Question about old MTB STI / rapidfire levers



D

Douglas Hall

Guest
I'm asking this, because I very vaguely remember reading something about
Shimano's 7 speed rapidfire levers having and extra detent?

I've got a pair of brand-new, never used, Shimano XT brake and rapidfire
shifters - from around early 90s vintage - the push-push ones, no gear
indicator. I got them to go on a 7 speed rear (bike got stolen before I got
a chance to use them).

My current MTB has an 8 speed rear, and the rapidfire shifter has gone bad
(slips when there should be friction, cable is OK and free running, I
already "fixed" it a couple of years back by doing the whole flushing it
with WD-40 and leaving overnight, but that won't do the trick, now)., so I
was wondering if anybody remembers what I vaguely recall reading about
Shimano shifters?
 
"Douglas Hall" <[email protected]> a écrit:

> I'm asking this, because I very vaguely remember reading something
> about Shimano's 7 speed rapidfire levers having and extra detent?


Shimano XT 7-speed top-mount *thumbshifters* had an extra click. As far as I
know, none of the 7-speed RapidFire or RF+ shifters did.

James Thomson
 
On 15/06/2007 16:13, Douglas Hall said,
> I'm asking this, because I very vaguely remember reading something about
> Shimano's 7 speed rapidfire levers having and extra detent?


I'm pretty sure that Rapidfires don't have the extra click, but can it
be that hard to just try it and see?

One of my "tricks" in the late '80s was using the extra detent on
thumbies along with different cassette spacers (or were they still
freewheels then?) to add an extra few gears to bikes.

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/
 
"James Thomson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Douglas Hall" <[email protected]> a écrit:
>
>> I'm asking this, because I very vaguely remember reading something
>> about Shimano's 7 speed rapidfire levers having and extra detent?

>
> Shimano XT 7-speed top-mount *thumbshifters* had an extra click.


That could well be it.

> As far as I know, none of the 7-speed RapidFire or RF+ shifters did.


Thanks.
 
"Paul Boyd" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 15/06/2007 16:13, Douglas Hall said,
>> I'm asking this, because I very vaguely remember reading something about
>> Shimano's 7 speed rapidfire levers having and extra detent?

>
> I'm pretty sure that Rapidfires don't have the extra click, but can it be
> that hard to just try it and see?


No, I suppose not - but I thought I'd just ask in case anybody knew.

It's not really that important, but it currently has meant I've had to at
least change the front low-profile canti to a V-brake.

I bought a job lot of new Alivio levers, shifters, mechs (are Deore,
though), and V-brakes on t'ebay a while back. I also have a matching set of
current, new, Deore brake levers, and some separate, and new XT rapidfire+
shifters, that I got cheap from one of the online bike shops (might have
been wiggle).

As I'd recently found these new (but old spec) XT rapidfire combos, I kinda
wondered whether they would do, and I could go back to my front canti (I
just find them easier to adjust, seeing as that's what I spent years messing
around with).

> One of my "tricks" in the late '80s was using the extra detent on thumbies
> along with different cassette spacers (or were they still freewheels
> then?) to add an extra few gears to bikes.


I remember when rapidfire and gripshift had been prevalent for a few years,
and there was almost a retro craze in going back to the old thumb shifters.
Have to say, seeing as though I broke on rapidfire (original DX one from
around '92) and my 95/96 LX one is toast, now, I think thumbies were pretty
good - and you could switch to friction if you'd bashed or knocked your rear
mech out of whack whilst off in the wilds.