There’s so any different options and actions for shifting. Finding the one that works for you and allows you to be comfortable changing gears while maintaining control of your bike is really what it’s about. From there, it’s the more nit picky things. I’m not such a fan of DT shifters. I don’t really have a whole lot of preference between index vs. friction- as long as the indexing works as smoothly as friction does. I also like to play around with different shifters and enjoy comparing them to what I like.

Most people who try the Simplex Retrofriction shifters generally love them. They have such a silky smooth action. Some people like the clutched ratcheting action of Suntour’s Power shifters- then around 1985 or so, Suntour made the ratcheting more fine. Some people dig pure friction shifters. As far as indexing goes, Suntour’s Accushift indexing seemed to have a large, authoritve click into gear, while Shimano’s SIS seemed to click in rather smoothly- and IMO it’s gotten smoother over the years.

Discovering this stuff is just part of the fun!