Downtube shifters, thumbs up or thumbs down?



Myosmith

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Apr 27, 2011
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I'm considering buying a 1990s aluminum Trek 1400 road bike that has downtube shifters. I've never had downtube shifters before, the closest being the stem shifters on my Schwinn 10-speed when I was 15 (long time ago). I'm not a competitive rider. I ride primarily for recreation and fitness as well as occassional group and charity rides.

I have two questions:

1) Does anyone have information or opinions on the Trek 1400s from the early 1990s? It is all aluminum with Shimano 105 component group.

2) Are downtube shifters an hinderance or hazard for non-competitive riding? Is taking a hand off the bar to shift a problem?

Thanks
 
I had a Trek 1400 and just sold it earlier this year for $160. Mine was very clean and that might have been a low price as I got a lot of responses on Craig's list. It was all original except I added a $25 saddle. I had disassembled, cleaned and greased all bearings and everything was adjusted as perfectly as I could get them.

I think it was a nice bike but did not fit me too well. I bought it used about 10 years ago for $100 and didn't know much about bikes at the time. The components were quite good and it worked well. The brakes were very good. The gearing does not go that low - best I recall the small chain ring is a 42 and the largest rear cog was 23 teeth. I felt the ride was kind of harsh and it was a short length frame that had significant toe overlap. (Just be careful when pedaling on very low speed extremely tight turning.) My frame was about a 52CM size The short frame and geometry made the steering very quick.

I could use the down tube shifters but much prefer using integrated brake/shifters now that I have them. I shift much more frequently with "brifters" and prefer the security of not having to reach down to the shifters. But what really matters is if you don't mind using downtube shifters.
 
Downtube shifters aren't really a hindrance. If a person want to nit pick, that person could say that safety is slightly compromised each time your remove a hand from the handlebars, but you do that anyway grabbing a water bottle. That takes care of that concern. Downtube shifters are certainly functional. A bonus is that indexed downtube shifters can be shifted in either indexed or friction mode. Friction mode does give you on-the-fly fine derailleur adjustment. I'd never go back to them after having used integrated shifters. I think able to shift with hands on bars at the same time is über convenient. It comes to personal preference.

If it helps, you can always upgrade later to an integrated shifting system. That can be done pretty inexpensively on eBay or by being cost choosy about what parts you select. If the bike you're looking at is priced right (i.e. inexpensive enough) and is in good condition, it could be a good deal. You'll likely learn what you like or don't like in a road bike. A couple hundred dollars (this assumes the bike price is in that range) isn't a lot to cry over if you find the bike just doesn't work for you, and you can turn around and sell it to make some back.

BTW, in during El Tour de Tucson I saw more than handful of riders using downtube shifters.....and there were well over 6000 riders, often in very close quarters.
 
I used downtube shifters for years but Id never go back to them./img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif
 
My first (previous) bike had stem shifters, but early this year I bought a bike from the modern era. Brifters rock. It would be tough for me to go back to anything else for my main bike. With a 10-speed rear and the convenience of just a flick of the fingers to change gears, I'm always in the right gear. I thought I would have a bit of a learning curve getting used to them, but it was literally just minutes to adapt to using the brifters.

Jason
 
FWIW here are some photos of my old 1400. I kept the original wheels and put these on it when I sold it.







 
Originally Posted by Myosmith .

2) Are downtube shifters an hinderance or hazard for non-competitive riding? Is taking a hand off the bar to shift a problem?
I have a 1980's bike with friction downtube shifters. I never had problems with using them - shifting never seemed to increase riding danger. I have a 2010 bike with 2008 Campy brifters Same with them - no problems.

Personally I like downtube shifters better. There is less to go wrong. Easier to adjust - there is never a need to.
 
It is all a matter of personal preference as you can see from the responses so far. I have one bike with brifters and several others with DT shifters. They all work great and I have no problem going from one to the other and I cannot really say that I prefer one over the other. I just depends upon what I feel like riding on a given day. DT shifters are simple as long as you don't take them apart or spray lube into them. I have only seen a couple of cases where they plain wore out. They are usually fairly inexpensive on eBay if you need to replace them.

Brifters are not as inexpensive to replace, but usually will not break the bank if you shop around for them. Brifters also have longer more complicated cable runs but that is not a big deal unless you want to replace the cable housings.

There is no real concern for safety with DT shifters. Before brifters, 90% of derailluer shift bikes used DT shifters and there were no more crashes than there are now.
 
Downtube shifters are just part of the experience of riding a 20- or 30- or 40-year old bike. Sort of like driving a car with a manual transmission, or, better yet, manual transmission without syncro. At the time they were better than most of the alternatives.
 
My last bike had them and they worked quite well. They were of the friction style, the bike predated index shifting by a year or so. I was okay with them when I first got the bike but then took about 20 years off from riding and when I starting again I'm not as good as I used to be (which isn't saying a whole lot) so I had bar end shifters installed and it's one of the best things I did to that bike in the way of upgrades. I also upgraded to index shifting and other things as well but the bar ends were the best change.
If you're comfortable with down tube shifters they're great and with the short cable they are quite precise.
Good luck! Great riding!
 
I have downtube shifters on my '87 Trek 400, and I like them just fine. I love the "old school" appeal mostly. Aside from occasionally overshifting and dropping the chain, there really are no serious issues I have with them. I have no safety concerns when I ride it since I don't have to take my eyes off the road to shift. Sure, you have to take a hand off the handlebar, but you have to do that when you pull out your water bottle too, so that's not an issue at all either. And remember, amateurs and pros alike used them for decades before integrated shifters hit the market. Have fun as ride safe!
 
Downtube shifter road bikes are all I've ever owned so far, maybe I'll own a bike that has brifters some day......
 
Originally Posted by 64Paramount .

Downtube shifter road bikes are all I've ever owned so far, maybe I'll own a bike that has brifters some day......
The cycling terminology police might hunt you down for saying "brifter." /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif
 
I've used down tube shifters for 40 years and love it, their simple to fix and cheap to replace, try figuring out how much one Dura Ace Briftor will cost you, ok fine, look the cost of one Ultegra briftor. I bought my 07 Mercian Vincitore and request that Mercian use bar end shifters because I was going to use the bike for touring, and you know what they said to me when they knew I wasn't going to use briftors? It was an excellent choice because far more trouble free and if in the remote chance one was to break you could fix yourself on the road.

Now answer your question, no their not more hazardous to use then briftors especially after you used it for awhile. BUT, if your the type of person who can't ride a bike, grab your water bottle, and drink it, then put it back without stopping or coasting because you're afraid of falling or weaving into traffic then down tube shifters may not be the idea choice for you.

So it boils down to, can you balance your bike, and do want something more cost effective and easier to work on?
 
I have a bike with STI and one with downtubes (indexed). I prefer the STI but just barely. On twisty downhills, I feel a little antsy letting go of the bar. Pros of DT: you can run across the cassette with a one movement, less housing friction.
 

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