Why so big love for thumbie, and little for gripshift.

[RockiMtn]

Having read the really interesting article in the first issue of Switchback magazine (www.switchbackmb.com), I'm curious that with such great success by SRAM to maneuver itself as a player in the market against Shimano, using tactics such as filing an antitrust lawsuit against Shimano and winning, as well as huge wins by sponsored riders using gripshift, why there's fairly neg response to using them on retro builds. Also curious why there's such a huge adoration of XT thumbies to the point that it's a defacto for retro builds.

 

[stevetait]

Gripshift = RSI

 

[tintin40]

I like both. But thumbies (not just Shimano) are the best gear changing system. Simple and easy to use and maintain

 

[merckx]

gripshft is terrible

shimano thumbshifters are perfection.

thats why

 

[RobMac]

I prefer Suntour XC pro shifters then XT but not Grip Shit

 

[RockiMtn]

gripshft is terrible

shimano thumbshifters are perfection.

thats why

I prefer Suntour XC pro shifters then XT but not Grip Shit

:roll: not according to performance by these notable riders:

Still considered to be a lower-end product, SRAM turned to the racecourse to prove their merits. American downhiller, Greg Herbold was one of the first racers to use the new shifters and in 1990 he won the first UCI Downhill World Championship—putting SRAM on the world stage.

In 1992 SRAM released the Grip Shift SRT 500, its first shifter aimed at the upper end of the market. Then in 1993 SRAM made its most important sponsorship agreement to date with the signing of 1991 world champion, John Tomac. The signing of Tomac coincided with the debut of the Grip Shift SRT 500R, SRAM’s first professional-level shifter. The signing of Tomac gave the SRT 500R insistent credibility, while Tomac’s aggressive riding style and popularity provided SRAM with a much-needed marketing vehicle. Success on the racecourse continued with Greg Herbold using SRT 500R to capture the NORBA National Downhill Point Series, while Giovanna Bonazzi claimed the Women’s Downhill World Title.

If 1993 was considered a success, the 1994 season was spectacular. Grip Shift shifters virtually dominated the race circuit, with Missy Giove and Francois Gachet laying claim to the downhill world titles, Alison Sydor and Bart Brentjens capturing the Cross-Country World Cup and John Tomac winning the NORBA downhill title.

 

[Raging_Bulls]

Gripshift generally wears out quick (the grip part), your hands are always full of small pieces of rubber after a ride, they are prone to crack (I had several, and none lasted more than 4 months).

Never was a fan of thumbies either, but at least they worked and lasted. I'll go for STI whenever I can.

 

[rocky ridge]

the only benefit of gripshifts is if you crash the shifters dont get broken

people hate gripshift because most of the gripshifts theyve seen are cheapo nastys fitted to rubbish bikes

if we tried some top end gripshifts they may be good but we dont know coz we never tried them out

personally ive used thumbies on most of my bikes without issues and find them to be very good totally reliable

 

[NeilM]

I've got gripshifts on all my bikes.

I obviously don't ride enough, as the set on the Zaskar have been there since 96 (possibly longer).

As for shifting, the MRX pro grip shifts I have are the quickest most effortless shifters I've ever used and I am really disappointed I cannot get the 9 speed models for my latest build.

Each to their own I reckon.

 

[theredchili]

I agree Suntour thumbs by far the best, Shimano xt also good

I brought a pair of the Mk1 grip shifts when they came out ,loved the low weight , amazingly light , but swapped them out as had problems with gear slippage, so much I ripped them of in favour of DX thumbs- not sure on later models if they were improved or not