RSX or Sora shifters?
ma...@mss.tzo.com
it off road.
Anyway, the bike has 8 speed Shimano shifters which I want to replace
with brake levers/shifters. I've seen 8 speed Sora and RSX shifters
for sale. Which one is of higher quality, or does it not matter?
Thanks in advance.
--
Marty Sasaki ma...@mss.tzo.com
Arlington, Massachusetts USA
Ian Broadhead
them,best upgrade I have done.Sorry don't know anything about the RSX.
Ian.
<ma...@mss.tzo.com> wrote in message
news:lrpG7.6154$6E2.2...@typhoon.ne.mediaone.net...
Qui si parla Campagnolo
it off road. >>
<< the bike has 8 speed Shimano shifters which I want to replace
with brake levers/shifters. I've seen 8 speed Sora and RSX shifters
for sale. Which one is of higher quality, or does it not matter? >>
If you are putting drop bars on, I assume you wantr to shift to smaller cogs
when in the drops and you cannot reach the thumb button on Sora from the drops.
RSX is more conventional shimano dual lever design.
Also, if you have a MTB triple crank and MTB fder, the RSX/Sora shifter may
not work well...or at all...
Peter Chisholm
Vecchio's Bicicletteria
1833 Pearl ST.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535
http://www.vecchios.com
Sheldon Brown
> I have a mountain bike that I want to put drop bars on. I never take
> it off road.
Make sure to change the stem when you change the bars...you will
generally want a taller stem with less forward extension when going from
straight bars to drops.
> Anyway, the bike has 8 speed Shimano shifters which I want to replace
> with brake levers/shifters. I've seen 8 speed Sora and RSX shifters
> for sale. Which one is of higher quality, or does it not matter?
There's no important difference in qualtiy, but there are major
differences in ergonomics:
The RSX units use parallel levers that both get pushed inward to shift.
If you push inward on the main brake lever, it shifts to a bigger
sprocket; if you push inward on the small lever behind the main brake
lever, it shifts to a smaller sprocket.
The Sora units use the brake lever to shift to bigger sprockets, same as
RSX, but there's a little tab on the inside of the housing that you push
with your thumb.
The Sora setup is less confusing, because the upshift and downshift are
done with differnt fingers, moved in different directions. I find it
less confusing, and prefer it for that reason.
Some people object to Sora because the thumb lever isn't operable from
the drops, but this is more of a theoretical than practical objection.
I've never met a Sora _owner_ who found this to be a serious drawback.
Sora also has a unique and desirable feature, adjustable reach on the
brake lever. While all decent MTB brake levers provide this, Sora
brifters are the _only_ drop-bar system that offers this. If you have
short fingers, this is a very desirable feature.
Just to make your decision harder, however, I'll add that I generally
consider it a Bad Idea to buy 8-speed shifters of any sort. If you've
got a Shimano-equipped 8-speed bike, the expensive part of converting to
9-speed is the _shifters_ so you might as well spend a bit more and get
9-speed, especially since you live in a hilly area.
In addition to the shifters, the only parts you actually need to convert
to 9-speed are a new cassette and chain...and, odds are, your present
chain and cassette are pretty well worn already.
Sheldon "Upgrade" Brown
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Check out the Shostakovitch 24 Preludes & Fugues for Piano, Op. 87. |
| Sort of like "Das Wohltemperierte Klavier" on drugs. Way cool! |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772, 617-244-1040 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
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Andy M-S
RX100 or 105sc or Ultegra/600, if you can get it) than Sora.
Sora is an orphan in the Shimano line; the levers are very different,
and depend upon an awkwardly-placed thumb button for shifts to smaller
cogs. All other Shimano levers work the same way, differently from
the Sora levers. All others use the large brake lever for upshifts
(this corresponds to the brake lever on the Soras) and a smaller
paddle, set behind the brake lever, for downshifts (corresponding to
the thumb button on Sora).
Campy shifters also use a thumb button, but both placement and design
of that button are far superior to the Sora model.
I'd look for RX100 or RSX 8-speed levers, and leave Sora alone.
<ma...@mss.tzo.com> wrote in message news:<lrpG7.6154$6E2.2...@typhoon.ne.mediaone.net>...
ma...@mss.tzo.com
> Also, if you have a MTB triple crank and MTB fder, the RSX/Sora shifter may
> not work well...or at all...
Yes, there is a MTB triple on the front.
Is the potential problem with the crank or the FD?
Atom
Ian Broadhead <ian.bro...@talk21.com> wrote in message
news:9se2fp$1o8$1...@neptunium.btinternet.com...
