Conference noted::bicycle

You will need to replace both the Duopar rear derailleur and the SunTour
 shifters. I had my bike converted to Shimano index shifting at Frank's
    Spoke and Wheel in Waltham. Sheldon Brown did it. It cost over $100
    but I am delighted with it. No more missed shifts!
    
    I think it works by metering out a certain length of cable for each
    gear. Thus, it's very dependable until the cable stretches. But
    they use a special quality cable. You can tell an SIS-equiped bike
    at a glance because there's always a small cylinder that sits between
    the shift levers. That's where the mechanism sits.
    
    I think you'll like it, in spite of the cost.
    
    Pat
    .
    
    
    
       
    

    I recently converted to SIS and was advised by several people that
    the shifters, chain, derailleur, cables and freewheel all have to
    work together.  
    
    The key seems to be the shifters which are indexed to match the
    spacing of the cogs on the freewheel.  So, these are the minimum
    pieces that you have to change.  Any chain that works well with
    the freewheel to give quick smooth shifts should be OK.  Same
    for the derailluers.  The combination of cables and derailluer
    must have very little slack and be adjustable to line up exactly
    with the fixed indexed points in the shifters and the freewheel.
    
    Good luck.
    
    Bob

    	I agree with Bob, all the components should work together,
    including the chain.  I had Goodales convert my Cannondale to
    SIS last year.  Exact same conversion your thinking about.  They
    replaced everything, freewheel, rear dreailer, levers and a Uniglide
    chain to work well with the Shimano freewheel.  Only thing they
    left was the fron derailleur.  The bike might look odd with Shimano
    everything but a Suntour Front Derailleur, but if it ant broke don't
    fix it.  It probabily would have been worth the extra $12 for a
    600 SIS but on top of the $125.00 conversion I couldn't see it at
    the time, so when I had Ron convert my Nashbar touring bike this
    Spring, I did the exact same thing, Shimano everything but the
    Suntour Front Derailleur.  BTY the difference in the exchange rate
    was a big supprise.  The conversion cost $15 more on the Nashbar.
    Could possibly be because of the Dieore components.  In any event
    I'd do it again in a minute.  I used to think the Sountour components
    on my Nashbar were super smooth, requiring a minimum of feathering
    but now, theres no feathering at all, and I find myself shifting
    in places that I wouldn't dare before for fear of a missed shift
    (Mont Vernon Hill....on the way up) and lost momentum.  Well worth
    the cost and effort.
    							Jerry

    	RE: -1
    
    	C'mon! No one in his/her right mind would ride up the
    	Mont Vernon hill. When we attempt it in the car, the
    	kids and wife get out and walk. 8-)>
    
    	Scott (Jerry, I don't know you, but may I say - you're nuts)
                8-)>

    re .3, .4, and .5	Whasis Mont Vernon place ?
    
    	Reg	{drool, slobber, slobber....}
    

Mont Vernon's a town just north of Milford, NH, on Route 13.  I wouldn't
call it the worst hill hereabouts but it's one of the better known ones.

ed

    
    I'd say the minimum you'd need to change would be shifters, freewheel
    and rear derailleur. I'm not so sure about the chain. I changed
    to SIS about six months ago and it's a massive improvement! It's
    especially good on the lowest gears, so as someone else said, you
    can shift on hills you would be scared to previously.
    
    Cable stretch does affect shifting after a time. Its effect is to make
    it easier to change to a higher gear throughout the gear range, and
    more difficult to change to a lower one. But adjustment is easy. 
    
    The one grumble I have is with the Shimano Uniglide chain I bought.
    It seems to rust up and become stiff after the slightest amount
    of rain - and in a British winter you get more than a slight amount
    of rain. I've washed the thing in white spirit several times, and
    poured LPS3 on it, and it's still stiff in places. I used Sedis
    chains previously, and never had trouble with them.
    
    Rod

    	RE: 612.7
    
    	Reg,
    
    	I have an '84 Ford LTD wagon. With the family in the car
    	(me, 1 wife, and two children), I can barely make it up
    	the hill. I cannot imagine trying to ride up it. Sounds
    	like a hill for a masochist (like you).
    
    	Scott

< Note 612.9 by AMUN::CRITZ "Pavarotti loses 85" >
                           -< A hill for masochists >-

>    	(me, 1 wife, and two children), I can barely make it up
>    	the hill. I cannot imagine trying to ride up it. Sounds
>    	like a hill for a masochist (like you).
    
Scott,

   Its not really that bad.  Heck, we train on it!  I'd much rather ride up it 
than down it.  Got the frame shakes so bad once I thought I was gonna die.
Reg, you must come up and ride it sometime.  BTW, Reg, are you still thinking 
about doing BMB?

Kevin

Just returned from my first major tour with SIS (10 days cycling San
Francisco to L.A. on the verrrry hilly Pacific Coast Highway).  Used
my new Specialized Sequoia with Shamino S.I.S (600 freewheel, Deore
derraileur). 

SIS is not perfect, but it is much more perfect than I am without
it.  With a reasonably lubed chain, it seldom misses; a dry chain is
no catastrophe either.  Now have over 1500 miles with only two minor
barrel screw adjustments. 

It is important that SIS be installed correctly in the first place!
I had problems until the dealer got it right.

The dealer equipped the bike with a Sedi Sport chain (the SIS was an
upgrade), they like it better on SIS than uniglide.  I'd say they
are likely correct on the sedi sport judging by its performance. 

	~Mike

    Which variety of Sedisport chain?  When I tried to use a regular
    old black Sedisport with my Dura Ace cogs, it refused to stay
    in gear, skipped every 10 links or so, and ground horribly.  
    I wasn't even using SIS features!  The problem was the angled
    teeth on the cogs -- the Sedisport didn't have wide enough 
    links to accommodate them.
    
    MATT
    (who's looking for an alternate to $35 Dura Ace chains)

I also couldn't imagine $35 for a chain.  With my Dura-Ace (13-26 7 speed) I
just use the cheaper narrow uniglide.  I just past 5000 miles on it this past
weekend, still the original chain.  The shifts are fast and it's quite, unlike
the normal spaced uniglide which shifted great but made a lot of noise.  As far
as rusting goes, I live in California where it never rains for 8 months per
year (and very little this winter as well).  However I clean it by spraying it,
as well as the chainrings and anything else in the way with JUNK (an auto
engine degreaser) and then spraying it with a hose.  Not a bit of problem. 
                                                                               

    I broke a normal uniglide on an out-of-the-saddle climb after only
    1000 miles.  That didn't exactly build up my confidence in the 
    600 Uniglide chain.  I'll stick with the Dura Ace chain (which
    is so hard it broke my chain breaker), unless somebody can point
    me to a Sedisport that'll work with my drive train.  (Sedisport
    chains stretch, but at least they don't break!)
    
    MATT

Matt:

I didn't know that Sedisport chains come in different models.

Mine is gold, but my assumption was that they were all the same 
except for the color.

If there are real differences, what are they?

	~Mike

    
    	re Mont Vernon;  OK, now I know where you're all talking
    about.  48 x 19 fixed last time I did it, musta churned 400 RPM on
    the way back down thought the legs were going to come unscrewed
    at the hip joints.
    
    	Reg
    
    {Y'had me worried for a while, thought there was a good un I'd 
    missed]
    
    

I fitted a Sedis chain last night, and the indexing still works fine;
there is no discernible performance difference from Uniglide II chain.

However, I hope there will be a discernible difference when it comes to
rust resistance. 

My chain-breaker likes the Sedis chain better.

Rod

For more info on a do-it-yourself upgrade to SIS, see note 37, esp 37.6,.7