Motofan

Does anyone have experience with Suntour Symmetric Shifters? I have a set of these on the way from an ebay seller, partly because I want to see how they work, and also in hope of using them on a Suntour equipped project. Apparently, they have a cam that moves works to trim the front derailleur as the rear shifts through the cogs.

Do they work? If not, are they at least better than the plain old Hurets I'm currently using (6 speed friction operated downtube type)?

luker

you don't have to reach very far to find shifters better than the Hurets...but, yeah, they work very well, up to about seven speeds. The left shifter is mounted on a cam, so that when the right shifter is moved the left is automatically trimmed. No chain rub. I have a set around here that I'm gonna build with, come the right project. Raced 'em in the early '80s on a Raleigh Supa Coarse. they were great.

mechBgon

Tangentially, if anyone needs (*needs*) a mount that lets you put Shimano indexed shifters onto a brazed-on top-mounted Symmetric shifter stud, I have one that I bought many years ago for my Univega SporTour.

Motofan

Thanks for the feedback - I'll be using mine on a six-speed Suntour VGT, so it sounds like everything should work.

alanbikehouston

I have a 1983ish Centurion Pro Tour with those shifters. They might be the best shifters I've used. That bike has a triple crank. A typical problem with a triple was that you would get the chain perfectly aligned on the big ring and a small cog, but when you shifted to a larger cog, the chain would rub on the front changer.

And, the same problem would occur with the chain was perfectly aligned between the small chainring and a large cog, and you shifted to a small cog. Chain rub...I've read in the Forums folks complaining about front chain rub with their new meg-buck thirty speed bikes...a problem Symmetric solved decades ago.

The Symmetric eliminates chain rub against the front changer. As you shift the chain from cog to cog, the Symmetric keeps the chain aligned in front. But, just after Sun Tour introduced the "perfect" shifter, Shimano messed things up by promoting "indexing"....a shifting system only truly "essential" for those folks who are too clumsy to ride a bike...and "indexing" was the beginning of the end for Sun Tour.

jacksbike

The Symmetrics were around for a short while and they did work. It was a great idea to have the front derailleur move as you shifted the rear derailleur. As stated above, once the Shimano monlith introduced index shifting it was just about all over , unfortunatley, for SunTour. A lot of Japanese road bikes used the Symmetric shifting for maybe a 2 year period, although only specific models of each brand.

ollo_ollo

I can testify to their longevity also, the set on my Centurion ProTour have thousands upon thousands of miles with no problems, still work perfectly.

truman

Do any of you guys know where I could see an exploded diagram? After taking these apart and reassembling them, I have a leftover plastic split washer that doesn't seem to fit into the stack on either lever? I *did* keep them in order on disassembly, but after severa false starts and dropped bits, I lost the order.

alanbikehouston

I've never run across a diagram for these shifters. I have seen diagrams for some Shimano shifters from aroun 1985 or so. An amazing number of washers, spacers, etc. So, I'm happy my Symmetrics came already installed on my ProTour and still function perfectly. The best friction shifters I've owned.

I bought a couple of sets of indexed '80's shifters on E-bay. What arrived was a bag of parts. The guys at the local LBS say they can put them together if I decide to use them...but I wouldn't try it on my own.

truman

These came assembled, but filthy. The action was gritty, so cleaning was mandatory.

Old School

Ooops -- I hate it when that happens. Next time try a few digital pics during disassembly. Good luck on the reassembly!

cyclotoine

Wow, i want a set for my comp II, w ST cyclone.

truman

they were <$6US, on eBay

truman

Got 'em figured out. They went together in a configuration I had thought was impossible.

Now they're buttah.

alanbikehouston

Okay, now take them apart, put all of the parts in correct order, and take a photo. Someday, one of US will be trying to put a Symmetric together.

I was recently riding a old bike that had a triple crank and did NOT have a Symmetric. Gotta remember to "trim" the left lever after shifting with the right lever. Made me appreciated the "magic" of the Symmetric a bit more. No 2006 model shifter works any better. Sun Tour had it right two decades ago.