sunburst

Someone gave me these (and they were given to him, and he knows nothing about them). How do I tell what they gear range they control? for example 2x9, 3x10?

They have some road rash, so not even sure they work. But first, I'm interested if they control a 2x10 setup, since I've got an extra set of wheels with a 10-speed cassette.

CliffordK

Probably 7 speed (or 8 speed?).

Roll up the base of the hoods and look for some numbers printed on the shifter body.

You can also usually count the shift clicks (plus one for the first/last gear).

dedhed

VeloBase.com - Component: Shimano ST-A410, RSX

bradtx

sunburst, The levers came as either a double or a triple for the front and 7S or 8S for the rear. The best thing about them is that they're usually dead nuts reliable, except for the Shimano grease glitch that spans all of Shimano's STI or mountain bike shifters. There isn't much FD trim in the in that shifter, expected on a low end model.

Brad

sunburst

Thx guys. These may be useful for my son, who has an 80's(?) Peugeot that I upgraded from 6 to 7-speed because I had a good wheel lying around. And he's too young to appreciate down tube shifters

Appreciate the link also.

Trentkln27

The levers with RSX written in blue are 7 speed on the rear. And to find out how many gears they have click all the way to one end. Then count the shifts to the other side. Then add one because 6 shifts means there's 7 gears 7 shifts means there's 8 gears ECT. I own a pair of brifters like these and they can be partially disassembled and regreased and reassembled. There's a video on YouTube that shows how to regreased these same shifters and prolong their life

Trentkln27

If they don't work it's often cause the grease is gummed up so often times re greasing them can bring them back the first link is the right shifter the second is the left shifter. Hope this helps
https://youtu.be/xkGNN_2CfCY

https://youtu.be/LOh4zKoyJgg

TallRider

Those RSX brifters were always 7-speed rear. The front shifter had the potential to work with a triple crank on the front, though many bikes came with a double and simply didn't use all of the shifter's clicks. The RSX had a low-pivot front derailer design, and I'm not sure if that required a different amount of cable pull compared to typical front derailers.

As others have said, you can often flush out gummed-up grease in the gearing/rachet mechanism of Shimano STI shifters. Try to keep it from getting into the rubber hoods when you do so. Let them drain so gravity will pull out the WD-40 without getting on the rubber.

shafter

They are road bike Shimano RSX brifters. I had them on a Trek 1220. They were gummed up to the point of not working, but I disassembled and cleaned them with gasoline and they worked.

bradtx

I have an 8S RSX shifter in service at the moment. I no longer have the front shifter I used with a double, but it may have been capable of also shifting a triple. I don't remember it working through two clicks when servicing, but memories can be wrong.

Brad

TallRider

I'd forgotten (or maybe never knew) that Shimano made the RSX shifters in 8-speed. Once they're un-gummed-up, you can check how many stops (number of clicks +1) are in the left/rear shifter.

noglider 

I have those shifters as original equipment on my ~1995 Bianchi Volpe. The drivetrain is 3x7. I bought the bike used in around 2012. The shifters were so gummed up they didn't work at all. I had time on my hands, as I already had plenty of bikes. I sprayed WD40 in and let them soak. Then a day or two later, I dropped in ATF. I don't remember the order I used, and I don't think it matters. The point is that I dissolved the gummed grease with solvent and lubricant. I occasionally changed the angle at which the bike stood so the liquid could work into all the little places.

I've used the bike a lot over the last few years. The shifters aren't like new, but they work properly now. I think part of the sloppiness might be from wear in the pivot points in the (also original) RSX-100 rear derailleur. This may sound like faint praise, but truly, I am satisfied and got more than my money's worth.