With the understanding that you and I are probably alone in this thread ...
Let me assure you that I am all too aware that there is a HUGE difference in cost between DIY and having the LBS perform the labor ...
IMO, everyone EXCEPT for surgeons (medical & dental), dental hygenists, hand models, people with arthritis AND (I will now add the filthy rich) should (consider) do(ing) their own wrenching unless they don't mind trips to their LBS and/or not having their bike to ride for a few days.
Regardless, if you wade through what may be excessive verbiage, I did include an allowance of roughly $50 for non-bicycle tools which was my inferrence that the OP would not be taking the bike to a shop for the labor.
YOUR inclusion of the link which detailed how to replace cartridge hub bearings BOTH indicated that it could be readily done and inferred that the OP could (probably) do it as a DIY endeavor.
MICROSHIFT. Several months ago, because
I am an inquiring mind, I finally bought a new pair of 9-speed MicroShift shifters (via eBay) + (separately) a 9-speed Microshift rear derailleur ... BOTH are Shimano compatible/interchangeable ...
I still have NOT put them on a bike, but I will say that my assessment is that if I were not a Campagnolo
aficianodo that I would not hesitate to use them on a bike ... on my "regular" bike ...
The rear derailleur is probably comparable to a
105 rear derailleur (
the pulleys have bushings) ...
There are TWO (
?!?) glaring problems which I encountered when attempting to disassemble the rear derailleur for assessment ...
I know that I will want to change the pulleys at some time in the future. I was only able to remove ONE of the pulley bolts without any difficulty ... however, the other's receiving hex began to round out when I neeed to exert more-than-usual force ... that means, that at some point in time I will have to drill out the bolt's head & use a pair of vise-grips to remove the bolt.
This is more of a nuisance than a problem.
However, "ditto" for the recessed bolt which secures the cage to the front knuckle ...
It's as if someone at the factory put a drop of
superglue in the threads rather than
loctite ...
Maybe they did!?!
The two
too-tight bolts may be a hit-and-miss situation from unit to unit, but it means that if anything ever happens to the cage which warrants replacement then my MicroShift rear derailleur is trash ... and of course, it is a reflection on the assembly.
Otherwise, the particular MicrosShift rear derailleur appears to be a solidly built unit which should probably last as long as any Shimano rear derailleur with the fore mentioned deficiencies ...
As far as the shifters, without knowing their expected-or-intended longevity OR being able to predict how long they will last when compared with a pair of
105 shifters (
I will suggest that they are comparable to 105 shifters based on the rear derailleur), I will say that
I like them ...
The throw of the inner paddle to move the chain to a larger Cog is comparable to that of most shifters ... but, I would describe that the motion of the lever to move the chain back to a smaller Cog is akin to pressing a key on a keyboard ... a very short & decisive "click" ... in retrospect, I guess that the short (
i.e., comparatively "micro") shift is where the name came from!
The obvious (
?) place where there is a difference in the "quality" of the construction is in the shifter's escape sprocket. The sprocket in both Campagnolo & Shimano shifters is forged & (presumably) lightly machined ... on the other hand, the escape sprocket in the MicroShift shifter is stamped from an unknown grade of steel ...
Regardless, because all non-Shimano shifters lack the "dwell" that I have previously disdained which is one of the hallmarks of Shimano shifters BUT the MicroShift shifter is compatible, I would definitely choose it if I only had one bike and were not using Campagnolo shifters.
BTW. I've said it innumerable times -- if I had not realized that my Campagnolo shifters could handle downshifting to a larger Cog when the drivetrain was under a load, I would have switched back to What's-not-to-love-about-them? downtube shifters on my Shimano equipped bikes.
The short throw on the MicroShift shifter to release the escape mechanism is vastly shorter than the throw on Shimano's inner paddle AND also on Campagnolo's PowerShift thumb lever (
which is fairly minimal) ...
MicroShift's return lever is obviously much more efficient than the nonetheless-elegant Double Tap's required motion to execute the return shift.
IMO, the only advantage which SRAM shifters had over Shimano shifters was the lack of "dwell" in its takeup spool ...
The derailleur cables exit the 9-speed MicroShift shifters in the manner of the first three generations of Shimano shifters.
The ergonomics are akin to those on the pair of Ultegra 6600 shifters which I have wihch are collecting dust -- very comfortable for my hand size ... but, that's subjective.
AFAIK, the MicroShift front shifter can handle a Triple ... the SRAM shifter is unnecessarily hobbled & only capable of handling a Double (
of course, THAT is not a problem for most riders & their bike configurations) ...
The bottom line is that for people who can't wrap their minds around using Campagnolo shifters with Shimano derailleurs to overcome the dodgy shifting which sometimes occurs when a mechanical Shimano drivetrain is under a load due to the "dwell" designed in Shimano's STI shifters, I think that the MicroShift shifters will probably be a very good alternative.