Shift lever question?

Your local bike shop should have no problem getting you a shifter that will work correctly with your drive train set up. It may not match the look exactly, but it will function properly. What is wrong with your current shifters? Are they not indexing properly (clicking into place)?

Thanks for your reply!

The shifter for the front derailleur won't move the chain onto the largest ring, also the cable is starting to fray. The rear derailleur lever is completely frozen and the cable is in bad shape.

The derailleurs seem to be ok and the rings are worn, but I don't think they are completely worn out.

I was hoping that this would be a problem I could tackle myself, equiped with Bicycle Maintenance and Repair by Todd Downs. But I started looking for replacement levers and only found new ones that are designed for 9 or more rings on the rear derailleur.

Ask your LBS or go to eBay. Don't be afraid to buy used if they are in good condition. I have found a lot of stuff on eBay that was used, but still in great condition. Of course you really have to look closely at the photos to see if the item is still pretty good or if it is junk.

This might be a good time to upgrade to 9-speed though, with new levers, a new RD, cassette, and chain.

If its just the levers that are stuck or not clicking into place, you may want to try washing them out really well with white lightning clean streak (or a similarly powerful degreaser) and then applying some tri-flow. I've gotten countless levers from the 80s and early 90s to begin working again by doing this.

Seaphish said:

The shifter for the front derailleur won't move the chain onto the largest ring,

Could be that the cable has slipped, or that the casing has compressed, or even an issue with the limit screws or derailer alignment. It's well worth replacing the wire and adjusting the derailer before going shopping for a new one.

Seaphish said:

...The rear derailleur lever is completely frozen..

Completely frozen sounds worse, but if the lever was in the position for the highest gear even that can be attributed to a cable seizing in the casing. I'd try getting the cable out first, then see if the shifter is still "completely frozen". If it is, a flush and lube is rumored to be able to work wonders.

Seaphish said:

...the cable is in bad shape.

Again, not much to replace that,neither in skill or cost.

Seaphish said:

I was hoping that this would be a problem I could tackle myself, equiped with Bicycle Maintenance and Repair by Todd Downs.

Don't know what that book would cover, but go for it. You're only risking to loose some time and a few bucks.

Seaphish said:

But I started looking for replacement levers and only found new ones that are designed for 9 or more rings on the rear derailleur.

It's not rings on the rear derailleur, but I understand what you mean. It's cassette/freewheel, but nevermind. Anyhow, 7-spd shifters are still available, you just have to look for them from less glossy places.

Wow! What an amazing resource this forum is!

I have ordered a "new" shift lever on ebay, it has not arrived yet and I hope it will work out. It appears that the cable is "of a piece" with the levers which would explain why I could not figure out how to insert a new cable into the lever.

Being a bit of a cheap skate I am going to try to continue with my antiquated 7 speed cassette. Does anyone know why it is now called a cassette and was formerly (I think?) called a freewheel? Maybe it was always called a cassette and I just didn't have the right term?

I have been looking at tubes and have discovered something else that is new to me. It seems that there is now a choice between medium schraeder valves and large schraeder valves. Does this refer to the length of the valve stem, or is there now a choice of diameters in schraeder valves? What is the advantage of one or the other?

Again, I am sorry if I seem competely clueless, and I thank you all for your patience!

Seaphish said:

... It appears that the cable is "of a piece" with the levers which would explain why I could not figure out how to insert a new cable into the lever.

Well, I've got to admit that I have one gripshift unit where I haven't been able(or haven't needed to badly enough)...)to figure out how to replace the cable, but it's very rare. In the overwhelming majority of cases the cables are replaceable, although it might be cunningly hidden.

Seaphish said:

...Being a bit of a cheap skate I am going to try to continue with my antiquated 7 speed cassette?

Nothing inherently wrong with 7-spd. Easily tuned too.

Seaphish said:

... Does anyone know why it is now called a cassette and was formerly (I think?) called a freewheel?

When freewheels went from 6-spd to 7-spd the consequence was a longer bit of unsupported wheel axle, which started to cause axle failures disturbingly frequent. The engineering solution was to design the actual clutch mechanism in a way that could move the outer bearing seat further out the axle. This also meant that the sprockets(now called a cassette) and the clutch(now called a "body"😉 began to be treated as separate sub-assemblies.

Seaphish said:

... Maybe it was always called a cassette and I just didn't have the right term?

Maybe, maybe not.

7-speed is usually seen as the crossover, as they're available both as freewheel and as cassettes. With only a few exceptions, more speeds are always cassettes, and fewer are always freewheels.

Seaphish said:

...It seems that there is now a choice between medium schraeder valves and large schraeder valves. Does this refer to the length of the valve stem, or is there now a choice of diameters in schraeder valves? What is the advantage of one or the other?

Haven't come across that before, but my guess would be that it refers to length. Rims can have a fairly high profile these days, and you need long stems for those. Very common for Presta valves.

Seaphish said:

I have ordered a "new" shift lever on ebay, it has not arrived yet and I hope it will work out. It appears that the cable is "of a piece" with the levers which would explain why I could not figure out how to insert a new cable into the lever.

Some levers have a cover that needs to be removed in order to get to the cable. Normally with one or two small phillips head screws.

dabac said:

Well, I've got to admit that I have one gripshift unit where I haven't been able(or haven't needed to badly enough)...)to figure out how to replace the cable, but it's very rare. In the overwhelming majority of cases the cables are replaceable, although it might be cunningly hidden.

Look for a very small opening on the grip in the area where your thumb would rest against the flange. If there is nothing there then you may have the type of gripshift which needs to be literally pulled apart (if this is the kind you have then it is meant to work like this and you shouldn't damage it by pulling on it), just make sure not to lose the small pieces that will inevitably pop out of place.

ToffoIsMe said:

Look for a very small opening on the grip in the area where your thumb would rest against the flange.

No such thing, it's a perfectly unbroken mantle section of a truncated cone, in smooth plastic.. (low end, old gripshift. Came off a bike with a 7-spd freewheel.

ToffoIsMe said:

... If there is nothing there then you may have the type of gripshift which needs to be literally pulled apart ...

I've got another gripshift unit, a MRX-something. That one has a rubbery flange closest to the thumb that can be peeled back to expose where the cable goes in.
That one will pull apart with minimum force and not much drama.
AFAIR there's only one part, an indexing spring, that can fall out.

For the "mystery" unit I suspect that the "truncated cone"-bit can snap off, at the careful application of some properly aligned violence. Haven't tried it yet though, I've settled for a crude but operational extension of the shifter cable courtesy of a press on electrical connector...

The "mystery" unit really hasn't got any give in it anywhere, so it certainly isn't giving any hints as to how it'll come apart.