Friction Shifting Brifters - Modify STI Brifter?
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
Friction Shifting Brifters - Modify STI Brifter?
Does (did) anyone make brifters with friction shifters? I'm restoring a vintage bike, and I'd like to avoid downtube shifters due to arthritis. I really want to avoid the hassle of finding a combination of STI brifters and derailleurs not that most new stuff is hydraulic discs.
I have other options for friction shifters, but a friction brifter would be best.
I'm open to modifying a standard brifter if this would work.
I have other options for friction shifters, but a friction brifter would be best.
I'm open to modifying a standard brifter if this would work.
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: South shore, L.I., NY
Posts: 7,328
Bikes: Flyxii FR322, Cannondale Topstone, Miyata City Liner, Specialized Chisel, Specialized Epic Evo
Liked 2,406 Times
in
1,359 Posts
Why run as friction ?. Just find some e-bay 8-9 spd or something and use indexed with brifters ?
And to answer, I am pretty sure all brake shifter units were indexed. Shimano STI is plus 30 years old now as indexed, Campy was close behind.
Would bar-cons be better than downtube ?, you can run them friction.
And to answer, I am pretty sure all brake shifter units were indexed. Shimano STI is plus 30 years old now as indexed, Campy was close behind.
Would bar-cons be better than downtube ?, you can run them friction.
Last edited by Steve B.; 05-11-24 at 06:01 PM.
#3
I am potato.
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Pacific Northwest
Posts: 3,343
Bikes: Only precision built, custom high performance elitist machines of the highest caliber. 🍆
Liked 1,876 Times
in
1,065 Posts
__________________
I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
I shouldn't have to "make myself more visible;" Drivers should just stop running people over.
Car dependency is a tax.
Likes For base2:
#4
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
Why run as friction ?. Just find some e-bay 8-9 spd or something and use indexed with brifters ?
And to answer, I am pretty sure all brake shifter units were indexed. Shimano STI is plus 30 years old now as indexed, Campy was close behind.
Would bar-cons be better than downtube ?, you can run them friction.
And to answer, I am pretty sure all brake shifter units were indexed. Shimano STI is plus 30 years old now as indexed, Campy was close behind.
Would bar-cons be better than downtube ?, you can run them friction.
Yeah, I could use bar end shifters. My prior tandem had them. I didn't like them on the tandem, so I'm looking for something else.
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
#5
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Last edited by PromptCritical; 05-11-24 at 06:27 PM.
Likes For PromptCritical:
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Bastrop Texas
Posts: 4,771
Bikes: Univega, Peu P6, Peu PR-10, Ted Williams, Peu UO-8, Peu UO-18 Mixte, Peu Dolomites
Liked 1,846 Times
in
1,183 Posts
What type bicycle?
What type bars?
Oh... And dont forget there is such a thing as Stem Shifters too.
For some people it can be hard to understand the things us arthritic riders have to adapt to...
What type bars?
Oh... And dont forget there is such a thing as Stem Shifters too.
For some people it can be hard to understand the things us arthritic riders have to adapt to...
__________________
No matter where you're at... There you are... Δf:=f(1/2)-f(-1/2)
No matter where you're at... There you are... Δf:=f(1/2)-f(-1/2)
Likes For zandoval:
#7
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
I thought about stem shifters, but they bring back bad memories about junior high school and Schwinn (lead pipe) Varsitys.
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Likes For PromptCritical:
#9
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
That's a good point. I just ordered a pair of Gevenalle levers, so we'll see how they work.
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Likes For PromptCritical:
#10
Senior Member
A good modern choice. The old school levers you were looking for were called Modolo Morphos, they shifted everything from 5sp-9sp, shimano or campagnolo. Little chunky but they worked really well and I liked them at the time because the chunky meant you could really hand onto them.
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: South shore, L.I., NY
Posts: 7,328
Bikes: Flyxii FR322, Cannondale Topstone, Miyata City Liner, Specialized Chisel, Specialized Epic Evo
Liked 2,406 Times
in
1,359 Posts
My question was if OP wanted something like brake/shifters, why not just run indexed brake shifters ?. Why use friction at all. Get a matchup set of F and R derailers and just use an indexed system.
#12
Kelly Take Offs also allow the use of any downtube shifter:
I have a pair - they work well.
Then there's the ratchet shifting Ene Wing:
And then there are flat bar type shifter mounts that are the right size to work on drop bar tops.
I have a pair - they work well.
Then there's the ratchet shifting Ene Wing:
And then there are flat bar type shifter mounts that are the right size to work on drop bar tops.
Likes For Kontact:
#13
For someone who has finger mobility issues, brifters or rapid fire type shifter would seem to be the best option since the lever 'returns' to the same position. Assuming a suitable position can be found which would work, it would limit the mobility needed. Friction shifters would seem to need more mobility range to work on most none downtube mounts.
Shimano's modern rapid fire shifters allow some adjustments on placement on the brake lever/mount.
Shimano shifters have quite a few option but the compatibility must be understood, something that the OP doesn't seem to be willing to learn.
Shimano's modern rapid fire shifters allow some adjustments on placement on the brake lever/mount.
