upgrading from friction shifters to STI

[Big_Red]

I've been thinking of upgrading the friction shifters on my 1989 Paconi to STI and i'd firstly like to know if i'm likely to run into any issues with doing this and want to know of anyone elses experiences in doing a changeover.

Last year i changed the wheelset on the bike which necessitated a change to a more modern drivechain, so i ended up getting a 10sp 105 (5700) cassette (12-27t), a ultegra 6600 rear derailleur and a 105 (5701) chain, all which work quite nicely with the Simplex downtube friction shifters, albeit with a bit of trimming needed when traversing across the gears on the cassette. I've been looking at picking up a 2nd hand set of either Dura Ace 7800/7801 or ultegra 6600 STI shifters for the conversion from ebay. I'm fairly sure i'll have to replace the existing Suntour Superbe Pro front derailleur, but i'm not sure what to go with. The chainrings are a Sugino 42/52 double, so i'm wondering if a DA 7800 FD will work. If anyone could let me know if this is just a pipe dream and trying a conversion would be a waste of time & money or I need to use different components it'd be most appreciated. If i can't get the gear for a decent price 2nd hand, i'm also looking at getting a set of 105 (5700) shifters for about AU$200 landed. A new FD would be another $25-$40 if 105/ultegra.

Oh, and would i be best to change out the brake set as well to match?

[__PG__]

You should do some more research on cable pull ratios and compatibility between various Shimano models.

Off the top of my head, some Dura Ace models were incompatible with Ultegra/105 derailleurs. In some instances this could be accommodated by altering the cable routing through the rear derailleur clamp.

Look at Sheldon Brown, there is a lot of information on which Shimano bits and compatible with what.

Otherwise play it safe and match the 6600 shifters to the 6600 rear derailleur.

[bigfriendlyvegan]

You'll need cable stops to go over the down tube shifter bosses. I got some from velo-orange, which aren't really pretty, but they do the job, and for $10 I couldn't argue.

[jillybean]

You shouldn't need to change the front derailleur. I am currently using a superbe pro one with 105 5700 shifters. Shimano changed the brake lever pull ratio on the 5700 sti levers so if you go with these you may also need to change your brakes. They are definitely not compatible with superbe pro brakes

[Big_Red]

Thanks for the suggestion about the cable stops BFG, i'd totally forgotten about those...

I'm intrigued with the thought that the FD would not need to be changed - it's a braze on so not a huge issue if i do need to change it.
I'm currently looking at an ebay auction(s) from a person nearby to me who is selling their 6600 groupset piecemeal. The brifters look
a little worse for wear cosmetically but should be mechanically sound. They have a 6600 FD & brake calipers as well and it just happens
to be payday when the auction finishes. Hopefully SWMBO won't notice the extra bits hanging off the bike.
If i buy the components then it is just a matter of getting the cable inners & outers & ripping off the old then replacing. Current brake
calipers are very old (but good) Royal S. Don't even know who made those, i've never come across anyone else with them.

Looking at your sig Jillybean i notice you have a 2007 Giant Yukon as well - is it the poo brown colour? I have one too.

[jillybean]

Looking at your sig Jillybean i notice you have a 2007 Giant Yukon as well - is it the poo brown colour? I have one too.

It is (the women's version) - wouldn't have been my choice of colour if I was buying a bike, but I was given this one. Have had it for a couple of months now and the colour has grown on me.

[Big_Red]

like the one here? - http://www2.giant-bicycles.com/en-au/bi ... tions_id=2

I'm 115kg and done jumps of over 1.5m high onto gravel on horse trails on that thing and it doesn't complain. Very strong bike.