Are The Shimano Ultegra/600 Downtube Shifters Better Than The Dura Ace 7700 Shifters? Review! 

Man, downtube shifters are so fun! I started out on 80’s road bikes that all had them and even though I now have a modern bike with Di2 I have never forgotten, and still miss, the feeling of reaching down and getting the shift just right. It’s such a satisfying feeling. I compare it to driving a car with a manual transmission vs an auto or dual clutch. The new tech is definitely faster and easier to use, but you don’t get that feedback from the bike that makes riding to enjoyable.

I'm riding a '92 Specialized Allez that has downtube shifters, and after 6 years on the same bike I've learned to love the experience. Thanks for helping me understand why I love these shifters so much.

Found you again while looking at why I have been liking my shimano 600/6400 dt shifters so much compared to my older suntour cyclone. You are right, it's the micro ratcheting and I suspect it's the older 5 speed freewheel with non-hg cog profiles. It's so easy and obvious if I am in gear, compared to the bike I have with an 8 sp HG cogs and no ratcheting i overshift. The older freewheel just gives a nice klunk when I get in gear and it seems to require less trimming.

Love the bike. I have a steel Performance R103, bought new in ‘93 and still going strong.

Just came across this channel and it's nice to know I'm not the only one who rides this old steel bikes. I been riding an 86 schwinn sprint with bar end shifters and a 2 x 11 setup

Old school bikes are really nice especially if you’re not in the racing circuit and you just want to ride. My first road bike I bought when I was 15 back in 1987 served me just fine and I had no issues. I miss down tube shifters, they’re not difficult.

Great vid, I have a '90 Eddy Merckx 7-Eleven with Dura Ace 7 speed. I was able to upgrade to 10 speed, I found a set of indexed Dura Ace 7800 DT shifters, the bike rocks now. I see what you mean about the gears jumping on the clicks at times, it usually happens when I am downshifting, it hops 2 gears. I think DT shifters are the best, and they make a great conversation topic on group rides also.

Great uploads, thanks! 👍 DT shifters really hold their own against STI esp. when tackling short, sharp climbs & descents. Moving up and down the block is so much quicker. I also love the ability to virtually eliminate chain rub on the front derailleur, when I fancy riding big/big. Finally, DT shifters are almost maintenance free, something I can't say about STI.

lol. When I was 13 it took me my first mile or so to get the shifters down on my 1983 Nashbar.

Great old school throw backs!...lived it,....but still feeling it!..🤙

Cycling in Summerlin in Vegas is always fun!! Nice to find another local road bicyclist!

Nice, I rode all that tech having started riding in the mid 1970s. As one ages just pedaling harder has become less important to me. I am now more interested in comfort and safety, as this allows me to ride longer. But your enjoyment of the old tech warms my biker soul. Cheers.

Excellent videos! There are many people who like riding old & vintage equipment. You should do a review comparing Uniglide vs Hyperglide in friction & index mode. I find non hyperglide smoother in friction. Unfortunately non hyperglide anything is almost imposible to find.

Although I'm a big fan of Shimano 600 gear, I gotta say, some of the 'lower level', cheaper stuff kinda feels better. The A400 (Exage) DT shifters are probably the best I've used and definitely nicer than 600. The throw of the lever is a bit heavier, but much more tactile and reassured. Exage Action brake levers also have a nicer feel in the hand than 600, with a super nice dimpled brake hood. Finally, the shifts on the RD-1050 rear derailleur are suuuper crisp, while it also looks amazing. NB: I've not used any retro Dura Ace gear.

My first road bike was 90's trek frame with downtube shifters. It was a joy to ride

From my experience, there is no need to back off and then rethighten the mounting bolt when switching between fric and indexed. The mechanism is meant to be operated without tools, even while riding i think!!!

A nice simple road bike. Sucks that the modern industry has opted to go digital.

That’s one beautiful bike, I love the old school steel bikes, so comfortable & fast. I have a 1993 Giant w/105 & it still shifts perfectly, sometimes we do an old school road ride as a group & it’s a blast. New sub here from Philly!

