Self-loosening vintage shifters.

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astrocan

Veteran
Location
Abingdon, Oxon
I am fitting a pair of non-index friction shifters to Mrs As bike but can't get them to hold the friction adjustment.
I think I understand the principle, tightening a screw increases the pressure on an interal dished washer so that the amount of force can be adjusted so that it can be stiff enough to resist the derailleur spring but loose enough to allow for easy shifting.
I haven't cabled it up yet but every time I move either lever in an anti-clockwise direction the tensioning screw moves with it and the setting is lost.
I have lubricated the dished washer, I have added a slim washer between the tensioning screw and lever I have even cleaned out the threads and used threadlock but all to no avail.
I can't think what I am doing wrong, I don't think anything is missing but my sanity may be soon.
Any advice or experience welcomed.
 

midlife

Guru
It's not your sanity as they are a nightmare if something is in the wrong order. What shifters are they, are they for braze on or for banded. The net can usually throw up a diagram on a Google search.

Shaun
 
OP
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astrocan

astrocan

Veteran
Location
Abingdon, Oxon
They are Suntor banded fitted to the quill stem (mixte frame).
There is a squared spindle and a washer with squared hole which is right inside at the moment.
Going to check Goggle and then stare at it until it makes sense.
 

Dogtrousers

Kilometre nibbler
Once you get it right, it still needs tightening before and (sometimes) during a ride. You can get a nice "automatic transmission" effect as the shifter slips and changes up through the gears. Sometimes this happens at the right time. Sometimes ... it doesn't :smile:
 

raleighnut

Legendary Member
Once you get it right, it still needs tightening before and (sometimes) during a ride. You can get a nice "automatic transmission" effect as the shifter slips and changes up through the gears. Sometimes this happens at the right time. Sometimes ... it doesn't :smile:
Mine do that to me when it's raining, then a couple of days after you've tightened the wingnut and the bike has dried out they'll hardly move.
 

Karlt

Well-Known Member
This fun and games was a major reason for me changing the friction shifters on my Raleigh to Brifters.
 

midlife

Guru
BITD we threw away stem shifters and moved them to the downtube, dangerous things :sad:

Shaun
 

midlife

Guru
GitaneTealBrownRedWhiteMixte-1.jpg


Downtube shifters on a twinlat :smile:

Shaun
 

Dogtrousers

Kilometre nibbler
This fun and games was a major reason for me changing the friction shifters on my Raleigh to Brifters.

An outraged old fart writes ... ;)

Fun and games? Fun and games?

Maintenance wise friction shifters win every time. You think reassembling a friction shifter is fun and games? I have one bike with brifters and I'm scared to even replace the cables. Figuring out which way round a washer goes on a shifter is small beer in comparison. And when they go wrong... A slipped gear is fixed by a quick twist of the wing nut as you ride. An indexing problem calls for a phd in advanced barrel adjuster twiddling.

Only kidding
 
OP
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astrocan

astrocan

Veteran
Location
Abingdon, Oxon
Took the advice about searching for pictures and found the problem.
Here is a picture here of the shifters as I got them.
105_1705.JPG
Then I found a picture of some slightly different shifters and the pennies stated to drop.
Used_Suntour_Stem-Mount_LD-3000_Shifters_02.JPG 105_1712.JPG
The pressure plate on the outside must be secured and these aren't. I'm working on a fix for this set up now.
 

Dogtrousers

Kilometre nibbler
Here's another picture of a Mixte with downtube shifters.

I admit this is just a pretext to post this picture again. I like this bike a lot. Although it must be said that if I ride it I do look somewhat ridiculous.
full.jpg
 
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