Cynikal 

Can anyone tell me about this shifter mount? I have topmounted shifter on my 85 Nishiki Cresta and I would love to run a set of 600 downtube shifters on it if possible. Would something like this work and can you buy them?





I know the frame is amazing but I found the picture on flickr, it's not mine.

cyclotoine

I don't quite understand what you are asking.

You have a braze on for top mount shifters (aero shifters) on your nishiki? Both shimano and suntour made them where they bolted on via a single 5mm bolt into a bottle type braze-on on the down tube (as seen above). There were also bikes with a sort of plate with brazes ons for DT shifters brazed onto the top of the DT. You best bet would be to find a set of "aero" DT shifters and see if they have standard fixtures which you can mount your 600 levers too (if you frame has the same type of mount as the Colnago above, which is what I am asuming at this point). Hope that helps.

Cynikal 

Sorry if I wasn't clear. I currently have suntour aero levers on the with the 5 mm top brazeon. To me, the colnago has a has a bolt on mount for DT shifters and I was wondering if these are available and if it would work for a set of indexed 600 8 speed shifters(tricolor era I think). I have seen a set of older 600 friction aero shifters at a shop. Maybe I'll go and check that out. If there is anything I've missed or forgetting, please point it out. Maybe I'm over thinking this, wouldn't be the first time.

Edit: Here is a picture

Charles Wahl

I have a set of what I think you're after (but I want to keep it) -- friction Shimano 600 shifters with a top-mount fixture. So they are available; you just have to be patient and keep checking eBay. According to Paterek's bike frame book, a third-party fixture that would take Campy-style (Campy, Suntour, Dura-Ace) shifters was also made at one time -- though I've never seen one.

I bought a Nishiki with the top-mount braze-on, that had been fitted with clamp-on shifters; that's another expedient. A third would be bar-ends, with a clamp-on cable stop on the downtube. in that case the braze-on would just be used as a stop for the clamp.

mainducoyote

I had a bike with a similar adaptor, it was made by gipiemme.

RobbieTunes

It sounds like you want to take off the friction shifters and swap in a set of indexed Shimano 600 tri-colors.
I don't think you can, but I could be wrong. The "posts" that stick out from the side of the mount are not the same as the "posts" that stick out from braze-on mounts (and even they can be different from each other).

If they look a lot alike, I'd simply try it. My guess is you'll have a set of indexed shifters that either spin on the post or don't shift. I tried it with a Suntour LePree top mount, subbing in a set of Suntour GPX. Nope. Then I put the Suntour GPX where a Shimano 600 index used to be, worked fine. So my guess is not.

Simply a guess, though, and I hope you make it work. There are some great wrenches lurking here, as I'm just a tinkerer.

Cynikal 

I know where I can find a aero 600 shifter. I'll try that and report back.

sfclearwater

I tried to do something like what you are suggesting.

I have a bike with top mount Suntour Symmetric shifters and I wanted to switch to Shimano 600ax top mount shifters. It turns out there are a couple different types of top mount fittings and the Shimano wouldn't fit on the Suntour fitting.

Check out the attached pictures. I could probably use a rotary tool and make the Shimano work but it is probably not worth it.

The Shimano unit does look like you could swap regular downtube index shifters though, but I didn't try so I could be wrong.

Cynikal 

Well, I bought the 600 ax top mount shifter but I couldn't get the indexed shifters to work. Oh well, now I have another obscure shifter in my collection.

I may try to track down the adapter posted above by gipiemme.

squirtdad

threads likes this make me wish I were a better metal fabricator......but it seem that if you really wanted this position for shifters you could get a small steel block.....drill the hole for the 5 mm bolt, get some braze on shifter studs (check the frame builder forums) and just use indexed down tube shifters. More elegance would mean curving the base of the block to match the down tube.... but it is really surprising what you can do with soft steel and good files.

materials: small steel block, braze on shifter studs, paint ot make it look good

tools: hacksaw, Drill(drill press better), drill bit, torch (bernzomatic...better the hotter gas one or the little oxy/mapp), brazing rod, flux, flat metal file, half round metal file, possibly tap to thread the studs, patience and sense of adventure

oh well....back to the project plan and no more goofing off

Cynikal 

Funny you mention that. I was thinking the same thing.

I'm thinking of ordering some braze-ons from Nova and trying to fab something.