Yes you could use the wrong shifter and make it work. Would I, no especially when the proper shifter exists. The reason you DON'T use the wrong shifter is you have to lock out so it doesn't make that third shift which most people would know would go outside of the cranks which is bad and overtime you are likely to break that lock out and you have the problem. Yes you could tell someone hey your shifter has three shifts (or five with trim) but don't use that third shift and guess what someone will forget make a mistake or maybe a mechanic could screw it up not knowing or not noticing. It is simply not worth it personally to recommend incorrect parts except in an absolute emergency but this is not one of those times.

Why do you doubt it? You don't think people would counterfeit a part from a company? Is it that far fetched because they are Taiwanese? KMC is a Taiwanese company and people counterfeit their stuff so why is this so far fetched? Unscrupulous people will counterfeit just about anything and sell it on all these 3rd party platforms it is not some something that only happens to Brand A and B and brand C is left out. They fake Sharpies, a simple low cost permanent marker for cripes sake.

If you are using position 1 and 2, position 3 (high) is blocked by the H stop. You can't get there without putting so much force on the shifter that it would break something. I think Shimano sold a brifter at one time marketed as 2/3, so this is hardly the "wrong shifter", anymore than using a 7700 to shift 8 on a 7400 derailleur is (also per Shimano spec).

The seller I posted has 5 out of 5 stars and the price is only moderately lower than retail. There is no reason to believe that they are selling fake Microshift, of all things. People buying Shimano have much more to fear in this regard.

Maybe they did I don't recall but not really a big deal in the end get the proper shifter it is not hard. I know you want a way out but a true professional is not going to recommend the wrong shifter unless it is some absolute emergency situation. Maybe an amateur might but I would assume you aren't an amateur.

A seller having 5 stars doesn't mean they aren't selling fakes, I could give you really good customer service and ship the part quickly and it could still be fake. It is not hard to get 5 stars if you do your job right even if you are hawking fakes. If it were real why would I sell it below cost if it were real, I would lose money.

Sure maybe Shimano buyers have more of an issue but that is a poor cop-out for it not being fake. "It cannot be fake because Shimano is more likely to be fake"? Come on that is a poor argument. Because one thing is faked more doesn't mean another thing cannot also be faked.

The spacing between double and triple chainrings is identical, so this weird philosophical nonsense you're going on about using two out of three positions on a shifter is ridiculous. Especially when you keep changing your objections - as if you really have no idea what you are talking about, but it is too late to back down.


This isn't a Rolex for $200. This is a $90 MSRP shifter set for $60.

An alternative to the method you describe is to click the lever once and then set the small ring stop to that; this way the last click is the last click and no worries about stressing the ratchet, etc. Because it is the front mech spring that is exerting force on the inner stop in this method the rider doesn't have to consciously avoid any lever positions. I have done several bikes over they years this way and have never seen a failure of shifter or front mech.

But then if you click the release too many times you have a bunch of cable slack and the possibility of the cable coming out of a cable stop.

There is no problem with using positions 1 and 2. It will not go into 3 if adjusted correctly and strain the shifter.

No danger of slack because setting it up you click the lever once before the cable is installed. That plus the low stop not allowing the front mech to go further in precludes cable slack; you can click the last release click does but it does nothing but click. Anyway, just another way to approach the task and most importantly, it shows that a 3x shifter will absolutely work with a 2x crankset.

If you start on position 2, how are you not going to have cable slack if you shift to position 1? The brifter is spring loaded - it will push the extra slack out of the shifter even if the FD isn't pulling.

Apologies I didn't think you were an amateur and buying the correct parts would be hard for you. I can help you get the correct parts when needed it seems like that is tough. I would rather have the correct parts than a 3x shifter for 2x.

You keep trying to make this argument because it is not something else it cannot be faked. It is not a Rolex nor is it Shimano nor is it something else but Microshift and yes Microshift can be faked despite it not being Rolex or Shimano.

Yes, you are correct, however the amount of slack generated by going from 2nd to stop is minimal and does not cause issues. Like I said, I have set up several bikes this way and they work fine - I have also run across some setups that use the high method you described. I only mentioned how I do it to present an alternative method that eliminates the stress issue that veganbikes raised.

Did you do this with external cable shifters like 9 speed Shimano or Microshift?

Just stop with this. As Kontact said - Shimano used to use the same 3x9 brifters on both 2x9 and 3x9 setups:
https://si.shimano.com/en/pdfs/si/6S...000-00-ENG.pdf
It's not a problem.

That's a total non-issue. How do you think the derailleur is going to get in the third position when it's properly adjusted?