Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Bicycle Mechanics
Reload this Page >

Friction grip shifters not made any more?

Search
Notices
Bicycle Mechanics Broken bottom bracket? Tacoed wheel? If you're having problems with your bicycle, or just need help fixing a flat, drop in here for the latest on bicycle mechanics & bicycle maintenance.

Friction grip shifters not made any more?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 03-31-20, 02:21 PM
  #1  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Friction grip shifters not made any more?

Hello,

Are friction grip shifters made any more?

My front derailleur is impossible to index properly and the existing broken shifter is a non-indexed.

Bike shops don't have, amazon just has crappy stuff (i actually bought one marketed as friction but indexed, have to return it), ebay has some old ones but shipping cost exceeds the value.

thanks
user_1 is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 03:11 PM
  #2  
ramzilla
Senior Member
 
ramzilla's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Fernandina Beach FL
Posts: 3,604

Bikes: Vintage Japanese Bicycles, Tange, Ishiwata, Kuwahara

Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 700 Post(s)
Liked 322 Times in 252 Posts
here's a large selection:

https://thebikeshopstore.com/categor...twist-shifters
ramzilla is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 03:21 PM
  #3  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Originally Posted by ramzilla
Are any of those friction?
I only see index so far.
user_1 is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 03:26 PM
  #4  
dsbrantjr
Senior Member
 
dsbrantjr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Roswell, GA
Posts: 8,319

Bikes: '93 Trek 750, '92 Schwinn Crisscross, '93 Mongoose Alta

Mentioned: 30 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1438 Post(s)
Liked 1,092 Times in 723 Posts
Friction thumb shifter? Cheap and simple. Here's a pair for $10 with free shipping. https://smile.amazon.com/Sunrace-SLM.../dp/B007QMJH86
dsbrantjr is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 03:27 PM
  #5  
tFUnK
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 3,691

Bikes: Too many bikes, too little time to ride

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 430 Post(s)
Liked 460 Times in 318 Posts
Index grip shifter for the front? 🤔
tFUnK is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 03:31 PM
  #6  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Friction grip shifter for the front derailer.

It's easy to find friction thumb shifters and if I can't find grip for a reasonable price, will go thumb instead.

Prefer grip, nicer to use and matches up with the bike properly.

Index doesn't work properly, the bike was never designed for it.
user_1 is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 08:08 PM
  #7  
tFUnK
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 3,691

Bikes: Too many bikes, too little time to ride

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 430 Post(s)
Liked 460 Times in 318 Posts
Originally Posted by user_1

Index doesn't work properly, the bike was never designed for it.
Should be dependent on your crank/FD/BB and not the bike. Sounds like you're using road cranks/FD on a MTB frame?
tFUnK is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 08:40 PM
  #8  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Department store mountain bike, went from old SRAM MRX non-indexed to sram indexed shifter.

Original crank and gears.

Impossible to index properly - fix one thing by changing tension level and another problem shifting or rubbing pops up, gears may be slightly misaligned due to age or not standard.

Returned index shifter, have to use friction which doesn't seem to be made in grip style any more.
user_1 is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 08:42 PM
  #9  
phughes
Senior Member
 
phughes's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 3,094
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1034 Post(s)
Liked 1,290 Times in 743 Posts
Originally Posted by user_1
Hello,

Are friction grip shifters made any more?

My front derailleur is impossible to index properly and the existing broken shifter is a non-indexed.

Bike shops don't have, amazon just has crappy stuff (i actually bought one marketed as friction but indexed, have to return it), ebay has some old ones but shipping cost exceeds the value.

thanks
https://www.jensonusa.com/SRAM-MRX-Comp-Grip-Shifter
phughes is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 08:59 PM
  #10  
texaspandj
Senior Member
 
texaspandj's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Heart Of Texas
Posts: 4,238

Bikes: '85, '86 , '87 , '88 , '89 Centurion Dave Scott Ironman.

Mentioned: 99 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1605 Post(s)
Liked 582 Times in 379 Posts
I've had Gripshift for a lot of years (since '88) but I've never had the cheaper department store type. But every one of them have been index shifting. That's the only way they come. To be clear the front or rear derailleur do Not make it index, it's the shifter itself. So you must make sure the Gripshift is compatible with your specific deraileur. For example different deraileurs have different pull ratio even if it's from the same brand.
Or am I missing something.

