Using a bar end shifter with an Alfine hub.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

"That silver gizmo on the downtube shifter boss is a travel agent,
intended to make short-pull brake levers work with v-brakes (aka
linear pull). Coincidentally, it also amplifies the cable pull the
correct amount to make an 8sp bar-end shifter index for the Alfine/
Nexus 8sp hub. It works surprisingly well in the friction mode, too. "

Thoughts?

On Mar 21, 5:55 pm, wrote:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

"That silver gizmo on the downtube shifter boss is a travel agent,
intended to make short-pull brake levers work with v-brakes (aka
linear pull). Coincidentally, it also amplifies the cable pull the
correct amount to make an 8sp bar-end shifter index for the Alfine/
Nexus 8sp hub. It works surprisingly well in the friction mode, too. "

Thoughts?

Wake Sheldon from his dirt nap, he's gotta see this. Neat!

On Mar 21, 3:55*pm, wrote:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

"That silver gizmo on the downtube shifter boss is a travel agent,
intended to make short-pull brake levers work with v-brakes (aka
linear pull). Coincidentally, it also amplifies the cable pull the
correct amount to make an 8sp bar-end shifter index for the Alfine/
Nexus 8sp hub. It works surprisingly well in the friction mode, too. "

*Thoughts?

Waitasec...This means that a 10-speed Campy Ergopower lever should
work, too, since it has identical cable travel per click as Shimano 8-
Speed...Aw, man...I might have to try this!

In article
,
wrote:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

"That silver gizmo on the downtube shifter boss is a travel agent,
intended to make short-pull brake levers work with v-brakes (aka
linear pull). Coincidentally, it also amplifies the cable pull the
correct amount to make an 8sp bar-end shifter index for the Alfine/
Nexus 8sp hub. It works surprisingly well in the friction mode, too. "

Thoughts?

Yeah. It's like the holy grail for a bunch of hub-gear fans like myself.
More photos and a complete discussion of the solution, please.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

wrote:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

"That silver gizmo on the downtube shifter boss is a travel agent,
intended to make short-pull brake levers work with v-brakes (aka
linear pull). Coincidentally, it also amplifies the cable pull the
correct amount to make an 8sp bar-end shifter index for the Alfine/
Nexus 8sp hub. It works surprisingly well in the friction mode, too. "

Thoughts?

Yeah, I think I know what I'm going to be doing to my commuter in a few
months!

\\paul
--
Paul M. Hobson
..:change the f to ph to reply:.

wrote in message
...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

Thoughts?

OMG: this is the Holy Grail. I was puzzling as to how to build a
road/commuter bike around the Alfine Hub. 2 problems: the first of which is
how to deal with the cable travel problem of the Alfine flat bar shifters.
This is the solution. I have some Centaur 10-speed Ergopower shifters ready
to mate with the hub through the Travel Agent.

The second problem is how to get the Alfine hub. Here in Canuckland, buying
through an official Shimano distribution channel (the dreaded LBS and our
even more dreaded wholesale cartel) is simply not an option. Hideously
expensive - not even worth asking for a price quote. And Shimano has been
very naughty in squealching grey-market and mail-order sales, a key reason
why I have not bought Shimano for 5 years.

So Plan B is to mail-order an entire Alfine-equipped bike from the US, ship
it here, and then scavange the hub. Then reassemble the mail-order bike
with a derailleur-equipped rear wheel and shifters and resell it privately.

But I do not know if an Alfine-equipped bike would even feature a derailleur
hanger. Comments, and what bike should I buy?

On Sun, 23 Mar 2008 03:23:58 +0000, Dave Mayer wrote:

wrote in message
news:1fc0f450-e980-49d0-
...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

Thoughts?

OMG: this is the Holy Grail. I was puzzling as to how to build a
road/commuter bike around the Alfine Hub. 2 problems: the first of
which is how to deal with the cable travel problem of the Alfine flat
bar shifters. This is the solution. I have some Centaur 10-speed
Ergopower shifters ready to mate with the hub through the Travel Agent.

The second problem is how to get the Alfine hub. Here in Canuckland,
buying through an official Shimano distribution channel (the dreaded LBS
and our even more dreaded wholesale cartel) is simply not an option.
Hideously expensive - not even worth asking for a price quote. And
Shimano has been very naughty in squealching grey-market and mail-order
sales, a key reason why I have not bought Shimano for 5 years.

