Downtube levers...

[Andy in Germany]

Elder son and I are still trying to make a drop bar tourer from an MTB frame. As the Elder Son is now an apprentice bike mechanic there are new possibilities opening up, and one of these is that he will, with the help of his trainer, drill a hole through the frame and put a boss straight through. He's seen another bike that his trainer converted in this way, so knows it is possible.

I've read somewhere that Shimano eight speed downtube shifters with indexing are compatible with their 8-speed MTB mechs. Is that correct?

 

[TheDoctor]

Yes. It'll work perfectly

 

[Andy in Germany]

Woohooo... Thanks. I'll pass that on...

 

[mjr]

Why drill the frame instead of using clamped levers?

 

[Andy in Germany]

Why drill the frame instead of using clamped levers?

The down tube diameter is bigger than any clamp I can find, by several millimetres.

It's the one thing I forgot to check when looking for the bike...

 

[Drago]

If youre using drop bars you could fit 8 speed Sora brifters, or mount olde style MTB shift levers up on the bars.

I avoided the problem by going SS on my drop bar MTB.

 

[Andy in Germany]

If youre using drop bars you could fit 8 speed Sora brifters, or mount olde style MTB shift levers up on the bars.

I avoided the problem by going SS on my drop bar MTB.

I'd prefer Brifters but can't find any we can afford at the moment.

The only brifters we can find (and can't afford/justify paying for) seem to be friction shifters, whereas the Downtube shifters we're finding are a lot cheaper and have indexing that works with MTB gears, at least on the back mech, which seems easier

 

[Drago]

You want old school shifters like this on the bars. Ive seen them before sited just below the brake levers on the inaide of the drop bars, where the fingertips can move them...

Or if you have a quill stem you can get stem mounted levers.

 

[Andy in Germany]

old school shifters like this on the bars

Elder Son is has wanted a 'properly' retro bike for some time, and if we can't afford Brifters, then he'll go for down tube. There's a slight rebellious streak in him and he's working at a shop that sells expensive E-bikes and alongside other apprentices that all ride equally expensive downhill bikes so now he's even more committed to the 'retro' Randonneur idea.

 

[Low Gear Guy]

You should tell me that true retro downtube shifters don't have indexong.

Sorted

 

[mjr]

You should tell me that true retro downtube shifters don't have indexong.

Sorted

OK.

@Low Gear Guy, true retro downtube shifters don't have indexong.

 

[si_c]

OK.

@Low Gear Guy, true retro downtube shifters don't have indexong.

Pretty much this. The best downtube shifters you can get are the Simplex Retrofrictions IMO, light easy action, total reliability, zero indexing - and they work with pretty much every cable actuated derailleur ever made.

 

[mjr]

The best downtube shifters you can get are the Simplex Retrofrictions IMO, light easy action, total reliability, zero indexing - and they work with pretty much every cable actuated derailleur ever made.

Noooooooo they look like someone's melted the heads of a couple of camping teaspoons into balls and bent the handles.

Shimano Arabesque are the best downtube shifters you can get because you need some carved-looking metal curves in your life.

 

[si_c]

Noooooooo they look like someone's melted the heads of a couple of camping teaspoons into balls and bent the handles.

Shimano Arabesque are the best downtube shifters you can get because you need some carved-looking metal curves in your life.

Euch, they look like they should be mounted to the gates on some neo-gothic manor house. I'll stick with the Simplex thanks

 

[Andy in Germany]

It's a bit academic now because the shifters we saw were not fixed the way we thought: they were welded, not drilled through.

Back to square 1