Why Are Indexed Gears So Terrible?



slannmage

New Member
Jul 3, 2015
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I've had nothing but issues with them, they just break all the time, they often have problems shifting and require so much maintenance. I swear they only exist so they can have a wider price range, I also reckon they make them so cheaper ones deliberately fail.

Yet my Friction geared Bicycle has lasted me over 10 years and I haven't had to do anything with them other than change the cables due to rust and adjust the front derailleur. I'm never in fear about them not working, they shift through the gears so much faster than indexed and the only disadvantage I can see is them being on the frame.

I hate all this new stuff, it doesn't work, all made in China and it sucks.
 
I don't know who made your bike, or who sold your bike, or who maintains your bike, so a rant like this is difficult to comment on.

I assure you, though, when I ride one of my bikes, indexed, friction, or single-speed, it's just a matter of putting on my shoes, pumping up the tires, and flying out the door. That's why I ride. And I'm sure most everyone else here can report similar routines.
 
slannmage said:
I've had nothing but issues with them, they just break all the time, they often have problems shifting and require so much maintenance. I swear they only exist so they can have a wider price range, I also reckon they make them so cheaper ones deliberately fail.

Yet my Friction geared Bicycle has lasted me over 10 years and I haven't had to do anything with them other than change the cables due to rust and adjust the front derailleur. I'm never in fear about them not working, they shift through the gears so much faster than indexed and the only disadvantage I can see is them being on the frame.

I hate all this new stuff, it doesn't work, all made in China and it sucks.
HMmmmm ...

Rusty cables?

Where and/or how do you store your bike?

A well maintained bike (even bikes with Shimano or SRAM components :) ) should serve most riders well ...

The amount of effort to keep a bike well maintained is minimal, BTW.

If you have the funds, you can always buy non-Asian components.

Exactly what type of bike do you have AND what are its components AND how do you store it when you are not riding it?
 
Despite my avatar, I think that modern gearing is absolutely wonderful. As long as it is set up and maintained with care, a modern groupset will provide incredibly smooth and consistent shifting. The rate of improvement is remarkable - today's Sora equipment is far better than 105 or even Ultegra from a few years ago. I shudder at the thought of how terrible gearing used to be, before the advent of ramp-and-pin chainrings and profiled cassette sprockets. I do things that I never would have dreamed of in the old days, like shifting under heavy pedal loads and making simultaneous front and rear shifts.
 
"Why Are Indexed Gears So Terrible?"

Because they are NOT Campagnolo.



"I hate all this new stuff, it doesn't work, all made in China and it sucks."

I, for one, welcome our new Chinese overlords.



"...they shift through the gears so much faster than indexed..."

Doc, I have to disagree with you. I started on friction stuff in 1972 and spent a lot of my cycling career becoming a friction shifting god among mere mortals. There's no way in hell I could shift across 4 or 5 gears as fast or accurately as my Campy buttons and levers do.

No.
Way.
In.
Hell.

You have to be riding some poorly adjusted SRAM or shitmaNO ****. Frankly, if a fellow can swallow his pride and be seen in public on shimaNO...it works just about as well as anything else as long as it is properly installed and serviced.

Chicom materials and manufacturing tolerances 'can' be pretty crappy, but my guess is that you typed your post on a device stuffed full of Chinese components. There's good and bad in everything manufactured just about everywhere (see also: Ferrari Testa Rossa tune up labor schedule) and the Chinese-made shimaNO or SRAM stuff usually works more than just acceptably well given a few minutes with a mechanic that knows his ass from a People's Liberation Army Bicycle Factory Number 26.
 
At my location my indexed shifter cables get rusted when I go on vacation. So I changed to down tube shifters and electric shifters.