22 June, 2016

Dia-Compe Shifters on 11 speeds and Dynasys

by Clint

We'll be carrying these new 11-speed downtube shifters from Dia-Compe.  They're the same as any 10 speed shifter, but with a larger barrel for extra cable pull.  The shifters have a ratcheting mechanism, but they aren't indexed.
Stock photo from Dia-Compe
If you're not into 11 speed stuff, you might still be interested in these shifters.  I was tinkering around the shop yesterday and figured out they have enough pull for 10 speed Shimano dynasys rear derailleurs.  Shimano mountain components are nice for touring.  They're rugged and their cages are long enough to wrap around a large cassette .  
XTR is short for xtreme.
Here's my Pass hunter now.  10 speed XTR rear with downtube shifters.  I figured I'd try out some flat bars too.  They're trendy now.  

Besides 11 and 10 speed mountain, they're also good for 7, 8 and 9 speed Shimano.  I haven't tried it yet, but they might even work with some SRAM stuff.  If you're curious about compatibility, check out this article on Art's Cyclery's blog.  It's a bit technical, but it's thorough and fairly up to date.  I couldn't word it better myself.  
So what do you think?  Could you use these?

30 comments:

Hi said...

TAKE MY MONEY!!!

Unknown said...

If these aren't indexed, how could they possibly be incompatible with any system? Just the amount of lever pull would be different, right?

VeloOrange said...

@Jean-Francois

Some derailleurs require more total cable pull than others.

Anonymous said...

Better to have too much pull than too little. My question is, does it come with one of those all-important curved base things that sits flush to the downtube?

VeloOrange said...

@editorque

Comes with the flat washer. Pretty standard these days.

Neil E. Hodges said...

How does shifting this with 11-speed compare with shifting a 'normal' road derailleur with 10-speed? Is it about as fiddly?

My only experience friction shifting with 10-speed was with Shimano bar-end shifters, which don't have the nice one-way ratcheting mechanism and have shorter levels, both of which combine to make things more difficult.

VeloOrange said...

@Neil

Haven't tried this shifter on anything other than 10 Mtn and 11 road yet, but it's been great for both of those! Good friction adjustment, etc.

Unknown said...

@VeloOrange

I guess I have more reading to do, but I thought that for 8-9-10-11 the total spacing of the cogs was the same, just with narrower cogs. So a lever that has enough total pull for 9 should also work for 11, no?

I guess the distance from the center of the innermost to the outermost cog would get a tiny bit wider, but only by the difference in thicknesses of the actual cogs...

Or maybe shifters intended for 5-6-7 speeds turned out to have enough pull for 8-9-10 but then got maxed out.

VeloOrange said...

@Jean-Francois

You are correct in that the spacing of the cogs is the same, but it is the amount of cable pulled that matters. The amount of cable a shifter pulls and the ratio of cable pull to derailleur horizontal movement vary in different systems. The article linked in the post describes this well.

velodan said...

I use the Silver shifters from Dia-Compe with an 8 speed rear. Unfortunately the plastic washer keeps breaking. These look to be all metal, however, and the actual lever looks nicer.
Am I imagining these things? If I can use these instead I shall. Using a 32t 8sp cassette with STX-RC rear derailleur.

Unknown said...

It would also be cool if these mounted up to bar end pods such as the "Silver" branded ones. I wonder if they will since the Silvers shifters and pods are made by Dia-Compe I think...

Unknown said...

Will these work on Shimano or Rivendell's imitation bar end pods with appropriate connecting hardware?

bill said...

VO...Thanks a bunch for sourcing the gear you carry. You make me so happy.

Anonymous said...

Will they also work with the thumb shifter mounts?

Anonymous said...

I think the build would look better with polished aluminum seat post, stem and bars in order to better match the crank, pedals and rack; but do leave the seat and grips black.

VeloOrange said...

@ Anon 12:52- No they will not work with thumb shifter mounts

@Daniel & Paul- They will not fit the bar end shifter pods.

@Velodan- The old grey washer has been updated to a stronger plastic. Please see our small parts section of the shifter page for the new black plastic model

velodan said...

