dedhed

I have a touring bike with SRAM 500 bar ends and X7 RD 10s. As these are usually used as "aero" shifters when mounted facing the other way in drops they are counter-intuitive to my simple mind used to DT shifters. Is there any reason I can't disconnect the cable, move the shifters, and reconnect/dial in so the index shifting works the other direction? Each click moves the same distance on the cassette? Cassette spacing is consistent throughout?

Eggman84

I don't think so. If SRAM barends are similar to Shimano, the cable enters the shifter near the top of the barrel around which the cable is wrapped. When you push down on the bar end shifter (whether the bar end is pointed "forward" on a TT bar or "backward" at the end of a drop bar), it is wrapping cable onto the barrel, which will shift to a larger (easier) rear cog or larger (harder) front ring. Not anyway to really reverse it the lever as the way the cable wraps onto the barrel is set, but you could rotate the whole shifter 180 degrees in the handlebar.

Karl

dedhed

the more I thought about it with the cable wrap and RD spring tension having to work correctly I think the only solution is rotate 180 as said. I'll have to see how that will work cable routing wise.

HillRider

The only real difference if you rotate the shifter mounts 180º is the cable housing will be routed on top of the aero bars instead of underneath. That could make the aero extensions less comfortable to rest your hands on due to the ridge on top.

dedhed

These are on drop bars but the same issue applies. I'll have to see if it's worth doing/comfortable

HillRider

OK, I read the aerobar mention and missed that these are being used as barends. That said, as you noted the same topside cable housing routing may be an issue and the ridge could make using the drops uncomfortable.

I've tried barends a few times and never really liked them. It wasn't the "direction-of-travel" that bothered me but their inaccessibility from anywhere but the ends of the drops. After 10s of thousands of miles on brifters I just couldn't get used to them. If you are coming from downtube shifters the transition shouldn't be so bad.

dedhed

I got a good deal on the bike and I've never had barends before and the few miles I rode it I'm not a big fan, especially with this as more an urban commuter. Most of my riding is with ultegra brifters so I'm familiar with Shimano compatibility. But with this having SRAM RD and V brakes it just seems like a lot of expense to convert to brifters with travel agents or the like. I was hoping to at least make these a bit more user friendly.

fietsbob

I use my Bar End Shifters, in the ends of my drop bars..

I got to change gears and still have both hands on the handlebars, that way ..