Originally Posted by
TLCFORBIKES
When you say "back in the day" when down tube shifters was the only thing available -- you do realise that barcons first came around in the early 1970's ( I think that they came out in 1970 but for sure no later than 1974)..
I should have clarified DTs Vs brifters with respect to road bikes.
I had bar ends on my touring bike, DTs on my road bike, at the time. Mid to late 80s(ish).
Originally Posted by
TLCFORBIKES
If you ride in the drops when you are climbing (or on the flat roads for that matter) you will not have to take your hands off the bars to shift or brake. Combine bar end shifters and shallow drop bars and you can be near the brakes and the shifters all the time by comfortably riding in the drops.
Yes, but when in the drops you do have to move your hand back to reach the bar ends. There is a difference between "being near" to the shifter and not having to move your hand (at all) from the hoods OR the drops to shift (as in the case with brifters).
Originally Posted by
TLCFORBIKES
At the cost of some of these new high tech duel purpose levers -- the bar end shifters/aero brake lever can not only save a bundle of money but they also work very very good. And for the color coordinating crowd -- colored brake hoods and bar end shifter covers can be matched to the bar tape quite easily.
Of course, bar ends DO work very good. I do not believe anyone said they did not. People did say they liked the convienence of the brifter, as do I. I certainly won't be going back to DTs.
If I was doing some
major touring, I would opt for bar ends over brifters.