Why does nobody like gripshift?

[Pogo]

I ride a motorbike and the right gripshift is very similar to a throttle,
I've never false shifted with gripshift neither have I mistakenly accelerated/deccelerated using the throttle.

So maybe there is something in the hand coordination that makes it a cinch for me to use a griphift but I doubt it, probably more down to personal aptitude I suppose.

 

[oldave]

I don't seem to have had any for a while - but would be happy to use again. Microshift/friction for the front mech is simply far superior to any indexed system IMO/E.

 

[HarryCrumb]

Microshift/friction for the front mech is simply far superior to any indexed system IMO/E

I agree, they are light and easy, but poor cable maintenance and the use of the later spiral spring rear mech doesn't work that well and you end up using some kind of Morse code of clicks to select the gear you are after
(three clicks down and two up etc).

 

[tee-one]

I love it... 3 Speed sturmey archer gripshift on my raleigh RSW's.... Or my twenty.... Ive got a rsw in the road forsale section if someone would like to sample such delights

 

[development_cycle]

Good man...

BTW.. on topic.. if anyone needs any spare parts to keep there's going ,, just drop me a line..

If that's a serious offer i would love one grip for a single 8 speed SRT-800 I have waiting to go on a 1x8 build if you have one. I have an nos pair of the shrktooth ones on another bike and if I didn't wear gloves they would probably tear the skin off my palm, but any style if you have one would be grand as it is grip free at the mo.

And for the rest of you if you couldn't tell I don't mind them at all. I have SRT 600's on two bikes and SRT 800's on two. I also have some under bar shifters and thumbies on other bikes but to be honest always found with thumbies that my thumb had to be at a very uncomfortable angle and with under bar (the integrated ones) that I just kept catching my fingers on them, or would shift by accident if breaking hard.

They are different and do take some getting used to but it you fit them well and invest in good quality cables (fully sealed Gore if funding allows) then they seem pretty good to me and no thumb or finger injuries.

 

[CAPIN]

I like them a lot.

First thing that got me hooked was right after i accidentaly kicked of RF lever with my knee on my friends bike during steep climb.

X Rays were on F700 i bought in 96 and fell in love with simplicity and minimalistic look. i believe they were lighter aswell.

I also like that you could move front derailleur in little steps without predefined main 3 positions.
Sometimes it helps when you shift to go one step over and then back, or in some situlations when you hear chain dragging upfront. you just click one step more.

Accidental shifts were never problem. Never.
You can have grips bit longer (longer than those veryshort gripshift ones) and reach slightly inwards when you shift
It might have been an issue on those latter models with very long shifting part. But ive never had those

 

[Rich Aitch]

I've got SRAM gripshifters on an old Kawasaki and don't particularly like them. I think it is because you have to twist your wrist which alters your arm position and maybe also your centre of gravity. It isn't ideal having to do a tricky ascent or descent and then try to change gear with gripshifters at the same time.
Something makes me think that they must have been created by a non-cycling engineer responding to cyclists grumbles about twin lever thumbies. They sound good on paper, simple, "intuitive", with numbers to show you which gear your in. Except old single thumbshifters do all that, cheaper, simpler and you can feel the lever with your finger or thumb to work out what gear you are in without having to look down at the bars.

 

[sancho]

I had Grip Shift on my bike in the mid-nineties and run Sram 9 speed rocket shifters on my primary mtb now. I have never encountered problems with accidental shifts, lack of control, bad shifting etc.

I love the fact that they allow you to trim your front derailleur (unlike rapid fire shifters), maintain a firm grip on the bars, and shift while wearing bulky winter gloves. And, unlike rapidfire shifters, they won't catch my knees on a climb and they have few moving parts, so they continue to function well over time.

My only gripe is that their position on the bars places the brakes closer to the center of the bars (and farther away from your hands), but I haven't found this to a be a problems when running them with Avid/Sram levers.

They also don't look as properly retro as thumbies, but my daily riders are from the mid-nineties so 7 speed thumbies wouldn't really be period correct anyway.

 

[RockiMtn]

Love them. They're on everything I own except for a handful of bikes. From 7-spd SRT-600, 8-spd X-rays to modern 9-spd Rockets/Attacks.

 

[Rich Aitch]

But was wondering at those who run motorcycles and ride atb's, do they run gritshit, sorry gripshit, doh grip shift shifters and how do they find them, with hand action knowledgeable with the throttle on a motorcycle ?

Have just got the gripshifts working on my KMB450, after a life time of thumbshifters and found that the right shifter works back to front. So if you are used to riding motorbikes you twist the grip towards you to go fast, but with gripshift you slow down because that's where the slow gears are...