Replacing stem shifters
01-26-09 | 07:40 AM
#26
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 33,657
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From: Pittsburgh, PA
Bikes: '96 Litespeed Catalyst, '05 Litespeed Firenze, '06 Litespeed Tuscany, '20 Surly Midnight Special, All are 3x10. It is hilly around here!
I take it your frame doesn't have brazed-on shifter bosses, since you seem to be looking at clamp-on downtube shifters? I've got some bad news for you, the clamp on shifters will probably not work either. The old bikes that used clamp-on downtube shifters had a small tab (usually triangular in shape) brazed to the downtube. The clamp-on shifters were installed so the edge of the shifter clamp was in contact with the edge of the of the tab brazed to the downtube. Without this tab, the clamp-on shifters will slowly work themselves down from a combination of road vibration and shifter cable tension. The result will be ghost shifting.
Don't think you can just tighten the crap out of the clamp either, you'll probably end up crushing the downtube.
If your bike lacks both the downtube shifter bosses, as well as the clamp-on shifter tab, here are your options:
1) Strip the paint off the frame and have a welder braze on downtube bosses and then repaint the frame.
2) Use brifters.
3) Use bar-end shifters. I love bar-end shifters, I've got them on two road bikes.
Don't think you can just tighten the crap out of the clamp either, you'll probably end up crushing the downtube.
If your bike lacks both the downtube shifter bosses, as well as the clamp-on shifter tab, here are your options:
1) Strip the paint off the frame and have a welder braze on downtube bosses and then repaint the frame.
2) Use brifters.
3) Use bar-end shifters. I love bar-end shifters, I've got them on two road bikes.
I agree with Tim and fuzz2050, even without the tab, dt shifters will remain in place if you tighten the clamp firmly. It's not necessary to crush the downtube to do so and most frames cheap enough to lack braze-on bosses will have a pretty thick-walled downtube anyway.
01-26-09 | 08:54 AM
#27
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2007
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Based on your description of the problem, #2 and #3 won't work either. Both brifters and barends require cable housing stops on the downtube and the most effective of these rely on downtube braze-on bosses as attachment points. There are non-adjustable clamp-on cable stops but they won't stay put any better than clamp-on dt shifters if the frame doesn't have the little locater tab.
I agree with Tim and fuzz2050, even without the tab, dt shifters will remain in place if you tighten the clamp firmly. It's not necessary to crush the downtube to do so and most frames cheap enough to lack braze-on bosses will have a pretty thick-walled downtube anyway.
I agree with Tim and fuzz2050, even without the tab, dt shifters will remain in place if you tighten the clamp firmly. It's not necessary to crush the downtube to do so and most frames cheap enough to lack braze-on bosses will have a pretty thick-walled downtube anyway.
01-26-09 | 09:34 AM
#28
Real Men Ride Ordinaries
Joined: Sep 2008
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Based on your description of the problem, #2 and #3 won't work either. Both brifters and barends require cable housing stops on the downtube and the most effective of these rely on downtube braze-on bosses as attachment points. There are non-adjustable clamp-on cable stops but they won't stay put any better than clamp-on dt shifters if the frame doesn't have the little locater tab.
One of those and you should be able to mount bar end shifters, or even brifters with ease. You do loose the nice adjusting barrel, but that's not the end of the world.
01-26-09 | 12:11 PM
#29
STFD
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 778
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From: North Bergen, NJ
Bikes: '80 Windsor Carrera Sport, '02 Specialized Sirrus A1, '10 Giant Escape 2
My old bike came with downtube shifters. The frame has no braze-ons. The shifters, BB cable guide, and RD cable stop, are all clamp-on. They've never moved, in 25 years.
This bike has straight-guage tubing, so there's little fear of damage from tightening the clamps. A frame with double-butted tubing might be a different story.
And, of course, a fat-tubed aluminum frame would be a different different story, since you'd have a hard time finding clamp-on mounts and stops with a large enough diameter. But I think that's not what the OP is dealing with.
This bike has straight-guage tubing, so there's little fear of damage from tightening the clamps. A frame with double-butted tubing might be a different story.
And, of course, a fat-tubed aluminum frame would be a different different story, since you'd have a hard time finding clamp-on mounts and stops with a large enough diameter. But I think that's not what the OP is dealing with.
01-26-09 | 03:23 PM
#31
1 bike 2 many.
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 295
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From: Houston, TX
Just because they are not expensive, does not mean they will not perform. They are also popping up on some of the high end handmade bikes these days. Check out Ahearne Cycles. They have some beautiful custom stems with shifter bosses brazed right on them for downtube shifters
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE bar ends. But stem mount shifters work just as well, and certainly will not prematurely wear out the cables, as the OP suggested.
01-26-09 | 04:31 PM
#32
Real Men Ride Ordinaries
Joined: Sep 2008
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Shifters are a preference at best, and a religion at worst (think Campy vs Shimano, or Retrogrouch vs Techie). There is nothing inherently better or worse about a set of shifters, just what you like.
That being said, most of the production bikes that came with stem shifters were of lower quality, so they do tend to correlate with lower quality bikes. However there is nothing inherent in their design that dictates poor performance, as Ahearne demonstrates.
That being said, most of the production bikes that came with stem shifters were of lower quality, so they do tend to correlate with lower quality bikes. However there is nothing inherent in their design that dictates poor performance, as Ahearne demonstrates.
01-27-09 | 07:52 AM
#33
1 bike 2 many.
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 295
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
Shifters are a preference at best, and a religion at worst (think Campy vs Shimano, or Retrogrouch vs Techie). There is nothing inherently better or worse about a set of shifters, just what you like.
That being said, most of the production bikes that came with stem shifters were of lower quality, so they do tend to correlate with lower quality bikes. However there is nothing inherent in their design that dictates poor performance, as Ahearne demonstrates.
That being said, most of the production bikes that came with stem shifters were of lower quality, so they do tend to correlate with lower quality bikes. However there is nothing inherent in their design that dictates poor performance, as Ahearne demonstrates.
You said that much better than I did.