I have two cracked black plastic washers now. Two half washers are doing the job, but it's ugly.
Again, are the washers on these 11sp shifters made of metal?
Presumably Dia-Compe will have spare washers available.

VeloOrange said...

@Velodan

It's a plastic washer with a metal dust cover. Sounds like you may be overtightening. The new plastic is good, but it will wear out if you crank down on it too hard. We sell the spare parts here.

Tony Lupton said...

Get them with a bar-end mount, and you can have my money!

Anonymous said...

when will they be available - this is perfect for a project I am working on for an August ride...

Brendan said...

Will these be available with a bar end mount? Looks it might be a nice solution to running a SRAM 10sp rear derailler with friction shifting. Any feedback as to how it holds up with the strong springs of SRAM Type 2 or Shimano Shadow Plus deraillers?

Also, if this mounts just to ordinary downtube shifter bosses, shouldn't they mount onto Riv Silver Bar End Pods? I might be understanding it wrong, but I think that pod is designed to mimic the attachment of a downtube boss, without the use of a Shimano shaped or flat plastic spacer washer.

VeloOrange said...

@Tony & Brendan

The barrel diameter is too large to fit on any existing bar end mount. For the most part bar end shifters already exist for any non-mountain specific derailleurs. Microshift also makes Shimano 10 speed mountain bar ends.

Haven't tried it on on any derailleurs with a clutch. Can't imagine any scenario where you would need the tension of a clutch derailleur, but want to reach down for downtube shifters. Sounds fun, but impractical.

Tony Lupton said...

So, is there any bar-end solution for Campy 11sp? Yes, I know I could just use the wavy Athena 11sp bar-end shifters intended for TT bikes, but I was hoping for simple non-indexed, rather than the indexed, return-to-centre that the Campy uses (at least I think that's it). And I want it in silver too, not black :-(

Tony

VeloOrange said...

@Tony

As far as I know, there aren't any Campy specific. I've seen Shimano 11 speed brifters set up with 11 speed Campagnolo rear derailleurs. The pull ratios are so darn close (with the added forgiveness of a flexible chain) that it can work. I suppose you could use Shimano 11 speed bar ends for Campy if you really wanted to. It might work. I think they have a little more silver.

Anonymous said...

Are these shifters compatible with a Campagnolo 11s (Athena Triple) drivetrain in a 10 speed configuration (IRD Elite 10s cassette)?

VeloOrange said...

@seventysixers

They should work with Campagnolo 11s. We've never tried it, but it requires less cable pull than stuff we have tried. I'm not sure what the IRD Elite 10 speed configuration is, but if you're using the 11s derailleur, it should be able to cover the range of a 10s cassette.

Anonymous said...

Will these work with Athena 11 double? Very interested...

VeloOrange said...

@ Anon 4/5/19- as we said in the above question, they should work with Campy 11 speed. It has the range for the shifting according to the spec's for the cable pull
Scott

Unknown said...

Dia-Compe has listed a Ene Ciclo 11spd thumb shifter. But I can't find it anywhere on the world wide Web.

Is my dream of 11spd friction shifter - that I can mount on Piolet w/ Drop bar in the morning and swap to flatbar in the afternoon - too good to happen?

Larpy1933 said...

I’m having success with this (RHS only) shifter connected to a Box 3 derailer (has a friction clutch). My cassette is a Box 3 9-speed (11-50). The Box 3 requires a LARGE cable pull to cover the entire cassette.

From the small cog (ENE lever fully forward, parallel to DT) to the largest cassette cog… ENE lever moves through ≈150° (150 degrees). When using the 50T cog, the ENE lever is about 30 degrees away from being parallel to the downtube — facing the BB.

The friction clutch causes shifting to require more force on the lever. It’s hardly buttery-smooth. However: it’s an all steel cassette, rated for e-bikes. I have more than a hard year’s use on it. And I’m over 220 lbs. and a strong climber. This is a long-wearing, low-maintenance drivetrain. I’m Victoria, BC.