The Silver shifters are copies of Suntours produced by Dia Compe and the pods are copies of Shimanos made with permission from Shimano. It's as simple as that. It has all been spelled out on the Rivendell site and the information probably still there somewhere.

Yes, we've been discussing which Suntour shifters in particular.

You can run your campy 10 speed ergos with shimano 8 speed or 9 speed via the 'Shimergo' method. My Gazelle is currently running that way. If you can't get them to cooperate, the Jtek Shiftmate supposedly makes them compatible.

Ergos are staying on the guerciotti. I've tried mixing speeds and using Jtek and found it less than desirable. Local shop has the VO polyvalent built up with Silver bar ends. Going to go test ride it.

I'd pass.

The only thing I use barends for are to trim a front derailleur (I hate indexed front shifting) and to adjust a rear drag Arai brake on the tandem.

Instead of barends, I'd look at getting some Kelly Take Offs and mounting indexing downtube shifters right by your levers. They work with ANY downtube shifter, and allow you to shift without moving your hands. Like a lot of things at Rivendell, the hype and marketing rhetoric doesn't add up when actually riding the bike.

I just got back from my test ride...

I actually really like the shifters. They are wonderfully smooth and as easy to operate as indexed bar cons. My hesitation is that reaching for them isn't as comfortable as I would like. I'm sure this will improve with time but it gives me doubts. I also got to try out the Tektro 340's. They aren't much to look at but functionally offer some pretty great braking action from the hoods.

I'm still really torn about everything. In an ideal world I would be running campy ergos on this bike. I plan to commute, light tour and do some randonneuring on this bike so I want the components to be nice...just not too nice.

I think that shifting from the bar ends takes some getting used to, especially with drop bars.

He has some real goodies on that site eh? It took a bit longer for me to get my stuff as it's a one-man show but since I'm sold on friction-only from now on I'm gonna go with them.

I have a some DA shifters hooked up to a 9 speed rapid rise and it works fine... in fact, it works on the same direction as downtube shifters so if you're coming from those it's same. I've never actually used bar-ends with a normal derailleur but I have a sturmey-archer bar-end and it still trips me up sometimes.

Sorry to post again so quickly but I think you'll get adjusted to the setup, I'm running 9 speed on my commuter/long distance bike with tektro levers and friction bar-ends. Like I said I came from downtube shifters so it was an easier time for me but you'll get the hang after a few rides, I made the switch to friction in the middle of winter. I've recently discovered that I can shift with the bottoms of my hands when I'm riding in the drops using the pad of my hand with a twist of the wrist... hard to explain but it's a nice perk if you like riding in the drops. I've had no problems with the tektro levers and I did a century on them last week.

How is that? You would pull for the higher gear with barcons/rapid rise and push for the higher gear with DT/normal derailleur. If you are talking about DT/rapid rise, then ignore this.

My DT bike has a 2200 RD which is a normal shifter... I am dyslexic so maybe this is all in my head :S I'd get the bikes side by side but it's two flights of stairs and I'm lazy :S I'm thinking about it as if you're looking from the side of the bike... clockwise for a higher gear and counter-clockwise for a lower gear.

Bar end shifters do turn the opposite direction because they're upside down as compared to downtube shifters, but how useful is it to think of it that way? The same thing happens when you pull or push on the shift lever.

'cos I use the same motion for shifting a DT bike if you have a rapid rise it's just a quirk I happen to like.

I get it. Direction is different, pull/push is the same. Thanks for that.

Ok Kids. I'm going to do it.

It makes the most amount of sense for my current budget and I want the experience for the good or bad. If by the end of the summer I really hate it I'll start working up to a campy group. This will at least provide the cheapest option considering my random mix of parts. I also like the idea that if i go on a long tour I can pack the bar ends should my Ergos crap out on me. I think that once i get used to the reach I'll really like the shifters.

Thanks for all of your comments and opinions.

I've decided to bump down to an 8 speed drive since the chain/cassette will be cheaper and slightly easier to shift. I still need to pick up an 8 speed triple FD. Any recommendations?

Thanks

How about a SunTour Cyclone 1st gen. EDIT: Nvm, you said FD.

Have you decided about brake levers?

I've had the Silvers on my Trek for awhile and absolutely love them. I like them better than my dura-ace 10 speed shifters. Just a personal thing I guess.

If you're doing your own install, you can criss-cross the cables for a tidier routing... I need to do this when I overhaul my bike but the shifters haven't been shifting poorly either with the bigger loops I have.

I'm tempted to rock the Tektro 'Uggo-Fatty' 340s.

I know I love shifting from the bar ends. I think within a few dozen miles you'll be in the same camp. It seems those of us who ride taller frames tend toward being bar end shifter fans for obvious reach reasons.

Man, i go back and forth. I love bar ends. In fact i often grab for bar ends when I'm riding a bike without them. I have 3 bikes set up with bar end shifters.

But nothing compares to campy ergos. If I take one of my campy ergo bikes out for a faster ride i always end up wondering how i get along operating my "clunky" bikes.

ANyway, I really wanted to convert my gold retrofrictions to bar ends for a px10 build. Maybe some day...

I really need to try this Ergo business. Send me that Bianchi of yours for the summer, Brian.

just imagine being able to almost always match whatever cadence you're comfortable with, right at your fingertips. That's what a decent ranged 10 sp ergo group does for you. Combine this with some vintage steel and it's like when that dude with the chocolate ran into the dude with the peanut butter....

its overkill for leisurely lollygagging rides but when you are at least somewhat concerned with performance it's a good thing.


...or come ride the bianchi, because soon enough i'll be rocking the Colnago with a pretty similar setup.

Being able to drop 5 gears with one smooth action is magical. If you find yourself in the big ring and getting closer to the big in the back you can drop both thumbs and end up pretty close to the same gear inch ratio.

I also find that the position of the bar ends and leverage provided by the Silvers makes for easier and more accurate shifts, especially on the front when using a wide range double.