7 Speed Shifters Wearing Out

doug thomas said:

I have a ten year old Norco Alteres - a very nice drop bar hybrid with
Shimano gearing - 7 speed. My rear handle bar shifter is wearing out - It no
longer down shifts and I have to replace it.

My local lbs says that they can not replace 7 speed shifters - Does anyone
know what I can use in place of 7 speed shifter, or if something else will
work in its place for SIS shifting.

Thank you

Doug Thomas
Welland, Ontario

By "handle bar shifter" does that mean bar-end, STI, or stem mount?

7-speed Sora STIs are still available through QBP, part #LD3336. About
$120 for the set.

But before doing that, Try flushing the guts of the lever out with
WD-40. That's given many STI levers a temporary reprieve.

If you have bar-ends, just get the 8-speed ones. Their spacing is
close enough to work with 7-speed systems.

Replace the worn out shifter with a 9-speed shifter, buy an 11-32 9-speed
cassette, discard the 11t cog from the cassette, giving a 12-32, and as
9-speed cogs are more closely spaced than your existing 7-speed cogs, the
remaining 8 cogs will fit perfectly on your 7-speed hub. Your existing
7-speed rear derailleur will work perfectly when indexing with a 9-speed
cassette and shifter.

Nick

"doug thomas" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a ten year old Norco Alteres - a very nice drop bar hybrid with
Shimano gearing - 7 speed. My rear handle bar shifter is wearing out - It
no longer down shifts and I have to replace it.

My local lbs says that they can not replace 7 speed shifters - Does anyone
know what I can use in place of 7 speed shifter, or if something else will
work in its place for SIS shifting.

p.s. Chain will need replacing as well with a 9-speed chain...

"NickP" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Replace the worn out shifter with a 9-speed shifter, buy an 11-32 9-speed
cassette, discard the 11t cog from the cassette, giving a 12-32, and as
9-speed cogs are more closely spaced than your existing 7-speed cogs, the
remaining 8 cogs will fit perfectly on your 7-speed hub. Your existing
7-speed rear derailleur will work perfectly when indexing with a 9-speed
cassette and shifter.

Nick

"doug thomas" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a ten year old Norco Alteres - a very nice drop bar hybrid with
Shimano gearing - 7 speed. My rear handle bar shifter is wearing out - It
no longer down shifts and I have to replace it.

My local lbs says that they can not replace 7 speed shifters - Does
anyone know what I can use in place of 7 speed shifter, or if something
else will work in its place for SIS shifting.