# Modify Shimano Shifters?



## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

I want to remove the guts of some old Ultegra shifters to use on my cross bike as brake levers. I like the feel but would like to 1) fix them in the shift axes and 2) remove the guts to save some weight.

Anyone done this? Hints, web pages, pictures?


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## strathconaman (Jul 3, 2003)

I know this is the obvious answer but, don't. You will never get them back together. Just buy new levers.


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## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

strathconaman said:


> I know this is the obvious answer but, don't. You will never get them back together. Just buy new levers.


The point is that I like the feel of the levers. I don't ever want to use them to shift again. I just want the braking capability and to make them so they don't move to the side. I have heard that people have done this.


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## bb1mina (Jul 21, 2010)

you might want to save (or sell) your ultegra brake/shift levers and just buy the sram single speed road levers, which actually have the same shape as the brake/shift levers you are used to (compared to the small hoods of the old plain brake levers), without the internals for shifting

i think i read in one of the posts here that dave hickey has already tried them, so you can ask him about how they perform/ feel

it comes with either carbon or aluminum levers

it's a little pricey though


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## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

bb1mina said:


> you might want to save (or sell) your ultegra brake/shift levers and just buy the sram single speed road levers, which actually have the same shape as the brake/shift levers you are used to (compared to the small hoods of the old plain brake levers), without the internals for shifting
> 
> i think i read in one of the posts here that dave hickey has already tried them, so you can ask him about how they perform/ feel
> 
> ...


Yeah, I was looking at those S500 shifters. I think I can get them for about $60 shipped. Probably what I'll end up doing. I have some old Shimano road levers from my down tube shifter days. The shape sucks after using integrated shifters for years.


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## UrbanPrimitive (Jun 14, 2009)

I haven't done this, haven't heard of people doing this, and frankly am a bit confused by the proposition. The general rule of thumb with any Shimano shifter is user service or modification ends in tears. If it were me I'd leave the guts and bear through the extra 60 grams. Not the answer you're looking for, so I hope someone else can help you out.


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## bb1mina (Jul 21, 2010)

actually, the reason why sram came up with single speed road levers is because some guys started "gutting up" their "brifters" so they can use the brake levers only and leave out the shifters for simplicity and a little weight savings, if any

you can probably sell your old lever/shifters, buy the singlespeed levers, and still have some change left

much like what some people do when they put a dummy brake lever when running just a front brake, they just leave the hoods and remove the nonfunctioning lever itself to avoid using it in a panic situation

@urban primitive, i think if you leave the non-functioning shifters intact, you might instinctively "shift" when going uphill, might give "ghost shifting" a new meaning


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## Argentius (Aug 26, 2004)

Want to know the disgusting solution our guys came up with to do this for a SSCX project?

Di2. Really. (okay, the shift feature wasn't functional when they did it. Probably).

And, Campy has made Record brake levers for quite a while -- though I don't know if they'll ever make them in the 11-speed style. Some friends got 'em for SS projects. They were scarcely cheaper than the ones that shifted...

Good luck with the Ultegras -- if you do convert, love to see how!


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## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

Argentius said:


> Want to know the disgusting solution our guys came up with to do this for a SSCX project?
> 
> Di2. Really. (okay, the shift feature wasn't functional when they did it. Probably).
> 
> Good luck with the Ultegras -- if you do convert, love to see how!


Lolz about the Di2. I spent the $60 and ordered SRAM S500 road levers. I hope to get them soon. I'll let ya know about he feel.

And how about letting me ride a Furly around P-town cross races. I'll get you guys lots of eyes on the bike at local races ...


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Gripped said:


> Lolz about the Di2. I spent the $60 and ordered SRAM S500 road levers. I hope to get them soon. I'll let ya know about he feel.
> 
> And how about letting me ride a Furly around P-town cross races. I'll get you guys lots of eyes on the bike at local races ...


I have them on one bike,,, I love them...The hoods are much more comfortable than the older Shimano narrow hoods....The levers themselves tilt slightly outward but that was an easy adjustment to make,,,,,


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## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

Dave Hickey said:


> I have them on one bike,,, I love them...The hoods are much more comfortable than the older Shimano narrow hoods....The levers themselves tilt slightly outward but that was an easy adjustment to make,,,,,


Got the levers. Installed them Sunday night. Funny story about that ...

I'm racing SS CX and I got the levers before the weekend. I was kinda sorta going to race on Sunday and figured that if I did actually race, it would be pushing my luck to install new levers right before a race with no real time to shake down the setup.

So I'm racing Sunday and the left lever works loose. The bar tape and grip torque keep it in place well enough not to affect braking but it was pretty darned loose by the end of the race.

Installed the new SRAM levers that night. They are great. I was using some old 105 levers from 1988 so the difference is significant. I actually like the way the levers splay out and the reach out of the box was perfect. One of my gripes about the old levers was the reach was too much. And on Sunday, there were a couple of bumpy downhill sections I would have preferred to been off the brakes except for occasional modulation. But the reach of the old levers made that kind of sketchy. So I ended up on the brakes a lot.

Bottom line was that I ended up going slower down the hills than I would have with the new lever setup.


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## T0mi (Mar 2, 2011)

bb1mina said:


> @urban primitive, i think if you leave the non-functioning shifters intact, you might instinctively "shift" when going uphill, might give "ghost shifting" a new meaning


I have put intact non-functioning campagnolo mirage 10sp shifters on my track bike for road riding purpose and immediatly did a 100km ride. I suffured a few times from those "ghost shifting" you describe. Worse, my brain was probably very confused by those shifters and I ended up several time trying to coast my fixed gear which never happened before with the bullhorn + TT levers combinaison I used to have on this bike.










I will do a few other ride and see if it happens again, then will decide if I keep them or buy new levers.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Another advantage of the SRAM levers...colored hoods.....


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## bb1mina (Jul 21, 2010)

dave, what model is your sram brake lever, is it the carbon or aluminum model? 

those red hoods sure look great with your handlebar bag, btw, and it really goes well with the whole bike setup (nice chrome frame with black and red accents); if it's ok, can you please post a different shot of how that bag is attached to the hbars

T0mi, be careful next time, trying to coast on a fixed gear can "throw" you off your bike and result in a crash; happened to me twice on my fixed gear mtb, after using my geared bike the whole weekend, good thing i was able to recover and not lose balance/ crash


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