I assume you've raced with Campy. How'd you handle shifting during sprints? I think I'd have issues with that. One rider I know tells me he's gotten bruises on his wrists/forearms from them hitting/pressing against his bars hard while shifting during sprints.

fify



:)

Good thread. Some futurism, some retro-grouching, some racer-boi worship, some lousy trolling. Good stuff. Kudos to ol' timers who gritted their teeth and suffered the indignities of Downtube shifting before the advent of 'brifters'.

I wonder in the future; if civilization is still around, if folks are going to be arguing the merits of electronic shifting as opposed to Neural Shifting.


Which brings up this: At what point are all these technological advancements unnecessary? It's a bike. You get on it, you pedal, you go somewhere. When does all this racing become irrelevant, when it's becoming more about tech, and about drugs, and about conditioning? What about the human suffering, maannnn?
Maybe we should have homies race on lugged steel or heavy Carbon framed, Downtube shifting bikes.


Why not just get a motorcycle if it's all so freakin' hard?

I happen to think DT shifters are totally fine as well, but I think if you're going to critique the Sora/2300 thumb-shifter for being more difficult due to the small change in hand position to hit that button (I have that 2300 on my Defy3), you have to similarly critique the DT shifter for the small shift in hand position to shift.

I can say for sure that short of uber-aggressive criterium riding, there is nothing remotely crippling about the 2300 and its thumbshifter. You could likely say the same for DT shifters.

I would still definitely prefer my 2300 brifter/thumbbutton to DT shifters, though.

I don't want to get into another debate with you, however...

It's all unnecessary. Down-tube shifters are unnecessary. Derailleurs are unnecessary. Anything other than two wheels (one of which has a cog), cranks (complete with sprocket) a frame, a fork, a seat (and maybe seat post) and handlebars is unnecessary. But... so?

If there are people who are going to work to make bicycles lighter, faster, better, and more advanced, why shouldn't we benefit from their labors?

Stuff advances all the time and as it happens, those advancements trickle down to the masses. Why should bicycles be any different? It's not like we're reading this internet forum on Commodore 64s with 300 baud dial-up modems or something.

That means your buddy has his levers jacked a la Shimano.

I shift while sprinting from the drops on Campy all the time. It's remarkably easy, easier than Shimano, in fact. You just hook your thumb over the lever and squeeze to shift.

@RJM, in your post #415 you altered your quote of me. I did not say that. Please fix it as it does not represent what I said or believe.

Also, you are suggesting that I am The Man and that I have a vested interest in selling parts for racing. First, we don't sell groups sets and never will. Second, a large partion of the products we sell are not directed at racers at all. We have made a conscious effort from the beginning to try to appeal to as broad a segment of the cycling market as possible.

That's why we sell things like computer and light mounts, disc rotors, brake pads, spokes, FG/SS hubs and parts etc none of which are racer specific.

I keep using downtube shifters cuz I ain't found nobody to set me up with this here grip shifter thingie on my roadie...

http://ts2.mm.bing.net/th?id=HN.6080...7&rs=1&pid=1.7

Ah, from humble beginnings.

You can set those up like bar end shifters. I knew people who raced on those between DT and integrated levers.

You can always buy a GMC Denali from Walmart.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=370778

Campy is great. Especially the 2009 and newer design. No shifting problems.

Lots of people use Shimano & Sram, so I assume they are great too.

Don't disagree with the difficulty of using the thumb shifter from the drops, and they are definitely the lowest rung on the ladder. But crappy or not, they actually work just fine - at least the 1/2 dozen or so bikes that I've ridden and/or tuned. They are perfectly fine for anyone who is in that price category and wants to ride and even race.

I've got a little trouble downshifting with shimano when I'm in the drops. The lever is too close

HTFU and cut your fingers shorter. As a bonus you won't have to trim your fingernails again.

I'd go with the STI.
I had twist shifters on my TT on the aero bars and it was just so easy to stay aerodynamic and shift!
I, myself ordered the Motobecane Mirage S just a couple of days ago. I have a repair stand to set up for assembly but it's not necessary. I used to hang my bike from the joists in the basement to maintain it but didn't like the sway when the bike was handled. In the long run it's your preference anyway. Whatever you're used to; you have to like it!
Keep the Roll Going!:)

Who makes down tube shifter these days?

Do you need some?

Had a bike with the sunrace DT shifters. They were bad. Really bad. I doubt the brifters are that good as far as they go, but worlds better than the DT shifters.

My bike has DT shifters because it allows me to use bullhorns with a tri-brake lever type setup. Its a pain in hilly areas to constantly shift, but it keeps me focused more on riding than shifting.

The OG gripshifts were for roadies and they pre-date brifters, IIRC. Pretty sure were only 6-speed, didn't quite live into the 7-speed era.

How many speeds?

8 speed?

10 speed?

No shifter mounts on that frame? No problem.

What would be the benefit over bar end? With bar end, you don't have to screw around with your grip and you have precise control. Looks better too.

A lot of 'bents come with grip shifts standard, but bar end (or maybe thumb depending on how bars are set up) is a better way to go. Of all the types of shifters out there, the only I like less than grip shift is stem shifters.

Mrs. rjones28 has bar ends on her trike.

http://static.wixstatic.com/media/be...0_0.00_jpg_srz

I don't know. I wasn't one of the guys doing it. I just saw it done.

If I had to guess, price maybe?

I love gripshifts. So fast, light and hard to break in a crash. Kinda bummed I didn't get more of the good 8 - speed Attacks before they stopped making them. The current 8 - speeds are pretty crappy comparatively - more like slow, sloppy and ugly.

Some people just don't like barends. The original gripshifts were made specifically for road bars, right diameter and everything. They had better acceptance in Tri - geek circles though.