Thoughts from a shifty luddite

[slide]

Does anyone have this problem of really shifting gears too much. To cure myself of this bad habit I'm building up my Karate Monkey as a friction shifter.

[tryandgetme]

to REALLY remove that habit, you should make that karate monkey a zero-shifter

[AM Radio]

No more, no more bad cows..
15134
take warning...
pick it up

[stump ss]

friction is the jam. i have my xtracycle set up with 8speed in the back and single ring up front, a $12 friction shifter runs the whole thing. you can commute with one speed, but it would be harder to commute with one speed if you're also carrying 50 pounds of groceries and dog food up hills:p

anyway rivendell sells cheap friction shifters. i also run friction on my high-zoot BREW (http://www.brewracingframes.com), it kills people to see a $2k bike with friction (there i'm running Paul thumbies with ultegra bar-end shifters mounted) but I *never* miss a shift and I like being weird (and right, of course).

and then of course my other bikes only have one speed. so no missed shifts there either :)

[DirtRagArt]

I shift a lot on my geared bikes, not at all on my singlespeeds.

[Spalls]

Not having index shifting on one of my pavement bikes convinced me to convert the other one to a singlespeed. Friction shifters: one less thing to go out of whack. Suggestion: having used both really cheap ones and really good ones, get the good ones.

[slide]

friction is the jam. i have my xtracycle set up with 8speed in the back and single ring up front, a $12 friction shifter runs the whole thing. you can commute with one speed, but it would be harder to commute with one speed if you're also carrying 50 pounds of groceries and dog food up hills:p

anyway rivendell sells cheap friction shifters. i also run friction on my high-zoot BREW (http://www.brewracingframes.com), it kills people to see a $2k bike with friction (there i'm running Paul thumbies with ultegra bar-end shifters mounted) but I *never* miss a shift and I like being weird (and right, of course).

and then of course my other bikes only have one speed. so no missed shifts there either :)

I'll probably be an odd duck and go with Paulies Thumbshifters.

[buskertype]

I think the most reliable shifters I've ever used were the indexed downtube shifters (Suntour!!) on my old giant road bike. Why did I sell that bike anyway??? I can't remember right now.

[brianofdoom]

I shift a lot on my geared bikes, not at all on my singlespeeds.

people who never shift on a geared bike piss me off, because if you have to have gears and a derailler and a bouncy chain, you might as well use it to its fullest.

people who shift on a singlespeed piss me off, because they must be witches.

[rockyrider]

people who shift on a singlespeed piss me off, because they must be witches.or they just toss a lot of chains...

[sjsielen]

during last years bike bike convention here in milwaukee, there was someone who rode up here from chicago (about 100 miles) on a tall bike. towards the end of the week about 12 of us took a group ride to the kettle moraine state forest about 65 miles away. while riding near the dude on the tall bike i saw him use the pertruding sole on his doc martin looking boot to lift the chain from the smaller chain ring to the larger one - on a tall bike i remind you. so all this talk about fancy schmancy friction shifters... come on now.. use your boot .. but who am i to say this when i use stx rc trigger shifters on my commuter and x9 on my trail bike

[nogearshere]

Does anyone have this problem of really shifting gears too much. To cure myself of this bad habit I'm building up my Karate Monkey as a friction shifter.

i shift frantically and frequently on the road bike...

what the hell is all that crap for if not shifting?

[slide]

I got used to the rapid fire shifters with a Rockhopper, but just could'nt get just the right gear.

I solved this problem by getting in shape and a more creative use of the front derrailer. Now my problem is that I can go 20 or
30 miles on the Karate Monkey and not get tired at all. So I don't get as much "bang" for my fitness buck.

I'm contemplating putting weights on my bike and letting out some of the air in the tires.

[cMc]

I run a friction front d. (SRAM grip) on my Chameleon. It's very reliabile and never needs tinkering.

But like the others said, why not shift if you're carrying all that crap with you? Go SS if you're really feelin' luddite. :cool:

[mimbresman]

I've noticed this the last few times riding road in the USA...
My 1992 Bridgestone RB-2 is all original, meaning it has 7-speed and downtube levers. When riding road with others, they're all equipped with 9 or 10 speed STI-type shifting. I've noticed they shift a lot more than me (gear selection and ease of shifting due to location of the shifter). I change gears plenty, but don't have those in-between-ratios they have, so I just have to deal with what I have.
I like my bike and don't plan on getting another for awhile (since I only get to ride it a few times a year). However, I would like a lighter set of wheels for it.

[LeeMcGough]

"My 1992 Bridgestone RB-2 is all original, meaning it has 7-speed and downtube levers."
I have an old steel Marin road bike, and it is only a 7spd rear end, with down tube friction shifters too, and I love the way it shifts. Much better than anything else I ride. Can't imagine reaching for downtube shifters on a trail though:rolleyes:

[tryandgetme]

On my road bike before I fixied it, I mounted my downtube shifters on my right handlebar. One lever above, one lever below. Thumbs and pointer fingers moved it. That'd probably work ok on the trail. The far ends of the shifting range were a little on the hard side to reach though.

[Happy Turtle]

I remain a fan of downtube friction shifters. I have early-80s campy levers with 2 rings up front and 8 cogs in the back. It works great.

[Scott G.]

Does anyone have this problem of really shifting gears too much. To cure myself of this bad habit I'm building up my Karate Monkey as a friction shifter.

On a geared bike you shift your gears; on a fixie or single speed you shift your ass.

Not much of a difference:rolleyes:

[bigpedaler]

y'all can just have a good time not shifting, or going retro w/ friction -- i'll run my sram x.7's & x.9's until they just fall apart, then buy more! i may only shift through 2-3 gears on my commute, and 4-5 on my 'epic' rides, but it sure is nice to have the options! i'm not as young as i used to be, and i'll never be as light as i used to be (i plan on riding 'til i can't, which i figure will be about 90ish, but i love eating too much -- i told a bud the only way i'll ever get under 200 is the Lance plan {the big C}). so i'll shift to my heart's content, and if we ride together at any time, you ride yours and i'll ride mine. we'll still be riding, and that's the important thing!

[slide]

Is this the part were I bring up this milkcrate I've been eyeballing to put on the back of my Monkey?
What do you think scuffed red or aged black?

[bigpedaler]

Is this the part were I bring up this milkcrate I've been eyeballing to put on the back of my Monkey?
What do you think scuffed red or aged black?

if you're attaching it to a homemade wood frame pannier/rack, then go black; if it's going on a store-bought unit, use the red and steel-wool the worst of the scuffs. but always -- ALWAYS -- use black 'fender' washers when bolting it down.