I just got one from Harris Cyclery:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/shimano-alfine.html

It's also available from Hiawatha Cyclery:

http://tinyurl.com/32p7bv

Granted, I'm in the US, but does Shimano really forbid its US licensees
from shipping one to you in Canada?



So Plan B is to mail-order an entire Alfine-equipped bike from the US,
ship it here, and then scavange the hub. Then reassemble the mail-order
bike with a derailleur-equipped rear wheel and shifters and resell it
privately.

But I do not know if an Alfine-equipped bike would even feature a
derailleur hanger. Comments, and what bike should I buy?

In article ,
Gary Young wrote:

On Sun, 23 Mar 2008 03:23:58 +0000, Dave Mayer wrote:

wrote in message
news:1fc0f450-e980-49d0-
...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

Thoughts?

OMG: this is the Holy Grail. I was puzzling as to how to build a
road/commuter bike around the Alfine Hub. 2 problems: the first of
which is how to deal with the cable travel problem of the Alfine flat
bar shifters. This is the solution. I have some Centaur 10-speed
Ergopower shifters ready to mate with the hub through the Travel Agent.

The second problem is how to get the Alfine hub. Here in Canuckland,
buying through an official Shimano distribution channel (the dreaded LBS
and our even more dreaded wholesale cartel) is simply not an option.
Hideously expensive - not even worth asking for a price quote. And
Shimano has been very naughty in squealching grey-market and mail-order
sales, a key reason why I have not bought Shimano for 5 years.

I just got one from Harris Cyclery:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/shimano-alfine.html

It's also available from Hiawatha Cyclery:

http://tinyurl.com/32p7bv

Granted, I'm in the US, but does Shimano really forbid its US licensees
from shipping one to you in Canada?

Many won't ship over the border (there are very few approved "Shimano
online" dealers), and the shipping in any case can be high. In this
case, the problem is simply finding the parts, since this is the first
I've seen that Harris (one of the few approved...&c.) has them in stock.
But OEMs have been selling Alfine-equipped bikes for some time.

So Plan B is to mail-order an entire Alfine-equipped bike from the US,
ship it here, and then scavange the hub. Then reassemble the mail-order
bike with a derailleur-equipped rear wheel and shifters and resell it
privately.

But I do not know if an Alfine-equipped bike would even feature a
derailleur hanger. Comments, and what bike should I buy?

I think you'll abandon this now that you can get the hub via Sheldon,
but the Bianchi Milano Alfine is the obvious choice:

http://www.bianchiusa.com/08_milano_alfine.html

Not too expensive, and I'd bet that if converted to a singlespeed or
three-speed, the result would be very saleable. Downside is that bike
uses 26" wheels, so you'll be rebuilding two wheels if you're making a
road bike.

Another comment: I don't know, but find out if the Shimano drivetrain
has any magical parts that are only included with the shifter. You may
need to buy the shifter kit just to get the magic clickbox that goes on
the end of the hub or something.

If they would ship it, I would see Harris "San Jos8" as the perfect bike
concept: buy that, and there's your perfect 8-speed commuter with room
for fenders. But technically it has the red-band hub, not the new Alfine.

Personally, I think I want to take the hub, find the lightest hardtail
MTB frame around, and build a full-on rigid disc-equipped cyclocross
cheater bike for the muddy races.

Since locally, we can use MTBs in non-elite CX races, you could build a
rigid 26er, access all those lovely fat MTB knobbies, and have a machine
that would float over mud bogs, retain perfect braking in any
conditions, and never, ever miss a shift.

Of course, I'd put 7/8" drop bars on it just to mess with people's heads.

Final comment: I can't believe the Alfine has the same list as the red
band. It seems like one of the great deals in cycling.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

On Sun, 23 Mar 2008 05:42:31 +0000, Ryan Cousineau wrote:

In article ,
Gary Young wrote:

On Sun, 23 Mar 2008 03:23:58 +0000, Dave Mayer wrote:

wrote in message news:1fc0f450-e980-49d0-
...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

Thoughts?

OMG: this is the Holy Grail. I was puzzling as to how to build a
road/commuter bike around the Alfine Hub. 2 problems: the first of
which is how to deal with the cable travel problem of the Alfine flat
bar shifters. This is the solution. I have some Centaur 10-speed
Ergopower shifters ready to mate with the hub through the Travel
Agent.