Last edited by texaspandj; 03-31-20 at 09:02 PM.
texaspandj is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 09:10 PM
  #11  
LesterOfPuppets
cowboy, steel horse, etc
 
LesterOfPuppets's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: The hot spot.
Posts: 44,814

Bikes: everywhere

Mentioned: 71 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12757 Post(s)
Liked 7,672 Times in 4,070 Posts
There are 3-position left gripshifts and 9 or 10 position left gripshifts, no friction that I know of.
LesterOfPuppets is online now  
Old 03-31-20, 09:17 PM
  #12  
LesterOfPuppets
cowboy, steel horse, etc
 
LesterOfPuppets's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: The hot spot.
Posts: 44,814

Bikes: everywhere

Mentioned: 71 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12757 Post(s)
Liked 7,672 Times in 4,070 Posts
Originally Posted by user_1
Friction grip shifter for the front derailer.

It's easy to find friction thumb shifters and if I can't find grip for a reasonable price, will go thumb instead.

Prefer grip, nicer to use and matches up with the bike properly.

Index doesn't work properly, the bike was never designed for it.
What crankset and front derailleur do you have?
LesterOfPuppets is online now  
Old 03-31-20, 09:18 PM
  #13  
phughes
Senior Member
 
phughes's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 3,094
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1034 Post(s)
Liked 1,290 Times in 743 Posts
The one I posted allows for both indexed and friction.
phughes is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 09:25 PM
  #14  
cyccommute 
Mad bike riding scientist
 
cyccommute's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 27,355

Bikes: Some silver ones, a red one, a black and orange one, and a few titanium ones

Mentioned: 152 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6212 Post(s)
Liked 4,210 Times in 2,360 Posts
Originally Posted by LesterOfPuppets
There are 3-position left gripshifts and 9 or 10 position left gripshifts, no friction that I know of.
Every left gripshift I’ve ever across has positions on the shifter from 1 to 3 but they aren’t ‘indexed” like the rear. They “click” rather than index like a paddled shifter (Rapidfire or SRAM). Often they have almost as many “clicks” as the right side. I’m not a fan of gripshifters but they do offer a lot of trimming on the derailer.
__________________
Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!



cyccommute is offline  
Likes For cyccommute:
Old 03-31-20, 09:29 PM
  #15  
Jeff Wills
Insane Bicycle Mechanic
 
Jeff Wills's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: other Vancouver
Posts: 9,835
Mentioned: 34 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 802 Post(s)
Liked 703 Times in 376 Posts
Originally Posted by cyccommute
Every left gripshift I’ve ever across has positions on the shifter from 1 to 3 but they aren’t ‘indexed” like the rear. They “click” rather than index like a paddled shifter (Rapidfire or SRAM). Often they have almost as many “clicks” as the right side. I’m not a fan of gripshifters but they do offer a lot of trimming on the derailer.
This. Left grip-shifters might have many detents, but I've never seen one that's truly "friction". IIRC, the higher grade (brand name) Grip Shifts had finer detents in the shifter to allow finer front derailleur shifting.
__________________
Jeff Wills

Comcast nuked my web page. It will return soon..
Jeff Wills is offline  
Old 03-31-20, 09:30 PM
  #16  
LesterOfPuppets
cowboy, steel horse, etc
 
LesterOfPuppets's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: The hot spot.
Posts: 44,814

Bikes: everywhere

Mentioned: 71 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12757 Post(s)
Liked 7,672 Times in 4,070 Posts
Originally Posted by cyccommute
Every left gripshift I’ve ever across has positions on the shifter from 1 to 3 but they aren’t ‘indexed” like the rear. They “click” rather than index like a paddled shifter (Rapidfire or SRAM). Often they have almost as many “clicks” as the right side. I’m not a fan of gripshifters but they do offer a lot of trimming on the derailer.
Yeah, I don't think they've had 3-position fronts since the mid-90s.
LesterOfPuppets is online now  
Old 03-31-20, 09:44 PM
  #17  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
The original shifter i tried had multiple clicks so it could be trimmed.

All the new ones for 3 speed are 3 position. i bought a second one off amazon after having issues with the sram - was supposed to be non-indexed but it has 3 positions/clicks instead of being friction or having multiple clicks for trimming.

