Senior Ryder 00 

Hello,

I’m a big fan of Suntour Barcons and have just acquired a set of the Accushift model. I know these have compatibility issues in the index mode, but am wondering how they compare with the older version when used in the friction/ratchet mode.

Thanx,
Van

Unca_Sam

AFAIK, the only issues are the indexing mode being incompatible with anything other than Accushift cassettes or freewheels. If you have an Accushift cassette/freewheel, they'll work beautifully.

For a more future-proof setup, why not consider Shimano bar-ends?

canklecat

Accushift shifters can work very well in index mode with Suntour Accushift compatible drivetrains, although I prefer to replace the chains and freewheels (assuming the more common freewheels rather than the uncommon cassettes). Switching to KMC chains (the older Z72, not sure what the current equivalent is) and SunRace chromed MFR30 and MFM30 freewheels work great for my Centurion with Suntour GPX Accushift group.

I also swapped out the original sintered bearing pulleys for Tacx sealed bearing pulleys, same Delrin material, but with a bit of play comparable to Shimano Centeron, for better shifting with Accushift. Tacx no longer sells those but another vendor apparently sells the same pulleys under another name, for around $15 or so. Well worthwhile for fine tuning an Accushift setup.

However if I wanted friction mode I'd switch shifters. Friction mode is an afterthought with Suntour, at least with the GPX shifters. The friction feel is mediocre and the tension knob needs to be tightened up so much the shifter loses feel. I switched to Shimano L422 Light Action shifters for awhile when I wanted to try other non-Suntour components on that bike. Much better friction feel than the GPX shifters.

Current model Shimano bar-end shifters are compatible only with Shimano rear derailleurs for indexing, but have a decent feel for friction mode. There are micro-clicks that help prevent creeping. I'm using Shimano 8-speed bar-end shifters on my hybrid right now in friction mode. That's mostly because I'm using an 8-speed cassette with a 7-speed rear derailleur. The bar-ends won't reliably shift into the largest cog in index mode, but will in friction. There's a tiny nubbin inside the RD housing that limits the cage pivot, but in friction mode it holds fine.

samkl 

I use these in friction mode on the tandem and they’re truly awful. The advice above is right- get something else!

luns

Accushift is not a model, it's their name for indexed shifting, equivalent to what Shimano called SIS. There are many different Accushift shifters just as Shimano had many different SIS shifters.

The answer to your question of how the friction mode works will depend on which shifter you're asking about. My experience is only with downtube shifters, so I can only speak to those: I don't know what barcon equivalents there may have been. I'm aware of a 6-speed Accushift barcon, and a 7-speed barcon that were labelled as Accushift plus, but there were different 6 and 6/7 speed Accushift downtube levers so I don't know enough tot rule out there being other Accushift (non plus) barcons.

I have used their IFC (Index Friction Control), IPC (Index Power Control) and my current bike has probably their last generation of Superbe Pro downtube shifters.

The IFC's friction mode was nothing to write home about, but useable.

My favourite by far is the IPC shifters - this was paired with the Sprint and Superbe (Pro?) derailleurs of the late '80's. The friction mode on these shifters has the same power ratchet that Suntour was famous for before Accushift. Also, the different modes are unambiguous: the shifter has settings for RE (regular 5 or 6 speed), Power ( "friction" ) and UL (7 speed, and ultra 6). Each behaves exactly as you'd expect.

The later Superbe Pro Accushift Plus levers still support both RE and UL index spacings, but I think there are four different modes. They're something like, 6, F6, F7 and 7, where the F6 and F7 are some sort of weakend indexing rather than pure friction. I don't think there's a pure friction mode in between them. There is no power ratchet for the rear shifter, but thankfully the front shifter still has it.

HTupolev

Yeah, the "friction" mode on some Accushift shifters is really a "soft indexed" mode which keeps the indexed stops engaged but also applies friction, so that the shifter isn't forced to rest against the stops. This makes it "indexed" while still allowing you to trim. SunTour implemented this ridiculous bodge because of how badly the indexing on early Accushift stuff worked.

Senior Ryder 00 

Thanks for the feedback. These came with a cockpit that I bought for the rando bars. I may play with them later, but it seems that they don’t work as well as the originals.
Cheers,
Van