instructions, etc, etc, ...!

I don't know how to vote, I'm assuming that your talking about restoring a vintage tourer, so I guess I would go with what came on the bike originally.

I used downtube shifters for 20+ years, then bought a bike that had bar end shifters. I rode it for 6 months or so before changing it over to downtube shifters like I used before. For me, the issue was double shifts. With the bar end shifters, shifting the rear and then shifting or trimming the front required a lot of hand movement on and off the bars. Going back to downtube shifters allows me sometimes trim/shift the front right handed, in the same movement as the rear shift.

I don't know how to vote, I'm assuming that your talking about restoring a vintage tourer, so I guess I would go with what came on the bike originally.

It might not be a restoration. It might be an update.

An old tourer can be made into a very serviceable modern tourer with a few changes.

It might not be a restoration. It might be an update.

An old tourer can be made into a very serviceable modern tourer with a few changes.


Mostly a clean with some slight restoration needed. Right now the bike has bar-cons that it came with. I will stay with those for now, but may switch to Down tube shifters later. Depends on how much I end up liking or disliking the bar-cons

I am going to use this bike for touring and commuting

Bar end shifters are grat on touring bikes. Let's you shift without taking your hands off the bars. They are less complicated than brifters. Totally reliable and less likely to break at an inopportune time, such as touring somewhere off the beaten path.

I've used both but came back in the end to down-tube shifters. Why? Well they are precise, after so many years I can change gear and trim without thought and moreover after coming off due to tram lines I recieved the barend in my thigh. While this caused a nasty bruise I hate to think what the effect would have been with pointy barend shifters. Again down-tube shifters free up my handlebars for my "mirrycle" and I regard this as invaluable for loaded touring.

Wait a moment, folks. The rapid-fire shifters (such as STI) are the greatest advance in bicycling in decades. There is no reason to ever again consider down tube or bar end shifters, for touring, commuting or recreational cycling.

Wait a moment, folks. The rapid-fire shifters (such as STI) are the greatest advance in bicycling in decades. There is no reason to ever again consider down tube or bar end shifters, for touring, commuting or recreational cycling.DANG! WHAT ON EARTH WERE WE THINKING?!!

1970 Mercier (http://home.comcast.net/~chriseye/1970mercier.html)

http://home.comcast.net/~chriseye/images/mercier3.jpg

This is not my bike but a good picture of how I plan to wrap my bars with the bar-con cables comeing out near the stem. I will try this for a bit and see how I like Bar-cons.

I am also thinking of upgrading to newer brakes and Aero brake levers.

Wait a moment, folks. The rapid-fire shifters (such as STI) are the greatest advance in bicycling in decades. There is no reason to ever again consider down tube or bar end shifters, for touring, commuting or recreational cycling.

Maybe for you. I like to think of them as overpriced junk.

DT shifter are very fast and positive, esp for dual shifts of the front and rear.
Bar ends let you change on tricky descents esp on tracks and trails. They are more vulnerable to damage if you drop the bike, but not very.
The problem with brifters is when you trash the rear mech and need a replacement. You probably can't buy the latest x-speed model but the cheap steel SIS rear mechs can be had almost anywhere. You have no friction mode to make the mech work with your cogs.
I carry a spare DT shifter when touring with brifters.

Maybe for you. I like to think of them as overpriced junk.

yeah really... i saw an exploded diagram for a brifter, and damn does that look complicated or what?!

Wait a moment, folks. The rapid-fire shifters (such as STI) are the greatest advance in bicycling in decades. There is no reason to ever again consider down tube or bar end shifters, for touring, commuting or recreational cycling.

Ken, you are of course correct, that's why I thought they were talking about a vintage restoration. But remember on this board it is heresy to make the comments that you made. Bar-end, down-tube, canti-brakes, steel anything are all sacred. So apologize now before they attack both of us.

Ken, you are of course correct, that's why I thought they were talking about a vintage restoration. But remember on this board it is heresy to make the comments that you made. Bar-end, down-tube, canti-brakes, steel anything are all sacred. So apologize now before they attack both of us.

Not sacred, just tried and true. Brifters are expensive and front indexing is just effing stupid. Touring is about reliability so suspicion of racing bike fads is sensible.

If your passion is long-distance self-supported touring the it is wise to have components the are durable, reliable and that you can fix yourself. For me that is the priority as it is with other cyclists in the same category. Can you fix your own brifters?

Just one example why STI should be avoided in a touring bike (from Adam K's cycling site):
http://www.adamk.ca/tourbike.htm

I told you!

Just one example why STI should be avoided in a touring bike (from Adam K's cycling site):
http://www.adamk.ca/tourbike.htm



If your passion is long-distance self-supported touring the it is wise to have components the are durable, reliable and that you can fix yourself. For me that is the priority as it is with other cyclists in the same category. Can you fix your own brifters?


THanks for the info, but I am not asking about STI. Only asking about the pros and cons of Bar-cons vs Down-tube.