The second problem is how to get the Alfine hub. Here in Canuckland,
buying through an official Shimano distribution channel (the dreaded
LBS and our even more dreaded wholesale cartel) is simply not an
option. Hideously expensive - not even worth asking for a price
quote. And Shimano has been very naughty in squealching grey-market
and mail-order sales, a key reason why I have not bought Shimano for
5 years.

I just got one from Harris Cyclery:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/shimano-alfine.html

It's also available from Hiawatha Cyclery:

http://tinyurl.com/32p7bv

Granted, I'm in the US, but does Shimano really forbid its US licensees
from shipping one to you in Canada?

Many won't ship over the border (there are very few approved "Shimano
online" dealers), and the shipping in any case can be high. In this
case, the problem is simply finding the parts, since this is the first
I've seen that Harris (one of the few approved...&c.) has them in stock.
But OEMs have been selling Alfine-equipped bikes for some time.

So Plan B is to mail-order an entire Alfine-equipped bike from the
US, ship it here, and then scavange the hub. Then reassemble the
mail-order bike with a derailleur-equipped rear wheel and shifters
and resell it privately.

But I do not know if an Alfine-equipped bike would even feature a
derailleur hanger. Comments, and what bike should I buy?

I think you'll abandon this now that you can get the hub via Sheldon,
but the Bianchi Milano Alfine is the obvious choice:

http://www.bianchiusa.com/08_milano_alfine.html

Not too expensive, and I'd bet that if converted to a singlespeed or
three-speed, the result would be very saleable. Downside is that bike
uses 26" wheels, so you'll be rebuilding two wheels if you're making a
road bike.

Another comment: I don't know, but find out if the Shimano drivetrain
has any magical parts that are only included with the shifter. You may
need to buy the shifter kit just to get the magic clickbox that goes on
the end of the hub or something.

No, most of what you need is included with the hub. The only necessary
item included with the shifter is the "inner cable fixing bolt unit"
pictured in these instructions (pdf file):

http://tinyurl.com/2jj82t

The unit is simple enough that you could probably jury rig something in
its place.



If they would ship it, I would see Harris "San Jos8" as the perfect bike
concept: buy that, and there's your perfect 8-speed commuter with room
for fenders. But technically it has the red-band hub, not the new
Alfine.

Personally, I think I want to take the hub, find the lightest hardtail
MTB frame around, and build a full-on rigid disc-equipped cyclocross
cheater bike for the muddy races.

Since locally, we can use MTBs in non-elite CX races, you could build a
rigid 26er, access all those lovely fat MTB knobbies, and have a machine
that would float over mud bogs, retain perfect braking in any
conditions, and never, ever miss a shift.

Of course, I'd put 7/8" drop bars on it just to mess with people's
heads.

Final comment: I can't believe the Alfine has the same list as the red
band. It seems like one of the great deals in cycling.

Dave Mayer Wrote:
wrote in message
...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hiawathacyclery/

Thoughts?

OMG: this is the Holy Grail. I was puzzling as to how to build a
road/commuter bike around the Alfine Hub. 2 problems: the first of
which is
how to deal with the cable travel problem of the Alfine flat bar
shifters.
This is the solution. I have some Centaur 10-speed Ergopower shifters
ready
to mate with the hub through the Travel Agent.

The second problem is how to get the Alfine hub. Here in Canuckland,
buying
through an official Shimano distribution channel (the dreaded LBS and
our
even more dreaded wholesale cartel) is simply not an option.
Hideously
expensive - not even worth asking for a price quote. And Shimano has
been
very naughty in squealching grey-market and mail-order sales, a key
reason
why I have not bought Shimano for 5 years.

So Plan B is to mail-order an entire Alfine-equipped bike from the US,
ship
it here, and then scavange the hub. Then reassemble the mail-order
bike
with a derailleur-equipped rear wheel and shifters and resell it
privately.

But I do not know if an Alfine-equipped bike would even feature a
derailleur
hanger. Comments, and what bike should I buy?

The Brodie Ocho has a der. hanger. But what do you consider hideously
expensive. (Warning. Crass commercial message.)I have Alfine hubs in
stock. PM me if you want pricing details.
Dan Burkhart
www.boomerbicycle.ca


--
Dan Burkhart