Equipment/Product Review (1989) Preview of 1990 Components
08-17-21, 05:45 PM
#1
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Equipment/Product Review (1989) Preview of 1990 Components
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08-17-21, 06:10 PM
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Great stuff. Thanks for posting.
08-17-21, 07:24 PM
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It's amazing how awesome people thought RapidFire shifters would be, until they used them for more than an hour and had to ice down their right thumbs when they got home. One of the worst bicycle components of all time.
--Shannon
--Shannon
08-17-21, 08:50 PM
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I don't remember seeing them on mtbs for very long before GripShifts became popular.
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08-17-21, 09:03 PM
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Exactly what Shannon describes: with all shifting (upshifts and downshifts) done with thumb movements, your thumbs quickly became tired and cramped. Shimano's next iteration was "Rapidfire Plus" with index-finger upshifts. This worked much better and soon dominated the market. (I have three bikes with these shifters so I'm prejudiced.)
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08-18-21, 12:15 AM
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(Especially because Charlie Cunningham and Jaquie Phelan could really use the money these days.)
--Shannon
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08-18-21, 02:21 PM
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I liked the Rapid Fire shifters on my early '90s Univega. No ergonomic issues with my thumbs. When they worked, they worked well. Only problem was they quit working reliably a few years ago. I tried flushing them with solvent but they probably need to be disassembled to properly clean, and I'm not anxious to tackle that chore. I switched that bike to albatross swept bars and bar-end shifters.
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