I need to replace the 7 speed shifters on my bike and want to know what to replace them with?, I am going to stay with 7 speed so which ones are best, combined gear/brake or single?
any help would br much appreciated

Mat

 

when i was into my biking, Shimano XTR gear was always the kit to have. these were/are always seperate from the brake levers

 

XTR is the of the Shimano is best but heavier due to being metal.

XT is fine and lighter

 

ya gonna strugle to get any decent 7 speed shifters theses days tbh, i was trying to get some decent 8 speed jobys and i came up to a dead end


ive got a set of XT combined brake/gear levers that are 7 speed, there off me kona Explisive, ive not really used em and the bikes been in boxes since 1998

think there 1994 shifters but there not V brake compatible but if ya not got V brakes there perfect

depends on the age of the bike though

 

try www.chainreactioncycles.co.uk they may have an stx right hand shifter
as for combined i have never liked them so i steer well clear

hth

 

ryan the weight difference is sooooo small that that argument is pointless

then finish on XT seems to be nicer for some reason, all my bikes are XTR or equvelent non shimano on parts but tbh i prefer the XT finish

but the ratios where better on the XTR range and the gear shifters used to be the only ones to shift more than 1 gear oer push ( would change 4 gears per push for racing cross country where as XT used to have to click for ever )

also the most robust ive seen are LX but the gearing on it is soooo crap and the levers again do not change more than 1 gear ( xt now change 3 at a push)

ive also got a brand new XTR 9 speed lever as i was toying with going 9 speed cause i cant find XTR levers in 8 speed at all, only found XT

the amount of bike junk ive got is stupid

but i was sooooo into it back when i was a kid, was fun racing though


but ya just get old and cant be bothered anymore

i still wanna open a bike shop but i would have to sell the cossie to do it

maybe i will next year

 

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/M...px?ModelID=189

htere u go

 

have you weighed a complete XTR set compared to XT, there's quite a difference when you include chain sets, shiters, brakes, etc etc.

Either way after a few years of use i went away from Shimano and used Hydraulic brakes and seperate shifters and chain sets with Gary Fisher Hubs

 

i used to race in the nambs downhill and everything i could get to trials

my downhill rod had xtr kit wi the reverse pull so went down kicker than it went up

and my trials bike had special edtion sram 9.0 stars and stripes box set should have cost me Ł250 but it didn't lol

 

btw sram 9.o is direct 1:1 grip shift

 

i hate the stupid gear numbers on the levers


again stx changes 1 at a time and you can gat a pair from halfords for 29.99 as before i quit i had 3 sets in stock

i hate them levers though

boost mad the combined where actually very good but it was only in place so ya had to use shimano stuff

the think about shimano stuff its the best made, best feel and the most robust stuff about

shame the best ideas they get are there to not allow others to beable to use what ever stuff they want

 

ryan what hydrolics ya use, ive got a hope front and magura julie on the rear at the moment but i still prefer my magura HS11 brakes ive had for years

but then ive also taken off my gripshift and replaced em and gone back to my suntour XC pro shifters

i seem to be going back in time for some reason

 

i got magura hs33 on my trials bike and a hope mono6ti on rear and nothing on front of my dh bike at the mo

 

i use to use xtr v's on the trials bike and hope c2's on the d/h rig

 

cool

what do ya prefer though as far as feel ect with the brakes, as i really prefer me hs11's than the hopes as the lever on em is shite

the julie lever is ok but the brakes ive found are crap when being used properly

the general maguras seem to be fine though

 

yeah i like the V brakes, only the pivot ones though !!!!!

fooking dream to set up and work ther best in summer dusty tyope terrain

but the thing i hate is they aint the best for fit and forget as ya gotta keep tweeking em and also there crap in mud


much much lighter idea to hydrolic brakes though

 

[quote="b19bal"]cool

what do ya prefer though as far as feel ect with the brakes, as i really prefer me hs11's than the hopes as the lever on em is shite

quote]

Tried mono mini's, they fuck magura rim brakes in the ass in all ways, especially feel, I swapped last year and will never go back

 

i got a mono mini on me bike, that has a good feeling lever but the pistons never stay centered , the levers are totally totally shite

apart from that as far as working under stress goes there the tits , jsut the lever is wearing out

 

Pollocks - you use a Hope C2 on a downhill bike?!!!

