Best shifters for small hands?

Wabanaki · Dec 6, 2020

My wife recently bought a used Specialized Stumpjumper mountain bike - her first mountain bike, although she is an experienced road biker. She has a real problem with the thumb shifters such that after 30 minutes or so her hand is really sore (and numb too) and it even stays painful for several days afterwards. The shifters are Shimano Deore LX M-571.

The main problem seems to be the length of throw, such that she really has to stretch out her thumb to effect the shift. It looks like she has to move the shifter through about 90 degrees to shift, which seems a lot more than what I need to do on my bike (with Sram X0 shifters).

I moved the shifters as close as possible to the handlebar grips to try and make it easier and also rotated them for what seemed like the best ergonomics. I also replaced the shifter cables in case the old ones were stretchy. That all helped a little but not really enough.

So are there any other adjustments that I can try? Or alternatively are there other shifters I can install that will have a much shorter (and lighter) throw? Or is the issue more likely to be at the derailleur end?

Thanks for any help - I am new to mountain biking so am not familiar with all the drivetrain options.

jestep · Dec 7, 2020

How many times is she shifting in a 30 minute period? I'm just curious as to what it's taking to cause pain and numbness. I almost think she may be biking with more of a road bike mentality of maintaining a set cadence, which would cause her to shift a lot more than might be expected, but obviously I have no clue how or what you guys are riding so just wanted to get an idea of how many shifts she would be doing in a 30 minute period.

This is a 9sp drivetrain correct?

I don't think there's a ton you can do without swapping out of the groupset entirely. You'll typically get smoother shifting with XT or XTR, but the shifting distance is likely going to be the same. You could also try swapping the rear derailleur for a rapid rise from the same era. They were a bit gimmicky, but actually do make the shifting easier, but still won't affect the distance the levers have to move.

SRAM used a different pull ratio on their rear derailleurs, so even if you have a 9sp SRAM, it's going to feel very different than an equivalent drivetrain from shimano. But again, would require swapping out at least the rear shifter and derailleur to change.

Harold · Dec 7, 2020

Grip shifters or electronic will definitely solve that.

Short of addressing any mechanical problems that are making the bike harder to shift, there's really not much that can be done on that old stuff. SRAM gives the ability to adjust the thumb paddle position on some of its higher end shifters. I had a 10spd XX one that offered this adjustment. But it didn't change the amount of throw required to shift, really.

Most of these options would require a wholesale drivetrain change. Even the Archer, which would work on the existing rear derailleur, is 1x specific. So you're looking at spending a bit of money to make any bigger changes to address this.

For that matter, if using her thumb is that difficult, it makes me think that there are some problems there and that maybe she ought to see a doctor about them.

RS VR6 · Dec 7, 2020

If the shifter is on the outboard side of the brake lever...you can always try moving to the inboard side. If the bike has some long brake levers...that can work.

I've got small hands and use the ends of the grips. I've always had to move my levers as close to the grips as possible.

noapathy · Dec 7, 2020

I had that problem with another brand's shifter that had quite a bit of free movement before it started pulling the cable. I don't know if the LX was like that, but I reduced it by rotating it on the bar so it was easier to reach, but eventually swapped it out with an XT. This was on 11spd stuff so YMMV, but definitely play around with the location.

A pic or 2 of the current setup (possibly one with her hand in position she rides in) would be helpful for interwebs diagnostics.

idividebyzero · Dec 7, 2020

X01 and XX1 shifters can change the lever angle and have a very light throw, for older drivetrains theres grip shifters

banjor · Dec 7, 2020

Switching to 9-speed grip shifters will probably be a good choice. SRAM Centera grip shifters are 2:1 ratio and work with Shimano derailleurs.

Wabanaki · Dec 8, 2020

Thanks for the inputs.

I had thought about swapping the brake and shifter positions - it's an easy (and free) swap so I will try that and see if it makes a difference.

It is an older 9 speed setup - happy to upgrade to something more modern if it helps with the thumb pain issue but don't want to get into big $$$'s if it doesn't make much difference in that regard.

Grip shifters would seem to make sense. Any downsides to grip shifters vs. thumb levers?We are very much occasional recreational riders so don't need the very best gear out there, but just need something so she can get in the right gear quickly, like if you come round a blind corner on some singletrack and suddenly have a steep uphill in from of you.

Jayem · Dec 8, 2020

Harold said:
Grip shifters or electronic will definitely solve that..

This is the most reasonable solution. The newer higher end Shimano shifters actually take MORE force. The SRAM shifters still take a good bit on the downshifts, just like Shimano. You are fighting the derailleur spring when downshifting, so the longer the lever, the better your leverage, but the greater your throw at the same time. The SRAM will shift through more gears when downshifting, but that takes an incredible amount of throw and it's usually not practical to push the lever that far.

Gripshift or electronic shifting. I use GS on one of my fatbikes and it's outstanding.

New cables and housing is worth a try, often cable bends and improper routing can increase the necessary force, along with contamination.

kapusta · Dec 10, 2020

If she is having to push really far to get a single shift, then the issue maybe be that the shifter is gummed up, and it is missing the first (or even second) shift.

This shifter should be able to shift 2 or 3 gears at a time with the thumb lever. The farther you push, the more gears it shifts.

What can happen as these shifters get older is the grease inside them gets really thick and hardens some, and prevents the lever from engaging when you press it, and so it just moves past without shifting. Then it gets to the next shift position, and that one catches. I may not be explaining this well.

A friend of mine recently had this exact problem with on old (2003) LX shifter (having to push really far to get it to shift). I cleaned it out with DW-40 and re-lubed with tri-flow spray and that solved the issue.

I’ve had this happen on old set of Ultegra 9 speed brifters as well. Same solution worked.

You can tell if this is the problem if when you push the lever, it goes a ways before you feel resistance. You should feel resistance almost as soon as you start moving the lever.

Best shifters for small hands?

Wabanaki

jestep

Harold

RS VR6

noapathy

idividebyzero

banjor

Wabanaki

Jayem

kapusta

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