> I put some Sora STI shifters on my touring bike.Can thoroughly recommend
> them,best upgrade I have done.Sorry don't know anything about the RSX.
>
downtube shifters ever again .
AT
Thomas Reynolds
> marty-<< I have a mountain bike that I want to put drop bars on. I never take
> it off road. >>
> << the bike has 8 speed Shimano shifters which I want to replace
> with brake levers/shifters. I've seen 8 speed Sora and RSX shifters
> for sale. Which one is of higher quality, or does it not matter? >>
>
> If you are putting drop bars on, I assume you wantr to shift to smaller cogs
> when in the drops and you cannot reach the thumb button on Sora from the drops.
> RSX is more conventional shimano dual lever design.
>
> Also, if you have a MTB triple crank and MTB fder, the RSX/Sora shifter may
> not work well...or at all...
>
triple crank. The amount of cable pull was not enough but it worked
fine after I went to the fder and moved the cable the opposite side of
the mounting bolt, giving me more deraileur movement.
Tom
Lindsay Rowlands
: I have a mountain bike that I want to put drop bars on. I never take
: it off road.
: Anyway, the bike has 8 speed Shimano shifters which I want to replace
: with brake levers/shifters. I've seen 8 speed Sora and RSX shifters
: for sale. Which one is of higher quality, or does it not matter?
Nobody has mentioned it yet, but I'm not sure roadbike levers will
successfully pull v-brakes. Cantilever brakes might be OK though.
Cheerz,
Lynzz
Stephen Yiu Wah Lau
: vecc...@aol.com (Qui si parla Campagnolo) wrote in message news:<20011108090716...@mb-dd.aol.com>...
: > Also, if you have a MTB triple crank and MTB fder, the RSX/Sora shifter may
: > not work well...or at all...
: >
: FWIW, I have RSX shifters shifting an LX front deraileur over LX
: triple crank. The amount of cable pull was not enough but it worked
: fine after I went to the fder and moved the cable the opposite side of
: the mounting bolt, giving me more deraileur movement.
I can add a second to that- using an old 8spd bottom pull
bottom swing LX and running the cable on the inside of the
bolt instead of the outside... the only problem is that
when tightening the bolt, it loosens the cable, so you need
to pull on it with pliers when doing it up...
I've also tried it with an XTR front derailer by not having
the cable route into the little cable track, and rather, just
beside it... it too works, but wears at the cable a bit...
S
Stephen Yiu Wah Lau
Ahh yes... My RSX levers work wonderfully with Avid Shorty's and
their tri-dangle hanger... by themselves, they pull way too much
for plain old LX v-brakes... some people use them Travel Agents,
but I've heard bad stories about cable wear...
S
Qui si parla Campagnolo
> not work well...or at all...
Yes, there is a MTB triple on the front.
Is the potential problem with the crank or the FD? >>
Mostly the fder altho the chainring 'treatment', pins and ramps, may present
problems as well.
ma...@mss.tzo.com
> problems as well.
I don't understand this. The pins and ramps are the same as with the
MTB shifter so shouldn't make a difference with the shifting or am I
missing something?
I can understand problems with the front derailer since the pull might
be different...
Sheldon Brown
> > Mostly the fder altho the chainring 'treatment', pins and ramps, may present
> > problems as well.
Marty Sasaki wrote:
> I don't understand this. The pins and ramps are the same as with the
> MTB shifter so shouldn't make a difference with the shifting or am I
> missing something?
Depends on the age of your MTB which I don't recall you specifying.
Older ones didn't have the pins & ramps, but if yours is newer, _that_
won't be a problem.
The problem is that the front derailer cable travel for drop-bar STI
units is different than for straight-bar indexed front shifters.
Thus, you may need to replace your front derailer with a "road" one.
Further complicating things, "road" front derailers are made for 52-53
tooth chainrings, so the cage curvature is a poor match for the smaller
rings common on mtbs.
The exception is the older Shimano RSX front, which was designed for use
with a 46-36-26 setup, which isn't all that far from a typical mtb
chanset. We stocked up on a bunch of these when they were discontinued,
so if you can't get your present front derailer to work well enough, you
can pick up one of these.
See: http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/derailer.html#front
Sheldon "Where There's A Will" Brown
+---------------------------------------------------------+
| There are several good protections against temptation, |
| but the surest is cowardice. --Mark Twain |
+---------------------------------------------------------+
Qui si parla Campagnolo
MTB shifter so shouldn't make a difference with the shifting or am I
missing something?
>>
I meant that if the chainrings didn't have pins and ramps, the shifting may be
poor to nonexistant.