I used to have the closed 2's on my XC bike and on long descents they'd be such a pain in the arse. For those that dont know the strength of the C2 is being able to adjsut the sensitivity of the brake via a knurled top dial. However the downside is that as the fluid heats up under hard braking and expands pushing the pads into contact with the disc more and more unless you take your hands off the bars and dial the brake out a bit. Either you're not using the brakes very much and I'm jsut a downhill chicken or you'd benefit from the open 4's instead.

Incidently I moved from Closed 4's on the front, and C2's on the rear to the new mini mono's (2 pot front and rear) definetly more powerful but less progression and the discs warp sooooo easily. My new bike came with XT disc brakes and altho not as powerful as the hopes they have better feel.

 

the lever feels spot on, shame they do fade more

 

I use the HS33, not bad brake at all for money.

 

ryan i soooooooo agree with ya

shame they weigh more than a car

what frame/ forks ya got , never knew you was in to all that , when i get mine built up ( fook knows when ) i wanna ride around near you way

make a proper day of it

no possers though !!!!!!





thats my job

oh and heres as far as i got with my bike im building


need to work harder

 

i run RS SID 100's & a trek ZR 9000 Frame

Have been out of it for a few years but still go for rides when i can.

 

same here , not been on a proper ride for over 5 years, just spend most me time testing others bikes out

im gonna get back into it though !!!

 

same here , not been on a proper ride for over 5 years, just spend most me time testing others bikes out

im gonna get back into it though !!!

 

I rode 15miles with a total ascent of over 2700ft yesterday Coming down was jsut awesome, didnt crash for once either! LOL!

 

crashing is awesome, especially when your just out having a laugh in some woods or something, hurtling towards a nice FAT oak tree at 30+mph

STOP!

BAIL TIME!


doooo doodooo doooo- doooo dooo

CANT TOUCH THIS

 

there was a customer of mine was talking about his off road adventures and crashing at 35mph dpwn hill ( which is fooking fast as most people dont get to 25mph )

anyway i was talking about my collar bone being broke and how much pain it was and how it hurt more when i cried ( yes im a pussy but unless ya brake ya collor bone ya cant even belive the pain it is, try that in a forrest before the invented the mobile phone and waiting for a mate to ride off for help then get back to me !!!! )

anyway he was saying about his 35mph slowish crash, i listend and nodded as i just sold him a set of wheels and i built em for him so i allowed his talking and let him talk his shite while i nod

he then takes off his top and shows me his scar adn his shoulder


THE FUCKING BONE IS STICKING OUT OF THE TOP OF HIS SHOULDER UNDER HIS SKIN !!!!!!!!!, it was likema chiken bone from KFC was stuck there, he was saying they gotta break it again to reset it

i was almost sick, anyway he came ina few weeks later happy with my work ( for once i get a happy customer ) and invites me to the alps for a single track down hill as a guys pulled out and i just gotta sort the flght and im there



i declined as i aint gonna have a chance to keep up with him and hes obviously mental to keep doing it as a hobby when its actually deformed him

 

there was a customer of mine was talking about his off road adventures and crashing at 35mph dpwn hill ( which is fooking fast as most people dont get to 25mph )

anyway i was talking about my collar bone being broke and how much pain it was and how it hurt more when i cried ( yes im a pussy but unless ya brake ya collor bone ya cant even belive the pain it is, try that in a forrest before the invented the mobile phone and waiting for a mate to ride off for help then get back to me !!!! )

anyway he was saying about his 35mph slowish crash, i listend and nodded as i just sold him a set of wheels and i built em for him so i allowed his talking and let him talk his shite while i nod

he then takes off his top and shows me his scar adn his shoulder


THE FUCKING BONE IS STICKING OUT OF THE TOP OF HIS SHOULDER UNDER HIS SKIN !!!!!!!!!, it was likema chiken bone from KFC was stuck there, he was saying they gotta break it again to reset it

i was almost sick, anyway he came ina few weeks later happy with my work ( for once i get a happy customer ) and invites me to the alps for a single track down hill as a guys pulled out and i just gotta sort the flght and im there



i declined as i aint gonna have a chance to keep up with him and hes obviously mental to keep doing it as a hobby when its actually deformed him