I don't know what crankset it has and the info off on the derailer is faded off. Likely cheap generic junk.
user_1 is offline  
Old 04-01-20, 10:47 AM
  #18  
phughes
Senior Member
 
phughes's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 3,094
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1034 Post(s)
Liked 1,290 Times in 743 Posts
Originally Posted by user_1
The original shifter i tried had multiple clicks so it could be trimmed.

All the new ones for 3 speed are 3 position. i bought a second one off amazon after having issues with the sram - was supposed to be non-indexed but it has 3 positions/clicks instead of being friction or having multiple clicks for trimming.

I don't know what crankset it has and the info off on the derailer is faded off. Likely cheap generic junk.
And again: https://www.jensonusa.com/SRAM-MRX-Comp-Grip-Shifter Indexed and friction with front derailer compatibility.
phughes is offline  
Old 04-01-20, 11:20 AM
  #19  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Thanks.

The shipping to canada is too expensive, exceeding the cost of the item. I'll see if the product is available elsewhere.
user_1 is offline  
Likes For user_1:
Old 04-01-20, 12:29 PM
  #20  
squirtdad
Senior Member
 
squirtdad's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: San Jose (Willow Glen) Ca
Posts: 9,840

Bikes: Kirk Custom JK Special, '84 Team Miyata,(dura ace old school) 80?? SR Semi-Pro 600 Arabesque

Mentioned: 106 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2337 Post(s)
Liked 2,818 Times in 1,539 Posts
Originally Posted by dsbrantjr
friction thumb shifter? Cheap and simple. Here's a pair for $10 with free shipping. https://smile.amazon.com/sunrace-slm.../dp/b007qmjh86
+1
__________________
Life is too short not to ride the best bike you have, as much as you can
(looking for Torpado Super light frame/fork or for Raleigh International frame fork 58cm)



squirtdad is offline  
Old 04-01-20, 03:48 PM
  #21  
wrk101
Thrifty Bill
 
wrk101's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Mountains of Western NC
Posts: 23,524

Bikes: 86 Katakura Silk, 87 Prologue X2, 88 Cimarron LE, 1975 Sekai 4000 Professional, 73 Paramount, plus more

Mentioned: 96 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1236 Post(s)
Liked 964 Times in 628 Posts
I hate grip shifters and always replace them with thumb shifters. Plenty of cheap thumb shifter options.
wrk101 is offline  
Old 04-01-20, 06:59 PM
  #22  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Originally Posted by wrk101
I hate grip shifters and always replace them with thumb shifters. Plenty of cheap thumb shifter options.
I like grip shifters especially for the rear gears- when they're available and work properly.

I will probably end up with a thumb shifter due to lack of availability of what I need - friction ones are few and far between.
user_1 is offline  
Old 04-02-20, 06:23 AM
  #23  
Kapusta
Advanced Slacker
 
Kapusta's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 6,210

Bikes: Soma Fog Cutter, Surly Wednesday, Canfielld Tilt

Mentioned: 26 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2762 Post(s)
Liked 2,537 Times in 1,433 Posts
You should be able to find lots of old model 5.0, 7.0, 9.0, or 9.0sl left shifters on ebay. Many are new old stock. All are micro-indexed, which is what i believe you are looking for (10-ish clicks of adjustment)

I really liked the micro-indexing for the front. Always seemed like the best of both worlds to me (friction and indexing).

20 seconds of searching turned up a 7.0 ESP on ebay just now. $25.

Look around longer you can likely get one even cheaper.

Last edited by Kapusta; 04-02-20 at 06:27 AM.
Kapusta is offline  
Old 04-02-20, 07:16 AM
  #24  
sweeks
Senior Member
 
sweeks's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Chicago area
Posts: 2,551

Bikes: Airborne "Carpe Diem", Motobecane "Mirage", Trek 6000, Strida 2, Dahon "Helios XL", Dahon "Mu XL", Tern "Verge S11i"

Mentioned: 23 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 980 Post(s)
Liked 582 Times in 399 Posts
Maybe something from RIVENDELL?
sweeks is offline  
Likes For sweeks:
Old 04-02-20, 08:58 AM
  #25  
user_1
Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 27
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
You should be able to find lots of old model 5.0, 7.0, 9.0, or 9.0sl left shifters on ebay. Many are new old stock. All are micro-indexed, which is what i believe you are looking for (10-ish clicks of adjustment)


How do you identify/search for them?

I only see two and they're from distant countries.

I'm in canada and prefer something that won't take 2-3 weeks to ship.
user_1 is offline  


Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.