In a message dated 12/31/2002 10:06:35 PM Eastern Standard Time, mitchell@gassworks.com writes:
> One of my more amusing parts failures was with these shifters. I was on a
> loaded tour up the California coast, got up very early one morning, and was
>
> more than a little tired and groggy. On one of my first uphills, I tried
> shifting down with the right lever. The front derailleur shifted. In my
> daze, I then tried using the left lever. The rear derailleur shifted. I
> thought I had entered some bizarre reversed universe until I noticed that
> the shifter's very thin clamp had broken. Each time I tried to shift, the
> shifter slipped down the down tube and slackened the cable for the other
> derailleur.
>
> The shifters were extremely light for their day, but I wouldn't recommend
> them unless light weight is your only goal.
>
Properly installed and maintained, these shifters have never been any less reliable than any other I've used. There were also factory braze-ons for them and we even installed both brazed and cold bosses for them- a simple water bottle boss was all it took. One model 'topmount' lever set had a cam mechanism (the name is temporarily escaping me) that trimmed the front derailleur when the rear lever was actuated.
Larry Black
Maryland