Silver thumbshifters

[Joe Bernard]

Seemingly without notice, these appeared on Rivbike.

 

http://www.rivbike.com/product-p/sh5.htm

 

Joe Bernard

Fairfield, CA.

[SamuelJames]

Am I missing something about these?  When you up-shift you push with the thumb which is intuitive but how about when you are down shifting?  Do you have to take your hand off and twist it?  Thanks

[Steve Palincsar]

It's funny, I used SunTour friction shifters like that for 10 years on
my commuter from 1985 - 1995, and I absolutely can't remember. I'm sure
if I rode a bike so equipped I'd instantly use them correctly without
having to think about it, but thinking about it I'm just going blank.
Weird.

[Joe Bunik]

You just nudge it back with your index finger?

[Minh]

I had to think about it, but you pull it back with your index finger,
or given your thumb strength you can also pull it back with your
thumb.

[Joe Bernard]

More accurately, you nudge it back with the side of your index finger, sorta backhanded. At least that's how I do it.

[William]

Some of us smart-alecks in the late 80's early 90's would run our thumbshifters upside down, too.  Push with the thumb under the bar.  Pull with the index finger near the tip/first knuckle.  Those cool Suntour ratchets thumbshifters even had 3 different rotated positions kind of like the holes for the spring tips on your cantilevers.  That would facilitate setting them up in different positions.  

[Garth]

I've used Suntour thumb shifters since 1983 ... I never use just my thumb.. lol.  I've always mounted them close to vertical ... it's the most natural way to shift. Here's my Bombadil and my Franklin for example :
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/4859711871_96e29bbaea_b.jpg
http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Solg-F5q2tk/Sj0Qo3SQKbI/AAAAAAAABMA/KIdVZCRFzmM/s1024/p6200344.jpg

Just think of them as shifters, not thumb shifters or anything else ... just shifters. . .   adjust them to your liking.

[Geoff]

I have Shimano bar end shifters with Paul Thumbies mounted on my Hunqapillar.  I push 'away' with my thumbs, and 'toward' me with the 'first joint' side of my index fingers.  The action would be similar with these Silver thumbshifters.  I think I prefer the bend in the levers of the Shimano shifters; somehow they seem more ergonomic.  In actual usage, though, the ergonomics of the Silver shifters might be just as good.

These Silver shifters look nice, and are less expensive than what the Shimano shifters and Paul Thumbies cost together($154 for 8 spd).  But I'm really happy with the Shimano/Paul setup I've got. 

[Joe Bernard]

Dang, those Hunqapillars are gorgeous, eh?

[EricP]

Wasn't just the smart ones. I did that too. Pretty sure I picked up
the idea from some publication. The Suntour shifters were best for
it.

These new shifters look nice. Like the little plastic ends.

Eric Platt
St. Paul, MN

[jinxed]

^^^More shots of that Bombadil please!! Nice color!

And to be on-topic....I too am running the Shimano/Thumbies combo on the Hilsen and find it just as if not more ergonomic than the bar end configuration I was using. Basically a nudge of the thumb/forefinger as opposed to the palm/pinkie.

I wish I had known they were going to do a silver version as I JUST picked up the thumbies. As per usual, I am a day late and dollar short on my Riv decisions.