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 Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 6:06 pm |
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| tua |
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| Joined: 17 Mar 2008 |
| Posts: 7 |
| Location: Golden/Crawford, CO USA |
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Like lots of Gitane owners, I've been using the Simplex retrofriction shifters for years and like them a lot! But I'm getting too old to bend down to the DT, so I'd like to move them up to the handlebars. Has anybody adapted these particular shifters (don't suggest Shimano or Suntours or something else) to work on either the bar end shift pods offered by Rivendell, or Paul's Thumbies, or Kellys Take-offs? All of them seem to have a style post (maybe Shimano style?) that looks slightly different from the post on the Simplex DT shifter and, without actually putting down cash to buy them, I can't figure out if the Simplexes will work.
Tua |
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| Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 11:11 pm |
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| verktyg |
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| Joined: 14 Jan 2007 |
| Posts: 2814 |
| Location: SF Bay Area |
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The Simplex Retrofriction shift levers fit on standard Campagnolo style bosses. Most other brands fit also fit on these mounts but Shimano, Suntour and Huret made a few levers that took a different kind of mount.
The standard uses a 5mm screw.
Check out this link where they discuss some of your issues:
http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-433361.html
Chas. |
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| Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 4:18 am |
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| tua |
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| Joined: 17 Mar 2008 |
| Posts: 7 |
| Location: Golden/Crawford, CO USA |
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| Yes, I saw that link before, but to me it was as clear as mud. One guy states he managed to mount the retrofrictions on a Shimano pod but with modifications. But its not clear whether these were as simple as adding a washer or as complex as boring out the shifters. I do know one thing. Even simplex has different post designs. For instance, the retrofrictions won't slide onto a criterium or prestige post-different diameter. I guess I'll just have to buy something and try it. |
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| | | | | | | | | Simplex levers | | | | | |
| Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 10:36 am |
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| verktyg |
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| Joined: 14 Jan 2007 |
| Posts: 2814 |
| Location: SF Bay Area |
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Simplex Retrofriction shift levers slide over standard Campy style 9mm diameter bosses. The square portion of the stop plate on the inside of the lever fits over the 12mm square on the boss.
All Campy levers that I've ever seen use the flats at the top of the shift lever boss. Some Shimano levers and maybe Suntour also use these flats. Simplex Retrofriction levers don't use the flats.
Campy screws are 5mm x 32TPI (Threads Per Inch). Everyone else used a standard metric thread 5mm x 0.8mm - the two threads are so close that they are interchangeable.
BTW, Shimano during the 70s and early 80s used 2 different proprietary shift lever bosses, style A and B. Around 1984 they switched to the standard (Campy style) bosses. Shimano used smaller 4.5mm x 0.75mm screws on some of their levers.
Most modern shift levers fit Campy style bosses. Before the mid 80s there was no rhyme or reason to the mounting designs. 
You may be able to find some stem mounted levers with a Campy style mounting boss.
Hope that this helps.
Chas. |
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