If you have any questions, please use the BikeGremlin forum (I try to respond to every comment, but UA-cam sucks at notifications, especially when it comes to any follow-up questions): www.bikegremlin.net/ Relja
Good video, I rode with down tube and bar-con shifters from 1975 to the nineties. Then went with the crowd. But you are correct they are the lightest and most durable and easy to use when you become skilled with them.
Another great video with useful and clear information. As tough as it must be to source parts when in Serbia I think it shows that a bit of knowledge and thinking outside of the box can yield excellent results. Thanks for your hard work!
Sunt foarte impresionat de cunostintele tale mecanice ,filmarile si postarile tale sunt foarte folositoare pentru biciclistii pasionati din toata lumea,esti de mare folos pentru noi imi permit sa-ti multumesc in numele tuturor ...am invatat multe de la tine si iti multumesc!
Built a bike recently chose bar end shifters on drop gravel bars. I enjoy using them. The bike was built for a specific purpose and is perfect for the job.
Around 30 years ago I bought a new Klein road bike that had the ergo-shifters mounted on the bike because they were the latest greatest fad, rode them once, removed the housing stops that covered the down tube shifter mounts and installed down tube shifters and bob's your uncle. Still ride the bike frequently.
You're missing out on great shifting with 10s/11s/12s cassettes, the shift ramps improved shifting by miles compared to what's available for 7s and 8s, also better chains. I don't like Shimano STI's either and only use Sram STI's but even with friction shifters the shifting is so smooth and quiet, that the only problem I can see is loud modern hubs which may be too loud to shift by ear and would have to focus more on feel. However, Sram STI's are very reliable and the shift ratchet inside can be removed and serviced in like 10 minutes. They also don't have the idiotic flappy side swipe on the brake lever, that Shimano is known for.
This is a great video! There is something very cool about friction shifting.. feels like you are really riding the bike. So simple and effective. I have a downtube friction setup on a bike and looking to experiment with a bar end setup like on your Trek. Regarding the brake levers on your Trek, are they long pull levers (to suit the v-brakes)? Thanks for the great content on your channels
Thanks for the kind words. :) Bar end shifters get in the way on techical trails. My knee hits it at the worst possible monent. That frame can’t take down-tube shifters, but I’m looking for some friction road bar thumb shifters. For me, down-tube (friction) shifters are the best. Safe from damage (I fall down a lot LOL). :) Relja
@@jimk6862 The levers are standard road levers, but the calipers are "mini V-brakes" (for short pull levers). About mini-V: bike.bikegremlin.com/1402/mechanical-bicycle-brake-compatibility/#5
Thanks for the video Relja :) I'm slowly moving from index to friction, especially because friction is so much more convenient in the front and for the rear, I am not worried about what speed cassette I get. Still struggling with the rear shifts though as they sometimes end up incorrect and suddenly jump up or down - also have to pay much attention with the ear which is difficult with outside noise sometimes. I wanted to ask you - how is your experience with compatibility of older 6-7 speed downtube shifters with 8 or 9 speed cassettes? Thanks from India
Hi, The indexed 6-7 speed DT shifters won't work nicely with 8-9 speed cassettes. However, the friction shifters will. Having said that, note that the more speeds a cassette has, the more tightly packed its sprockets are. That makes it more difficult to get the shift just right using friction shifters (the problem you explained is exactly what I mean). To help with that, you can use a lower-speed cassette (8 or fewer), or you could use a rear derailleur that moves less per each gear shift. Here is a table showing how many mm different derailleurs move per one mm of cable pull: bike.bikegremlin.com/1278/bicycle-rear-derailleur-compatibility/#5 For any technical questions, I would recommend you use the BikeGremlin forum - so that answers can help anyone else with a similar problem (UA-cam is very bad when it comes to searching for comments and won't let you post pictures): www.bikegremlin.net/ Relja
My previous bike still had them. They provide precision and quickness. But reaching to the downtube for gear change is not good, especially for city riding. The ones you have on your personal bike with the gear indicator seems a good compromise.
