Goatbiker

I used down-tube and stem shifters on road bikes for years, and I was thrilled when I could afford STI combo shifters.

I am confused by the desire of many to use bar-end shifters, and even on recumbents, to use them on the bar with Paul's 'thumbies'.

I suppose that prior to STI, having them on the end of the bar put them closer to the hand than the downtube, but why now? Is it just a retro look (which doesn't explain recumbents)?

Tom

zonatandem

Simplicity!

Speedo

They (bar end shifters) put the shifter up near your hands, they are reliable, they have a friction function backup. The STI shifters put the shifter right at your hand, but are thought by some to be not as reliable. Users of STI seem to think they are reliable enough so that their ease of use makes them the shifter of choice.

Oh, STI is more expensive.

Speedo

late

Cheap, reliable as a rock, they sit near your hands. I used to really like them. I use STI now, but I would like a retro bike with bar ends. I hate to admit it, but they'd be a style statement as much as anything.

martianone

+1 to above,
plus you can "feather" the deraileur, especially the front.

wrobertdavis

I don't know about "feathering" but most Brifters allow single-click trimming for the front derailleur. It works well on my Shimano triple chain ring bike.

Bob

Thulsadoom

I used to wonder why more touring bikes didn't have STI shifters myself, until I broke one of the STI shifters on my Bianchi road bike. Once it's broke, it's broke. I took it apart to see if I could fix it, and it's an amazing little piece of engineering, but without special tools, I don't see how it could be fixed while on tour. They do wear out, and when they break, it's usually without any warning. Bar end shifters are as simple as it gets, they last forever, and they work.

tacomee

Touring bike drivetrains are often a mix of road and MTB parts--- and bar end shifters work well with mismashed systems. STI is possible to use, but it's harder to set up and keep running.

And bar end shifters are just easier to work with than STI, a lot easier.

barba

Friction shifting is a good deal nicer than indexed shifting on the front, in my opinion. Even with trim, you don't get near the control. I am all for indexed shifting for the rear cluster, though.

Sixty Fiver

I run non indexed bar end shifters and love them for their simplicity, functionality, and bombproof qualities.

When you are touring you can see the hills from a long ways off and rapid fire shifting isn't really needed.

ricohman

My new Sherpa 30 has brifters and I am thinking of swapping to barcons.
Maybe its just an old guy thing!

acantor

I have STI, and love them. I love them so much I am willing to take a chance on them, even if they are not as reliable as the other simpler systems.

The brifter's lack of repairability concerns me, but I do all my tours in areas that are close to "civilization." If something goes wrong, I figure I can hitch a ride or use public transportation to get to a repair depot. After four years, my brifters continue to perform flawlessly.

Before going on tours, I check my bike thoroughly. If a component shows signs of excessive wear, I replace it. That would go for brifters, too. (I learned the hard way about what happens when you skip the pre-trip checkup. On the one tour I was blasé about preventative maintenance, my trip was interrupted twice by the need to get to a bike shop!)

One of these days, I plan to get a set of friction downtube shifters to carry in case of brifter failure...

jimblairo

Touring bikes tend to fall over when left leaning against an object. STI's get damaged in falls and bar ends don't.

FlowerBlossom

I test rode a bike with brifters. I had to apply so much pressure to the lever to change gear that I thought I was going over. I feel much more comfortable taking one hand off the handlebars to reach the downtube than shifting on the end of the handlebars.

craigdurkee

i prefer my bar end shifters to the ultegra brifters i have on my road bike.

there just awesome

FlowerBlossom

I'm confused. Aren't brifters = bar-end-shifters?

Leigh_caines

With underseat steering [on a recumbent] they are in just the right place
Nothing else works as well... maybe just me

Mr. Fly

Nope. "Brifter" is a term coined by Sheldon Brown (I believe), and is a contraction of brake and shift lever, which of course are the two functions offered by STI/Ergo/etc.

Sebach

Anybody else just love friction shifting above all over forms? I actually prefer friction over indexed, almost like how some prefer driving a stick as opposed to automatic. Either way, I shift so often that I just know where to shift now almost like it's muscle memory or something. It's like built-in indexing.

Fueled by Boh

i have bar end shifters on my jeff-jones hbar equipped lht. i like them, but they make the bike look/ feel really wide. i have to move them to the 'top' of the bar.

that said... durability, affordability, flexibility, serviceability, its easier to carry a spare/ source a spare from an old bike, goes quite well with my brooks

derail3

Had STI shifters on my touring bike. Changed them to bar end, friction front, index or friction rear. Have triple ring crank on front. With STI had to do to much trimming to keep it quiet when changing gears on rear derailer. Also had the concern about unrepairable break down out on tour. That being said never had a break down with STI just did not like it with the triple crank.

Camel

I used bar ends on a year tour and feal that they were the best choice for me.

I ended up needing a new BB, and when that started failing (within days), I had another installed. There wasn't one available that would work with my cranks, so I bought a new crankset w/smaller rings.

With smaller rings, and a different chainline-I didn't adjust my front shifter at all!!

Madsnail

Bar end shifters are also very much a North American thing. I'm French, I live in Germany, I go around Europe quite a lot, and I've never seen a single bike with bar-end shifters, either on the road or in a shop in Europe. And if I see one on the road someday, I will be almost 100% sure that the bike was brought from US/Canada.
Bar end shifters are just not used here in Europe...
I don't know about reliability, for me it's a non-issue, I've never had trouble with STI shifters so I have no reasons to change. And using bar-ends for me is too similar to going back to down-tube shifters, I think I would find it too far away from the hands.
If you go touring in Europe with a bike equipped with bar-end shifters, I would recommend you bring your own spares with you because you'll probably have trouble finding them in shops over here.

uciflylow

I have also had STI fail! It gave NO warning, just quit! I have bar ends on another bike and for touring, commuting and most any event ride they would be my choice. Here many bike shops are 100s of miles apart.

gregw

"the magic of bar-end shifters"

For me there is no magic, they are a relic that, as you can see many are fond of. I think it is mostly style, similar to drop handlebars on non racing bikes.

I have been touring since the 70's and in theory should be one of those retro-grouches where everything new is "not tour worthy" "unproven" "unreliable" etc. But I'm not, I go by function, safety, efficiency and yes reliability. I have been through the gambit of components and styles and have settled (for now) on upright style (or lack of style) handlebars with mountain bike components. For me, this best meets my touring needs.