About the Shifter Levers
 

I'm soon going to change my shifter levers and would like to know if i have to choose ones that fit exactly my shifters and derailleur, etc...

I would like to know what are the things that i have to look for in my bike in order to choose the correct levers.

Thanx.

You need to give some info on what you currently have. i.e. a road bike, MTB or other, and what make the derailleurs are, Shimano, Campagnolo, SRAM or other.

The simplest answer with out knowing wha you have, is to get the same make / groupset parts as you currently have, as that should match.

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Here are some pics to see what type of shifter levers would fit.

Here the link on the levers i would like to buy:

http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-SL-RS4...4395792&sr=8-1

Any ideas if it can be done?

Not the best pics but it looks like you have a 6 speed freewheel and triple chainring. The RD pic is badly out of focus so can't tell if it is one that would match Shimano's indexing or not. If your bike is currently indexed, you should be fine. If you are currently friction, they may not work but a new RD will solve that cheaply.

What should i do in that case? buy a new derailleur too?
Also, could you tell me what a RD is? xD

What's the endgame in changing the shifters?

From the look of the bike, it's a lower end model; would go with the 'if it aint broke don't fix it' aproach in your case, as you could quickly end up throwing money at it; when it could be better spend on a whole new bike, yet have a bike not much, if anything better than you started out with.

RD = rear derailleur, have a look here for more info http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ease-READ-THIS

This is good advice.

I'm looking to make my bicycle the best as it can be, the reason i haven't bought another one is because i don't have de cash for it, the best i can do is to replace some equipment and make it better

Its fine as transportation, just ride it , when you think of improving it
put the money in a jar

and each time the thought reoccurs , add to the jar..

What do you want to do that the bike won't do. Go, Stop, climb mountains?

Basics:
a friction shift lever + a mounting claw adapter + a slant pantograph rear derailleur
may help it shift better, friction shifting is less fussy than indexing.

Understandable, but without throwing the amount of money that is equal to buying a used decent quality bike, then you will get a severely diminished return on that bike. And even if you decide to throw that money into the bike, it probably won't end up being as good as the bike that you would have bought with that money.

I doubt those levers would work properly with it. Indexed shifters are designed as a matched set of levers and derailleurs. The cable pull of the lever has to match the derailleur.

Would i have to buy then the levers together with the derailleaur and gear?

These are the shifters that are most likely to be plug and play without any other changes:

http://www.amazon.com/Falcon-frictio.../dp/B0025UH44I

These are the twist shifters that are most likely to be plug and play without any other changes:

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopp...4&category=770

What shifters are on the bike at the moment? What's your handlebar look like?

As other people have been hinting at, you probably don't want to throw more than oh, let's say $30 at this bike.

Another issue is how many cogs the freewheel has. I'm afraid it's another aspect that is matched to the other components. You may not be able to just swap that out either, because of frame spacing and the dish of the wheel. Old style friction shifters were much better as far as the ability to mix & match parts.

Get a wheel with an Internal gear hub, 3 or 5 speed, and simplify.

+1

If the shifters are broken get some friction units to replace them. They'll definitely work and you'll get to experience the joy of learning friction shifting. Index shifting is better, but IMO getting familiar with friction shifting is good for you. Kind of like learning to shift a manual transmission.

If they're not broken, leave it alone. It will not be worth sticking much money into this bike. Save up for a good bike shop bike. Nice ones can be had used on craigstlist if you know what you're looking for, for less money than a new department store bike.