Yes - many people seem to have problems with the DT shifters for the reason you explained. For me they are fine, even for city riding (the old bike in the video is a summer city commuter - hence the abominable hack of a rear rack on it :) ). Relja
Glad you liked it. :) My friend Srdjoni did a great work volunteering with the camera (he's a professional film director) - so a good portion of the credits go to him. :) Relja
@@BikeGremlinUS Your friend did a great job 👍 The video certainly encouraged me in my pursuit for another vintage steel frame 😊 Got one Schrøder “made in Denmark” but it’s “modern” with mavic alu wheels and a mostly pre owned campa veloce group set. As soon as the rain stops wife n I are going riding. She is on a training schedule for the Alpe dehuez (spelling) this summer. Greetings from the S coast of Sweden.
Pozdrav gledam redovno tvoj kanal i sad ima jedno pitanje imam Scott kad mjenjam brzine u 6 ili 7 ili 8 lanac preskace a u 5 brzini nista se ne desava mjenjo sam lanac zupcanike nista Hvala unaprijed
Pozdrav, Za sva tehnička pitanja najbolje pisati na bikegremlin.net forumu - kako bi odgovor koristio svima sa sličnim problemom (a i tamo je moguće postaviti i slike ako treba). Relja
You speak amazingly good English. I like the look of the thumb shifters. I don't need it to work as an index shifter. Can you recommend a pair of thumb shifters that would work with most gear systems? Thank you.
What I use (no more honest recommendation than that) is old, used (2nd hand) Shimano thumb shifters (bought on the 2nd hand parts market). For the new stuff, as far as I can see, only Microshift makes decent, metal ones nowadays. I haven't bought any for myself, but these state that they have a friction shifting option: www.microshift.com/models/sl-m10/ Relja
If you have any questions, please use the BikeGremlin forum (I try to respond to every comment, but UA-cam sucks at notifications, especially when it comes to any follow-up questions):
www.bikegremlin.net/
Relja
Good video, I rode with down tube and bar-con shifters from 1975 to the nineties. Then went with the crowd. But you are correct they are the lightest and most durable and easy to use when you become skilled with them.
Another great video with useful and clear information. As tough as it must be to source parts when in Serbia I think it shows that a bit of knowledge and thinking outside of the box can yield excellent results. Thanks for your hard work!
Thank you.
Improvisation and thinking outside the box is one of the Serbian national sports. :)
Relja
I agree with you, I rather use friction shifters, expecially for the ease of adjustment, but you have to listen for gear/chain noise.
Sunt foarte impresionat de cunostintele tale mecanice ,filmarile si postarile tale sunt foarte folositoare pentru biciclistii pasionati din toata lumea,esti de mare folos pentru noi imi permit sa-ti multumesc in numele tuturor ...am invatat multe de la tine si iti multumesc!
Great summary of friction shifters. I wish you could try Gevenalle. They are wonderful.
Thank you.
I think testing Gevenalle is just a matter of time. I'll find a way, sooner or later. :)
Relja
Built a bike recently chose bar end shifters on drop gravel bars. I enjoy using them. The bike was built for a specific purpose and is perfect for the job.
Around 30 years ago I bought a new Klein road bike that had the ergo-shifters mounted on the bike because they were the latest greatest fad, rode them once, removed the housing stops that covered the down tube shifter mounts and installed down tube shifters and bob's your uncle. Still ride the bike frequently.
Grazie.
You're missing out on great shifting with 10s/11s/12s cassettes, the shift ramps improved shifting by miles compared to what's available for 7s and 8s, also better chains. I don't like Shimano STI's either and only use Sram STI's but even with friction shifters the shifting is so smooth and quiet, that the only problem I can see is loud modern hubs which may be too loud to shift by ear and would have to focus more on feel. However, Sram STI's are very reliable and the shift ratchet inside can be removed and serviced in like 10 minutes. They also don't have the idiotic flappy side swipe on the brake lever, that Shimano is known for.
This is a great video! There is something very cool about friction shifting.. feels like you are really riding the bike. So simple and effective.
I have a downtube friction setup on a bike and looking to experiment with a bar end setup like on your Trek. Regarding the brake levers on your Trek, are they long pull levers (to suit the v-brakes)? Thanks for the great content on your channels
Thanks for the kind words. :)
Bar end shifters get in the way on techical trails. My knee hits it at the worst possible monent.
