Remind me, what was wrong with friction lever gears.

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raleighnut

Legendary Member
I didn't know that. Eg the bar end ones. I thought they could either be friction type or indeed type but not both?
With my Bar ends the Shimano (Dura-ace 8 or 9spd) indexing can be switched on or off at the lever but the Campagnolo (Super Record 10spd) are indexed only.
I still find myself waving a hand around the downtube looking for the lever every once in a while though (3 of my other bikes have DT shifters)
 

alecstilleyedye

nothing in moderation
Moderator
unscrupulous cyclists in the peloton can't ruin your sprint by flipping your downtube levers into lower gears (or a mash); apparently it used to go on a lot in the pro peloton…
 

Dogtrousers

Kilometre nibbler
unscrupulous cyclists in the peloton can't ruin your sprint by flipping your downtube levers into lower gears (or a mash); apparently it used to go on a lot in the pro peloton…
Tee hee

I wonder if we'll get a high tech version with riders hacking into each other's wireless changers. :smile:

Or indeed into each other's power meters.
 

Alembicbassman

Confused.com
I got rid of my bar-end shifters after the right shifter on my touring bike tried to remove my right knee-cap when my front wheel slipped on a small rock on a trail in Clumber Park.
 

briantrumpet

Legendary Member
Location
Devon & Die
Having been brought up on DT shifters (first proper bike was a Falcon in the 70s, and I ran on old 2nd-hand bikes after that), my first nice bike with integrated shifters and indexed gears (CAAD9 in 2010) was a revelation. I'd only go back for nostalgic reasons - and given I'm not a great one for nostalgia, I'll stick with the current set-up. If anything reinvigorated my pleasure in riding road bikes, it was the ease of changing gears quickly and accurately without taking my hands off the bars.
 

midlife

Guru
I got rid of my bar-end shifters after the right shifter on my touring bike tried to remove my right knee-cap when my front wheel slipped on a small rock on a trail in Clumber Park.

If you think bar end shifters are dangerous they pale into insignificance against these.............

cc808-3Stem%20Shifters.jpg


Shaun
 

subaqua

What’s the point
Location
Leytonstone
Not everything made yesterday is better. I'll assume you bemoan the move to index downtube shifters rather than that to brifters. Friction shifters went out the back door because indexing has two distinct advantages.
1) In traffic or other noisy places like tight pelotons you can't listen and hear if your chain is perfectly in gear. When things are quiet you make the small adjustments by ear. When noisy, you have to look down and that is dangerous, especially in the type of environment where you have to look down. I'll rather be in a peloton behind an indexed rider than a retro-grouch friction rider. Also, a slightly misaligned gear is dangerous when you have to get up and pedal hard. An indexed shifter does all that for you without fuss. Lots of people tell you they have, like a trombone player or violinist, developed perfect feel for where the lever should be and thus never make mistakes even in noisy environments. I've also heard that saying bless-you after a sneeze keeps the lions away.
2) The small mechanical improvement of indexing comes at no extra cost, no weight, isn't contrived, cant be seen, isn't bulky, is simple to maintain, rarely fails and makes a satisfying click like the safety catch going off on a 9mm parabellum.
Brifters are a natural progression from that and electronic switches on levers even better. Let's move on. Valve radios are quaint but I can't wait for 20 minutes for the thing to warm up. Inside toilets are also more comfortable than a drafty wooden longdrop in the garden.
Valve amps give a much better sound though . Sometimes you need to sacrifice speed for quality
 

clockworksimon

Über Member
Location
England
I still use Shimano Deore thumb shifters which mount above the bar on my old MTB. I bought and fitted these after the original rapidfire shifters had worn and got less reliable. The top shifters have index or friction option for the rear mech. I use them mostly in friction mode. Whilst originally for 7 speed, they work well on 8 speed. They seem to be lasting forever and no great reason to change. Even in non competitive (?) XC riding having your 'mates' flip your shifter at the start of a hill then sprint off has happened more than once! I also had down tube friction shifters on my old road bike until not very long ago. They were fine although I prefer modern indexed brake/gear levers. The old bikes down tube shifters have since been removed and not replaced as it's now single speed!
 
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