My Cannondale Comfort has SRAM SX4 grip shifters and the more I ride the more I dislike them. I'd like to switch to trigger shfters, but not sure what I need. Apart from shifters and new grips, what else do I need to consider? I'm very mechanical, I fix printers for a living, so can I do this myself or should I use my LBS? Thanks! BTW, Here's a pic my wife took after today's ride

Just curious why you don't like them? I've been using SRAM Grip Shifters for my rear gears for about 1.5 yrs on my 21 yr old Stumpjumper MTB-turned hybrid. I was forced to buy them when my stock thumb shifter died, and 7-speed shifters are now hard to find (other than Grip Shift and low level shifters they put on new kids bikes). Reluctant at first, b/c I was used to Shimano Deore DX. Actually quite pleased w/ its performance and simplicity. I shift a lot, as I ride mostly paved, rolling terrain. No problems so far, other than some of the rubber on the shifter weraring away.

If you keep it simple, no reason you can't do it yourself. For easiest swap, stick with a SRAM shifter with the same # of speeds as current cassette. Don't screw around (literally) with the stop screws on your current set-up, they are all limit screws and changing shifters doesn't change the required travel. It will all be about cable tension. Follow the instructions that come with the shifters and you'll be fine.

I now nothing about grip shifters, except that on my wife's the rear is indexed and the front is friction. Trigger shifters will be indexed on both. Shouldn't change the don't screw with the limit screws on derailleurs comment.

I find that I'm frequently changing gears when I don't intend to. I had triggers on a flatbar road bike 10 years ago and liked them then. Perhaps I should just try new grips first. The grips that came on the bike are very narrow, which leaves my hands on the shifter constantly. Can I just move the shifter over a bit and install wider grips?

WHat you will need are the shifters, and rear deraileure. Not sure if you need to change the front ones. I was never comfortable using Sram shifters so i always stuck with Shimano. It is a preference thing for me too.

Go to youtube and look up a video on changing a shifter, shifter cables, or adjusting a derailleur. Youtube has been a big help for me in seeing someone else do what I want to do with my bikes.

Are you sure he has to replace the rear derailleur. If he stuck with sram, I thought the actuation was the same 1:1. I thought he`d only have to change the rear if he went shimano as it`s 1:2. On my bike I went from sram trigger to shimano trigger and back to sram. I was shimano through and through, but for me (personal choice) sram is much smoother. ie. X7

Actually you might have a point there..I was considering changing from a 27 speed to 30 speed and that was the thought process i came up with..if the shifters are compatible with the dreaileures, then yes, he doesn't need to change them.

Yeah. Won't hurt to try it w/ new grips first. I have to say, with the 7-speed SRAM Grip Shift that I put on my MTB 1.5 yrs ago, I haven't seen any problems w/ unwanted shifting. Mine actualy requires some effort to turn the shifter. Also, in your normal hand position, do you have full grasp of the shifter or partial grasp? Full grasp couild possibly lead to unwanted shifts. Could you have possibly trimmed too much off the grips, not leaving enough hand room? If so, try some new grips and only cut off a minimal amount before mounting on bar.

You didn't mention what kind of rear derailieur your Cdale is outfitted with, or number of speeds.
If you have a Shimano rear derailieur, switch to any Shimano trigger shifters. If you have a SRAM RD then use SRAM only trigger shifters. Make sure trigger shifters have same number of speeds as your rear cluster and front chainring. Other than that, you should be good to go.
For best shifting with Shimano(IMO), rapid fire Deore XT's are the way to go, but they can be pricey.

These are the grips that came on the bike, but yes I do have full grasp of the shifter. I think I will try the new grips first. I wanted to try some of the more ergonomic grips anyway. Thanks!

Rear DR is SRAM X-5. Looks like the SRAM X.4 8 speed should work.

I checked my hand position yesteray w/ my Sram Grip Shift Max Comp (7-speed) on my MTB. In the nornal riding position, my hand only has about 1/10th of the Grip Shift in its grasp. Again, I've never had an unwanted shift. I think that your full grasp of the Grip Shift is causing the unwanted shifts. Relocate the shifter a little bit to the left and maybe a new rubber grip trimmed to fit w/o leaving any gaps bewteen shifter and rubber grip. Hope this works! Be safe!