That frame can’t take down-tube shifters, but I’m looking for some friction road bar thumb shifters.
For me, down-tube (friction) shifters are the best. Safe from damage (I fall down a lot LOL). :)
Relja
@@BikeGremlinUS Yes I see what you mean. Are the brake levers long pull? Will short-pull brake levers work?
@@jimk6862 The levers are standard road levers, but the calipers are "mini V-brakes" (for short pull levers).
About mini-V:
bike.bikegremlin.com/1402/mechanical-bicycle-brake-compatibility/#5
Good video..thank you and I wish you well.
Thanks for the video Relja :) I'm slowly moving from index to friction, especially because friction is so much more convenient in the front and for the rear, I am not worried about what speed cassette I get. Still struggling with the rear shifts though as they sometimes end up incorrect and suddenly jump up or down - also have to pay much attention with the ear which is difficult with outside noise sometimes.
I wanted to ask you - how is your experience with compatibility of older 6-7 speed downtube shifters with 8 or 9 speed cassettes?
Thanks from India
Hi,
The indexed 6-7 speed DT shifters won't work nicely with 8-9 speed cassettes.
However, the friction shifters will.
Having said that, note that the more speeds a cassette has, the more tightly packed its sprockets are.
That makes it more difficult to get the shift just right using friction shifters (the problem you explained is exactly what I mean).
To help with that, you can use a lower-speed cassette (8 or fewer),
or you could use a rear derailleur that moves less per each gear shift. Here is a table showing how many mm different derailleurs move per one mm of cable pull:
bike.bikegremlin.com/1278/bicycle-rear-derailleur-compatibility/#5
For any technical questions, I would recommend you use the BikeGremlin forum - so that answers can help anyone else with a similar problem (UA-cam is very bad when it comes to searching for comments and won't let you post pictures):
www.bikegremlin.net/
Relja
My previous bike still had them. They provide precision and quickness. But reaching to the downtube for gear change is not good, especially for city riding. The ones you have on your personal bike with the gear indicator seems a good compromise.
Yes - many people seem to have problems with the DT shifters for the reason you explained.
For me they are fine, even for city riding (the old bike in the video is a summer city commuter - hence the abominable hack of a rear rack on it :) ).
Relja
This video popped up in my feed.
Subscribed.
Glad you liked it. :)
My friend Srdjoni did a great work volunteering with the camera (he's a professional film director) - so a good portion of the credits go to him. :)
Relja
@@BikeGremlinUS
Your friend did a great job 👍
The video certainly encouraged me in my pursuit for another vintage steel frame 😊 Got one Schrøder “made in Denmark” but it’s “modern” with mavic alu wheels and a mostly pre owned campa veloce group set. As soon as the rain stops wife n I are going riding. She is on a training schedule for the Alpe dehuez (spelling) this summer. Greetings from the S coast of Sweden.
Greetings from Serbia, to the land of Mats Wilander (one of my childhood favourite tennis players) and Zlatan Ibrahimović. :)
Relja
Love this video. Very cool.
Thanks man - glad to hear that. :)
Relja
Pozdrav gledam redovno tvoj kanal i sad ima jedno pitanje imam Scott kad mjenjam brzine u 6 ili 7 ili 8 lanac preskace a u 5 brzini nista se ne desava mjenjo sam lanac zupcanike nista Hvala unaprijed
Pozdrav,
Za sva tehnička pitanja najbolje pisati na bikegremlin.net forumu - kako bi odgovor koristio svima sa sličnim problemom (a i tamo je moguće postaviti i slike ako treba).
Relja
I still have my downtube shifters fr the 70 's both Campanyolo and Shimano. They last a forever.
You speak amazingly good English.
I like the look of the thumb shifters. I don't need it to work as an index shifter. Can you recommend a pair of thumb shifters that would work with most gear systems? Thank you.
What I use (no more honest recommendation than that) is old, used (2nd hand) Shimano thumb shifters (bought on the 2nd hand parts market).
For the new stuff, as far as I can see, only Microshift makes decent, metal ones nowadays. I haven't bought any for myself, but these state that they have a friction shifting option:
www.microshift.com/models/sl-m10/
Relja
@@BikeGremlinUS Thank you very much.
Friction shifting forever!