Gear Shifters on the down tube

MungoMan · 15-07-2011 04:14PM #1

My road bike was stolen, it had entry level sti shifters (SORA)

I need a bike, something cheap, something which wouldnt be of great value as it might be stolen again.

I was looking at a bike on ebay with shifters on the down tube, its a Trek 1200 from maybe 15 years ago in good mechanical order, it would serve its purpose as a fitness bike and a commuter.

The one thing I hate is the downtube shifters, I never used downtube shifters before......are they something to avoid ?

I'd imagine that people with downtube shifters dont change gear as often as people with sti shifters. Any thoughts ?

MungoMan · 15-07-2011 04:17PM

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260816992594&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&autorefresh=true

Actually I just won the auction, is it a pile of sh-ite ?

It was cheap, thats for sure, I need a seatpost, can someone send me a link to a seatpost which will work with this bike !

justo · 15-07-2011 04:18PM

MungoMan wrote: »

My road bike was stolen, it had entry level sti shifters (SORA)

I need a bike, something cheap, something which wouldnt be of great value as it might be stolen again.

I was looking at a bike on ebay with shifters on the down tube, its a Trek 1200 from maybe 15 years ago in good mechanical order, it would serve its purpose as a fitness bike and a commuter.

The one thing I hate is the downtube shifters, I never used downtube shifters before......are they something to avoid ?

I'd imagine that people with downtube shifters dont change gear as often as people with sti shifters. Any thoughts ?

Although the retro-bike loving part of me loves the down-tube shifters, for commuting I don't hink I could handle using them. I find that in the city I change gears to often and quickly that moving my hand off the bars would not be practical.

MungoMan · 15-07-2011 04:22PM

justo wrote: »

Although the retro-bike loving part of me loves the down-tube shifters, for commuting I don't hink I could handle using them. I find that in the city I change gears to often and quickly that moving my hand off the bars would not be practical.

Didn't Stephen Roche win the Tour de France in 1987 on a bike with downtube shifters ? Or am I wrong ?

Holyboy · 15-07-2011 04:22PM

Im a fan of down tube shifters too but for around the city they can be a pain as stated above, you could always convert it to a flat bar with some cheap levers and shifters though!

Khannie · 15-07-2011 04:24PM

I've just come from a bike with the down tube shifters. Bit of a pain in the arse to go back to it having had a taste of the brake shifters. You're right on the frequency of gear change, but that doesn't make a huge difference IMO. You just have a more steady cadence with the better shifters.

Dr.Millah · 15-07-2011 04:27PM

Ive been using non-indexed DT shifters on my bike up in dublin the last few months and have no problems with them anymore and dont mind them at all.

langdang · 15-07-2011 04:30PM

They're still for sale new (it was surprising to me anyway!), Dawes do one with downtube shifters
http://www.dawescycles.com/p-439-giro-200.aspx

funkyjebus · 15-07-2011 06:24PM

Buy a set of second hand sora shifters and convert it. Id say 70 euro all in all should do it. You just need cable stops (10e) new cables (5e) and sti shifters. Do you know what speed it is?

cdaly_ · 15-07-2011 08:09PM

I moved my downtube shifters on my old bike up to the stem. Much more accessible...

Moreofthatjazz · 15-07-2011 08:45PM

down tube shifters are still popular with them's that likes to tour, either those or bar end shifters for simplicity and ease of replacement... don't think i would go back to them myself though i do have a pub-bike with them on and always carry a non-indexed on the touring rig in case of a crash fecking up the ergo...

doozerie · 15-07-2011 09:28PM

Given the choice I'd go with integrated levers because of their convenience to use, however downtube shifters are fine. The biggest disadvantage of downtube shifters is that taking a hand off the bars to change gear isn't always desirable/possible to do in certain road conditions (slippery, bumpy, etc.), but otherwise I always found them fine. Changing back and forth between bikes that have the two types of gears though is a right pain because you can find your hands looking for the levers in the wrong place.

granda · 15-07-2011 11:36PM

i have just changed over from downtube shifters to sti's on my old steel bike and have found its easier to be in the right gear at the right time especially in traffic or when you are having to brake suddenly but still find myself reaching down to change gear given the choice i would have sti's simply for the safety feeling they give for changing gear unexpedently with both hands on the bars. if you want to lose the d.t. shifters have some patience and look on ebay ,adverts.ie and the cycling adds here and you can pick up a bargain ,my set(cassette shifters front and rear mech was only €150) so keep the d.t. shifters till you get sti,s and enjoy the bike

nomdeboardie · 17-07-2011 03:03PM

Commiserations on your loss, OP :mad: – I had a bike stolen a couple of years ago (one of many over the years), but in my case it was an old one (17 years) with DT shifters and I ended up replacing it with a “modern” machine with 105 STIs. I was looking forward to using new type, but wasn’t completely bowled over by their advantages over the DT setup:
(1) Although my old bike had a hodgepodge of probably lowish-quality components with indexing problems, shifting actually felt smoother to me in a way.
(2) I could shift past any number of gears both up and down in one movement from the DT, whereas with the STIs I can only click up one at a time, and while it allows 2 and 3-shifts doing down, I have less feel for what I’m doing .
(3) With the DT mount, I could manipulate both shifters with the same hand, which was handy on the odd occasions that I was carrying a small bag or something against the handlebar in one of my hands, so only had one hand free.

Gear Shifters on the down tube

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