I'm fixing up a kids' mountain bike with 24" wheels. The left shifter is shot. I see I can buy a few. This one comes in either "Left Index" or "Left Micro". What's the diff?



Does Micro mean microadjustable, i.e. not really indexed? That would be better. As many of us agree, indexing a front derailleur is a misguided idea.

And what is this? Sunlite Twist Shifter Set - Left and Right, $3.67. Is it possible to make a set that cheap that works and won't break when you breathe on it?



Anything else I should consider?

Oh, how come these are so darned hard to work on? I can never get them back together if I take them apart.

I prefer the micro type for front shifters so I can dial out chain rub in any gear. My MRX micros have 6 detents. Index just has 3 detents.

Never tried the Sunlites.

I'm surprised you don't have a drawer full of gripshifts. People will pay you to take them off their bikes it seems.

Not around here, I guess. It's a suburban area, and there are lots of non-serious cyclists. That's not a denigrating term. I do more drop-to-upright conversions than you'll see in other areas.

So I don't have a drawer full of grip shifts since they're basically a wear item. I'm unimpressed. Certainly, I would prefer trigger shifters!

+1 avoid the indexed front.

I like grip shifts... I'd like them more if somebody made them out of something more durable than plastic, and smooth friction would be good too.

Avoid the Sunlite shifters; they are crap.

The SRAM ones are actually pretty decent, even though they feel cheap. If you take one apart, you'll see it's not as fragile as one would think.

The micro adjust ones are great for people who understand the need to adjust a front derailleur to avoid rub. But I'd say for a kid's bike it might be better to stick with simple indexing, even if the chain may rub slightly. Although I prefer the micro adjusting type, as someone who sells bikes to customers, trying to explain this concept even to fully grown adults is often a lost cause.

I put one of the micro adjust types on a kid's bike as a replacement, and the kid's dad got very angry with me, to the point of yelling at me in front of a shop full of customers. It took a lot of explaining to get him calmed down.

Alternately, one could remove the shifter and front derailleur entirely. Most people don't use the front.

These things breed worse then rabbits around here, I switch them out with trigger shifters when ever I can. I prefer the microshift grip shifters over the 3 position indexed ones though when I have to use them, I mean let's face it gears alone still confuse a lot of people no matter what type of shifter is on it. Taken them apart & putting them back together isn't that bad, if the detent spring falls out it can only go back in one of two ways the right way & the wrong way