Shimano shifters have quite a few option but the compatibility must be understood, something that the OP doesn't seem to be willing to learn.
#14
Senior Member
What kind of drive train are you planning on - for instance 6 or 7 speed rear? 8 or more rear?
#15
For someone who has finger mobility issues, brifters or rapid fire type shifter would seem to be the best option since the lever 'returns' to the same position. Assuming a suitable position can be found which would work, it would limit the mobility needed. Friction shifters would seem to need more mobility range to work on most none downtube mounts.
Shimano's modern rapid fire shifters allow some adjustments on placement on the brake lever/mount.
Shimano shifters have quite a few option but the compatibility must be understood, something that the OP doesn't seem to be willing to learn.
Shimano's modern rapid fire shifters allow some adjustments on placement on the brake lever/mount.
Shimano shifters have quite a few option but the compatibility must be understood, something that the OP doesn't seem to be willing to learn.
Likes For Kontact:
#16
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
I have a Campy rear derailleur on it, and am hoping it works. The frame is a little unusual. The B-screw doesn't line up well with the dropout, so I'm not sure what to do about that (I really don't want to weld on the frame). It has the shortest chain stays imaginable and really narrow. I put a 700c x 32 tire on my wheel and I couldn't get the wheel on. I deflated the tire and it went on, but when I re-inflated it, the tire hit both sides of the chainstays. Fortunately, I had a 700c x 25 tire lying around and it went back together.
I've thought about doing this again (picture of a Paul thumbie with a Campy lever I cobbled up on our tandem).
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Last edited by PromptCritical; 05-12-24 at 12:34 AM.
Likes For PromptCritical:
#18
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
Those are cool! Unfortunately the Kelly Takeoffs are out of stock and the Ene Wings are a bit pricey, but I may go for them.
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Last edited by PromptCritical; 05-12-24 at 12:33 AM.
#19
Senior Member
Right now, the plan is a Shimano HG freehub wheel (Which I have. No idea how I got it). I'd prefer a 9-speed cassette as I have a bunch of those. I just installed a set of Shimano Ultegra STI shifters from a tandem (what I had while I wait for the Gevenalle levers to arrive), but they are seriously worn out. The previous owner of the tandem must have really enjoyed riding it!
I have a Campy rear derailleur on it, and am hoping it works. The frame is a little unusual. The B-screw doesn't line up well with the dropout, so I'm not sure what to do about that (I really don't want to weld on the frame). It has the shortest chain stays imaginable and really narrow. I put a 700c x 32 tire on my wheel and I couldn't get the wheel on. I deflated the tire and it went on, but when I re-inflated it, the tire hit both sides of the chainstays. Fortunately, I had a 700c x 25 tire lying around and it went back together.
I've thought about doing this again (picture of a Paul thumbie with a Campy lever I cobbled up on our tandem).
I have a Campy rear derailleur on it, and am hoping it works. The frame is a little unusual. The B-screw doesn't line up well with the dropout, so I'm not sure what to do about that (I really don't want to weld on the frame). It has the shortest chain stays imaginable and really narrow. I put a 700c x 32 tire on my wheel and I couldn't get the wheel on. I deflated the tire and it went on, but when I re-inflated it, the tire hit both sides of the chainstays. Fortunately, I had a 700c x 25 tire lying around and it went back together.
I've thought about doing this again (picture of a Paul thumbie with a Campy lever I cobbled up on our tandem).
Also a picture of the dropout may help folks help you figure out the b stop issue.
#20
#21
Senior Member
I looked into the Gevenalle a couple of years ago to convert an MTB with 10sp Dynasys derailleurs to a drop bar to do a tour with it. They supposedly made them but were out of stock, and they were going to be expensive, more than the original setup. I ultimately bought SQ Labs bar inners, which give me a drop bar thumb hook position on the otherwise flat bar setup. I can shift and brake without moving my hands. This won't help the OP though since he already has drop bars.
#22
The B screw notch has to be sorted out or else nothing will work. Is this a French frame with Simplex or Huret drop-outs?
#23
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: SW Ohio
Posts: 3,744
Bikes: Puch Marco Polo, Saint Tropez, Masi Gran Criterium
Liked 471 Times
in
336 Posts
PromptCritical - you say you have the Gevenalle integrated shifters on order. Just curious: did you order the "Audax" version that comes without the shift levers? If so, which friction levers were you thinking of using? Or did you get the ones that come complete with the Microshift levers re-branded as Gevenalle? Also, how many front chainrings and rear cogs are you running?
#25
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2024
Location: San Diego
Posts: 1,217
Bikes: Columbine, Paramount Track Bike, Colnago Super, Santana Tandems (1995 & 2007), Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek Wahoo, Bianchi Track Bike, a couple of Honda mountain bikes
Liked 438 Times
in
270 Posts
PromptCritical - you say you have the Gevenalle integrated shifters on order. Just curious: did you order the "Audax" version that comes without the shift levers? If so, which friction levers were you thinking of using? Or did you get the ones that come complete with the Microshift levers re-branded as Gevenalle? Also, how many front chainrings and rear cogs are you running?
__________________
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Cheers, Mike
-Stupid hurts....ride safe
Likes For PromptCritical: