Originally Posted by
Doohickie
Incorrect. Lots of people did *not* ride *because* of downtube shifters. People didn't start riding derailleur-equipped bikes en masse until stem shifters became popular. I personally rode with stem shifters. When I got a better bike in the 80s with DT shifters, I never felt comfortable with them and eventually gave up and decided bar-end shifters are the way to go.
Some of us converted our stem-shifter-equipped bikes (such as my '76 Schwinn LeTour) to DT shifters. SunTour Power Shifters were the bomb.
One great advantage of DT shifters: Shortest possible length of cable from shifter to derailleur.
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Bacchetta Giro A20, RANS V-Rex, RANS Screamer