I rode Mavic Open Pro clincher rims in the late 80's and early 90's, laced to Campy Athena hubs. Very nice wheels.

that fit is absolutely fire

Subscribed! Keep 'em coming.

I think the main advantages of down tube shifters are reliability and simplicity. My first road bike was a Raleigh Technium trilite with down tube shifters.

Beautiful roads and bikes...but those chemtrails😮

05:45 Ah! Watching this video because I thought my front 600 lever was broken because it wouldn't go parallel to the down tube but I guess it's an intentional design.

You really rock!! Amazing!!!!!

Got any stories of researching info on a bike part, and the top searches were forums with completely false info? Let me know!

Thank you for the update. I’m running 10 speed gearing with Shimano 600 (6200) friction shifters in my 1985 Schwinn Tempo. It took a few rides to get used to the narrow spacing. But now I am used to it.

Very nice bike NOS! What's that frame? If you are into friction shifting, keep your eyes peeled for Simplex D/T shifters. They are a unique non slip design, much sought after back in the 70s, but unobtanium in Europe because of the market dominance of Campag who were doing their all with importer tie up deals to try to keep the Japanese out. BTW I'll tell you because most people have never heard of this guy. I have a mint original condition 1977 Flema Campionissimo build number 5 in my collection. Fritz Fleck, Mannheim Germany was a very, very eccentric one man show who only built for select riders in the national teams. Had to win gold first, & only then did they get the bike. By the mid 70s he was an absolute master with his exquisite steel craftsmanship. Check him out. I've only ever seen one other Campionissimo, its in Minnesota, on full gen1 Dura Ace. These are SSL frames, with such delicate lug work & tiny fork crowns. German reserve, nothing like the showy Italians. I would not trade mine for 3 Colnago Supers. I also bought in all the spares & consumables to keep it running long into the future......Western Australia.

Just out of curiosity I bought the Dia Comp ENE CICLO 11 speed friction shifters. I'm curious if I can run a 12 speed cassette around 11-40 or maybe 11-36. My crankset is Dura ace 7701 with a Stages power meter and Miche chainrings at 52 38. Currently My bike has 8 speed downtube shifters that are the new SL-R400. It's fun to experiment like that. Great channel and video by the way.

Friction shifting is so stupidly easy but it does suck in noisy traffic tho....and yeah, just pedal harder 👍

I have shimano 105 Dt shifters from the Champione Del Mondo Colorado Springs 1986-87 Bianchi - they seem to work well, but are there other much better options? I have only this one datapoint so for all I know they could be terrible 😅

I think,sti are much better, but i very like 105 5500 or ultegra 6500 crank and bottom bracket.It's masterpiece:Look like retro and very reliable

Oh yah Your my kind of cyclist. No need for the latest and greatest to enjoy riding your bike fast hard and fun. My Devinci Melenium SL is maybe 20 years old and it's the fastest most responsive bike I ever rode. I grew up on down tube shifters. They were friction shifters. I don't recall it taking me more than a summer to be totally at ease with them. And I loved just smashing the shifter down and jumping into my smallest gear cog! Now with my Tiagra STI shifters there is a different joy of a finger touch and shifting with such ease like an F1 race car. In the end it's all about riding my bike and the pure fun it brings. It's not about the marginal gains and the overpriced components. $3000 carbon wheels, what nonsense is that!

old equipment is a lot better ....

Excelente video, pero lo detuve para comentar esto porque me indignó que hayas dicho que tener memoria muscular con los downtube shifters te llevó años. A mí literalmente me llevó minutos. Realmente veo imposible que no seas conciente de en qué velocidad vas cuando andas en bicicleta. Creo que la gran mayoría, sin ser profesionales, sabemos en qué "gear" estamos solo con el cálculo mental y la relacion entre cantidad de vueltas del plato, metros recorridos y velocidad.

Campag would beat both.