SRAM Shifter Diagnosis

We have received an e-mail from James Scott who has had SRAM on his Serotta for a while and has some very helpful suggestions for anyone out there who is having problems getting used to the “one tap” gear change. He also tells us why he would never go back to Shimano

Sam,

Read your snippet on SRAM shifting issues.

I think you might have missed the diagnosis on this one.

There are several advantages to using the SRAM drive train. In no particular order, a couple of advantages are: quicker shifting, lighter weight, and movable lever.

The last advantage is what I feel is the most critical in resolving the main issue that people seem to have regarding SRAM shifters.

If one leaves the lever in the plane parallel to the handlebars, the bike has a better chance to miss-shift. I think this is because we are all used to the greater gap between shifts of the other 2 big shifting companies.

SRAM Shifter

The SRAM shifters, on the other hand, pull so much cable, so the space between “clicks” is much less than we are used to.

The solution that I have found is to use the advantage of the movable lever and pull the lever slightly to you as you are shifting.

I find that I hit ~99% of my shifts this way. I have been using SRAM Force on my Serotta for about 4 weeks now and I will not go back to Shimano.

Using the movable lever is a boon for sprinters, as well.

Try this: when practicing a sprint, pull the lever all the way to the drop and grip it against the bar with your hand. Start your sprint and act like your hand is around a grip shift shifter. A slight rotation and you have just shifted a gear. I have done 4 shifts while standing using this procedure and not lost momentum at all…Jim.

“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.”
Marian Wright Edelma.

Hi Jim,
Thanks for your words of wisdom, it’s always nice, and in your case helpful, to receive e-mails. Readers like you have an ongoing experience with equipment that we can’t get, unless we can get our hands on bikes or kit for a long term test. This is usually not possible for expensive bikes; all we get is a quick play with new stuff at a bike show.

SRAM Mech

All our big articles are based on long term “hands on” experiences; we wouldn’t recommend something without having a good thorough test. As yet we have not managed to receive the SRAM groups for a long term test, so we are in debt to readers like yourself to find out the small details and pass on your findings.

If anyone else has comments or suggestions please send them in to us.

Thanks again Jim, nice work.