 

there was a customer of mine was talking about his off road adventures and crashing at 35mph dpwn hill ( which is fooking fast as most people dont get to 25mph )

anyway i was talking about my collar bone being broke and how much pain it was and how it hurt more when i cried ( yes im a pussy but unless ya brake ya collor bone ya cant even belive the pain it is, try that in a forrest before the invented the mobile phone and waiting for a mate to ride off for help then get back to me !!!! )

anyway he was saying about his 35mph slowish crash, i listend and nodded as i just sold him a set of wheels and i built em for him so i allowed his talking and let him talk his shite while i nod

he then takes off his top and shows me his scar adn his shoulder


THE FUCKING BONE IS STICKING OUT OF THE TOP OF HIS SHOULDER UNDER HIS SKIN !!!!!!!!!, it was likema chiken bone from KFC was stuck there, he was saying they gotta break it again to reset it

i was almost sick, anyway he came ina few weeks later happy with my work ( for once i get a happy customer ) and invites me to the alps for a single track down hill as a guys pulled out and i just gotta sort the flght and im there



i declined as i aint gonna have a chance to keep up with him and hes obviously mental to keep doing it as a hobby when its actually deformed him

 

Just like mine only they declined to break and reset it It fucking hurts like a bastard in the cold weather...took me a while to get back in the saddle again but i'm now doing lots of miles on my lovely new Santa Cruz Heckler...fox pro pedal rear shock, zocchi All Mountain 2's, hope hubs/mono mini's SRAM rocket shifters ( with shimano 2:1 cable pull ) and XT cranks/mechs, finished with EA50/DMR/Mavic bits. It eases my pain no end

ps. To ease fade on discs try the sintered bronze pads

 

As this has turned into a general MTB chat, I am seriously considering selling my Pace RC200 F2. What do you guys think I could get for it. I know what I want for it, but I have built in a premium for it being the last of the square seat tubed versions and coz its generally a class bike

The other bits n bobs are pretty shite compared to todays xtr stuff. But its certainly a retro classic

 

Get some Deore LX stuff LOL Thats what my old Marin Rockyridge had on it.

I thought XTR has been superceeded now??

Shame i cant actually ride an exercise bike, let alone a mountain bike LOL

 

If you don't mind the retro style and can find them, the old Deore XT thumbshifters are about as good as you can get. Used mine for years before changing to an XTR set up.

 

I second that too....had a pair for nearly 10 years....used on 6 7 and 8 speed bikes! Indestructible

 

XTR is the best on the market to be honest if you want lighter youll have to go for the shimano dura-race which is what are used on road bikes but not much differnt to XTR. and it lasts a long time im still using the XTR cassette i bought for my downhill bike 5 years ago. but it depends on what you'll be using the bike for as XTR is for race bikes and is feckin expensive too.

i dont think u got any chance of getting 7 speed tho. even 8 these days is a hassle to get hold of. 9 speed is the way.

 

Anyway MATCOS clearly doesnt wanna use XT/XTR etc as he doesnt seem that serious and it is fucking expensive..so back in the real world...i'd nip in your local bikeshop...a proper one not halfrauds and see what they have lying around, i'm sure they'll sort you something

 

u want deore or LX if they still make it. i think Lx comes with 8 speed too

 

went for some cheap stx jobbies, as above I am not seriously into it and just wanted something half decent-cheers for the link Boost Mad
sounds like a good hobby to get into though and a few of you seem well into it, I will upgrade if I get more seriously into it
cheers everyone

Mat

 

hey mate i used to run the bike hut section of halfords and i promise ya not all the staff and ignorant tossers, i also used to manage a cycle shop when i was 16 years old too

the DX or XT shifters where shit hot, had a silent shift to allow em to be 8 speed and they never went wrong, ive got 2 sets of the XT shifters adn 1 set of the DX as i used them before i got the sunotour XC pro thumb shifters


as for pauls question about his pace, ill give ya 40 quid for the frame and forks mate
on a serious note wack it on ebay and they fetch top money on thre as as there a top part of the mountain bike scene !!!!!, i always wanted one as ya know and even mint source rode one !!!!!!!


lush bike, think its time for a "show us ya bikes" section now