Classic & Vintage - Bar end shifters, Schwinn vouageur, z408

I can't find down tube cable stops that fit the down tube braze ons for my 1984 Schwinn voyageur. None of the standard metric bolts used on rack eyelets and most down tube shifters thread into the holes on the down tube braze ons of the voyageur.

It was originally equipped with Shimano Z408 downtube shifters. What size are the bolts on these down tube shifters? Anyone have any luck equipping bar end shifters and down tube cable stops on a Schwinn Voyageur?

I need help

They should be M5, same as most other standard braze-on eyelets for fenders, racks, etc.

I just bolted a set of cable stops on the shifter bosses of my 1988 Voyageur... definitely M5.

Could it be they are stripped? You can try re-tapping them to M5.

They're not M5. M5 is too big. The original bolts off of the z408 down tube shifters thread in very nicely, they are just a hair smaller than M5 I took them to a hardware store and none of the metric or imperial sizes matched up with them.

No they are a pain it the brazeon. I used the tention adjuster bolt out of the down tube shifters. I have had too do this on two of the 1984 Voyageurs (first was a 21in frame too small) and my current 23in (wish they would have made a 22). I had to file a groove into the back of my stops each time to fit the large cube shape that is on DT posts. It took an evening of shop time , about half of it sorting through the bolt bin trying to find a match.

Shimano made some stuff in the mid 80's with M4.5 bolts/threading

I have a Raleigh with the m4.5 downtube braze-ons. The shape of the brazeon's is also a lot different than standard. I ended up grinding the downtube stops witha dremel until they fit and they still don't fit well. The original m4.5 bolts were too short. I ended up retapping the holes to m5.

I also had to take a dremel to the cable stops just to make them fit over the braze ons.

Anyone have luck finding M4.5 bolts, or down tube cable stops designed for braze ons with M4.5? I'm trying to avoid re tapping.

jmichaeldesign,

how did you tap those m4.5 to m5? Did you have to drill them out first or anything?

do the bosses have the square base? I am glad this thread came up. I may be tryong to do something similar soon to a friends bike

did you ever consider just using the screw from the shifters?

That's what I did- used the screw with the bail from the shifters. Had the same problem; spent an evening with a Dremel and a file to make the stops fit the braze-ons, and couldn't find an m4.5 screw anywhere.