The bike in question will never have STI/brifters.

I have one bike with downtube shifters (Suntour retro-friction shifters) and two with bar-end shifters.

When I am riding solo, I don't mind either system, though I tend to shift less often with downtube shifters. However, on a loaded bike, with crosswinds, on the tandem or with the trailercycle, the ability to shift with both hands on the bars is wonderful. Shifts where you pull the cable are as good with bar-end shifters as they are with downtube shifters, But shifts where you loosen the cable (i.e upshifts on the right shifter) are a tad slower. Nothing significant.

Now that I found a pair of cheap retrofriction bar-end shifters, I might convert my commuter to those. But I'm not in a hurry.

I prefer barcons.

I have no complete reason why. I just like them. I have STI on another bike. Most have barcons.

I live in an area that is nothing BUT hills. Seriously. I shift constantly.
I didn't really notice it until recently because my 2 mountain bikes have STI and shifting became second nature for me.
I am finishing a LHT build to the point where I can ride it. I bought barcons, but they don't fit in the ends of the Nashbar Trekking bars I'm trying. I mounted the shifters on the downtube bosses of the LHT. They work well, technically, there. Bolted right on.
But it's incredibly awkward to use the downtube shifters the way I shift so much.
I have a set of Paul's Thumbies on order to put the shifters up on the bars.

I don't even HAVE barcons, and I prefer them to downtube shifters! Don't get me wrong, the downtube shifters work fine, but there are times when I'd really like to be able to shift without letting go of the bars. The shifters I have work well enough on my current touring bike that I feel no need to upgrade (they were never a problem on tour), but my next touring bicycle will definitely have bar-end shifters.

I have bar-end shifters and just did 3800 miles on them. I don't even think about shifting anymore, I just do it. As others mentioned, on my 25 pound bike with 60 pounds of bags, the last thing I want to do in some situations involving winds, traffic, and climbing is take my hands off the bars.

I'm refitting an older trek for touring/commuting, and the first thing I ordered for it was a set of bar end shifters.

My next upgrade to my tourer will be switching from Ultegra STI to barend.

What do barend folks recommend for brake levers? Keep using the STI as brake levers? Seems to me that the shifter mechs might begin to loosen up&flap about.

Are older "aero" lever hoods as comfy? One of my frequent hand positions is resting my palms on the STI lever hoods.

My next upgrade to my tourer will be switching from Ultegra STI to barend.

What do barend folks recommend for brake levers? Keep using the STI as brake levers? Seems to me that the shifter mechs might begin to loosen up&flap about.

Are older "aero" lever hoods as comfy? One of my frequent hand positions is resting my palms on the STI lever hoods.

If you have STI shifters now, why would you not use them? Shifters progressed from down-tube to bar-end to STI, why go backwards? I have Ultegra STI on my road bike with about 30,000 miles on them. No problems ever, even the original cables. I have smashed them in wrecks and dropped bikes, they are all dented but work just fine.

If you have STI shifters now, why would you not use them? Shifters progressed from down-tube to bar-end to STI, why go backwards? I have Ultegra STI on my road bike with about 30,000 miles on them. No problems ever, even the original cables. I have smashed them in wrecks and dropped bikes, they are all dented but work just fine.

I've experienced problems (on tour), and STI does not give the option for friction. Friction on the front is excellent to adjust trim on the fly. I recently switched my brevet bike from front STI to front downtube friction. I went fr downtube rather than complete barend on that bike for cost reasons.

I agree STI on the whole is very reliable, but for the types of touring I do-I'd rather not get stuck do to problems with mechs that can be avoided (when there is a problem-it usually can't be field serviced). Barends are a much simpler mechanism (fewer parts that could get fouled), yet you still have your hands on the bar for shifts. Even w/a switch to barends, I'm considering still keeping a downtube shifter with my spare parts.

I use 9 speed dura-ace downtube shifters on my bike which for the rear derailleur are indexed. I think alot of people aren't aware of this. Still switchable to friction though. As a plus the indexing hasn't jumped out since I installed them a year and a bit ago.

Also when your used to them you can shift the rear and then move the front derailleur with the one hand or one movement. Bar-cons would require 2 movements to each side of the handlebars.

I was looking at Campy's bar-end shifters the other day, and they do not friction at all. Are any of Shimano's high-end downtube or barcons like this? (This is my biggest problem with Camagnolo, BTW, that they cater to racers only and are more beautiful than practical, this being a good example.) I was thinking about getting some Dura Ace barcons, and this made me wonder.

All the Shimano bar-ends, so far as I know, can be used in either friction or indexing mode for the rear derailer. The front is all friction all the time, though. Not that there's anything wrong with that! Friction is good for trimming.

I use 9 speed dura-ace downtube shifters on my bike which for the rear derailleur are indexed...............

Also when your used to them you can shift the rear and then move the front derailleur with the one hand or one movement. Bar-cons would require 2 movements to each side of the handlebars.
True.....but were're not racing.... :)