Shimano parts

Chris said:

Greetings,

One of the springs in my ST-EF29-8 Acera STI shifter (right side) has
gone twang. I've done some googling, but I only seem to be able to find
places willing to sell me a replacement unit with a £400+ bike attached.

Is it actually possible to buy replacement units (or better still, just
the parts such as a spring)? If so, has anyone got any good ideas as to
where?

I've never seen the spring alone, but the shifters come up regularly
on eBay. (I bought some Acera [censored] recently off eBay as a pair,
but there were single left or right ones being sold too).

--
jc

Chris said:

Greetings,

One of the springs in my ST-EF29-8 Acera STI shifter (right side) has
gone twang. I've done some googling, but I only seem to be able to find
places willing to sell me a replacement unit with a £400+ bike attached.

Is it actually possible to buy replacement units (or better still, just
the parts such as a spring)? If so, has anyone got any good ideas as to
where?

Cheers

--
Chris

Shimano shifter internals are not servicable due to lack of parts.
Shifters are usually sold in pairs, but some wholesalers (usually those
with an assemblyline in their backyard) sell left and right separate.
I'd expect a cheap Shimano 8 speed to retail at around 12-20 ukp
---
Marten Gerritsen

INFOapestaartjeM-GINEERINGpuntNL
www.m-gineering.nl

Chris said:

One of the springs in my ST-EF29-8 Acera STI shifter (right side) has
gone twang. I've done some googling, but I only seem to be able to find
places willing to sell me a replacement unit with a £400+ bike attached.

Is it actually possible to buy replacement units (or better still, just
the parts such as a spring)? If so, has anyone got any good ideas as to
where?

Welcome to the world of instant obsolesence of Shimano STI units.
The only way to get another is to find a shop that has another ruined
one for spares, which I would think is doubtful.
Parker International keeps new STI units in, and may have just the right
hand one for sale, or ebay may be good.

For future proof shifting, get Campagnolo components - they do sell the
smallest part as a separate piece, and they sell the bits to upgrade 8
speed to 10 speed or vice-versa.
Their prices are on a par with Shimano as well, and may even be cheaper
for the low-end range - and after having a quick look at their site,
Campag Xenon 9 speed shifters are £38 a pair, Shimano Sora 8 speed are
£68.
If you go the Campag route, you'll also need a new rear mech, and a 9
speed cassette (buy a shimano compatible cassette to fit your wheel -
they nearly always work well with the campag shifting).Rear mechs are
£20, and cassettes are ~£20 + a chain at £10, so it may be worthwhile
doing an upgrade to 9 speed now for not a great deal more than the cost
of a new pair of shimano shifters. - around £90 total to go from 8 to 9
speed, with new cassette/chain/shifters/rear mech.
The front mech will work fine with the campag shifters.
Alan.

--
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