I have DA STI shifters for winter riding on the trainer and for short, hilly tri courses. I also have very small hands and the DA’s overwhelm my little grubby mitts. Anyone have experience with Shimano ST-R600 Short Reach STI levers? They are supposed to be smaller, and adjustable. Are they even close to comparable to DA? At my age (50) and ability (front middle of age group pack) comfort is more important than DA quality - or am I wrong about that? Do they rattle like some models of Ultegra STI?
Brother Bonk
PS - my hands are of such size that my swim stroke has been compared to rowing with the wrong end of the oar… perhaps this is the year I will challenge Aztec for worst swimmer in the forum…
I was checking out the Specialized website. Under accesories, they have a little device that will bring the brake levers closer to the bar. it might solve your problem.
Thanks, a very good idea, but the problem is not just the distance to the levers, it’s the entire setup. The gums are (to my mini-digits) huge and I lose the feel I used to have with pre-STI levers which were thinner. I will check out the Specialized site regardless, thanks for the head’s up.
my daughter has a set of those. they actually ARE ultegra levers, tho hers do not rattle. the only thing different about them is a little plastic shim which is mounted up where the lever blade interfaces with the body. the shim does not allow the lever to go all the way to the body - hence it is “short reach”. if you were so inclined, you could make your own such shim from milk jug plastic, or maybe small strips of rawhide, or some other creative thing and presto - custom short reach DA levers.
bb. i do not think modern ultegra’s are appreciably thinner in the body than DA. you mentioned some sort of old school body as being thinner than sti era stuff - if that is what you want then the st-600’s are not what you are looking for. the hoods/bodies are the exact same as standard ultegra.
however, i am fairly certain that dia-compe short reach levers are still available from certain places - check harris cyclery/sheldon brown. you could use bar-end shifters . . . . . . . . . .
scroll down a little ways. cheap !! slap some sweet bar-cons on there with them and there ya go, comfy sized down old-school coolness goin on. altho - i suspect they are again the same lever body with a little shim up at the blade/body interface.
I do use bar-ends with my aero bar set-up, but have a bad neck so STI’s help when riding the trainer. I’m also more comfortable with STI’s on really hilly courses. Thanks for input. I’ll probably just have to find a set of short-reach 600’s to check out, unless somebody knows from experience that they are a tad bit smaller than DA… once upon a time I think I remember heading that Campy STI stuff is smaller…
ok bro - i just went out and looked. if anything, the lever bodys on the ultegra’s on my wife’s bike, and the exact same lever body’s on the st-600 levers on the kid’s bike are, if anything, actually a wee might thicker around the middle than my DA9’s.
so, you either gotta suck it up and go with the st-600’s - expensive - almost obscenely so considering all you are really gonna get vs your current levers is a tiny little plastic shim . . . . . . . . . . . or scope out a set and then craft yer own shim ( that is what i would do). or, shoot - maybe you can find a set of the st-600’s someplace ( demmerly’s shop ?? ) and use a leatherman to quickly plink the shims outta there and beat it the hell out the door before anybody notices !!
Since I live in Oregon, Demmerly’s shack is a bit of a stretch but I think I’m discovering that I’m not gonna find much better than my DA STI levers. My LBS is very helpful, probably because I’m old and they feel sorry for me, perhaps they can scam me some shims. Or, I can try to find some finger extenders for my own little sausage digits…
Thanks for taking the time to check out the hoods on your wife’s and kid’s bikes, I really appreaciate that.
but I think I’m discovering that I’m not gonna find much better than my DA STI levers. My LBS is very helpful, probably because I’m old and they feel sorry for me, perhaps they can scam me some shims. Or, I can try to find some finger extenders for my own little sausage digits…