Restoring Vintage Bike Parts

Shimano SL-M700
Deer Head Brake Levers 1986

History

Shimano SL-M700 Deer Head shifters are a relic of the mountain bike pioneering days. They were manufactured from late 1982 to 1986 and came on low to high-end mountain bikes.

In the beginning, the two most commonly used mountain bike shifters were Shimano SL-M700 and Suntour Power Thumb shifters.

These are friction base ratchet shifters and will work with 5/6 speed freewheels and double or triple front chainring setups. They are compatible with a wide variety of Suntour and Shimano derailleur's up to the mid 1990's as long as the rear drive train does not exceed 6 speeds.

In my opinion they do not perform as well as the Suntour Power Thumb shifters, but they look much nicer when polished up and not so utilitarian.

For a short time they were available in black on the Ritchey Commando mountain bike.

Tools for the job

1. 6mm Allen/hex wrench

2. Micro flathead screw driver

3. WD-40

4. A super fine file

5. Emery cloth with a spray bottle of water

6. 0 super fine steel wool

7. Soft cotton rag (old t-shirts work best)

8. Mothers Aluminum Polish

9. No7 Chrome Polish

Step 1 Disassembly

Once the top is off and the top washer is removed we can access and remove the snap ring. Using a micro flathead screw driver, slide the driver into the space between the main post and the snap ring. Gently twist the driver while prying up. Do this to both sides and then push the center post down. NOTE: (The snap ring may want to spring off with some force so be sure to cover it so you don't loose it.) Reassembling is as easy as reversing the disassembly. The

Step 2 Organize

Lay the parts out in the order you removed them and clean them with WD-40. WD-40 is a terrible lubricant, but it makes for a great parts cleaner.

Step 3 Clean and Remove Rust

Lightly steel wool the steel screws to remove any surface rust and polish with chrome polish. Do not get polish on the aluminum. The ammonia in the chrome polish  will oxidize aluminum and turn it black.

Note: The top washer that says Shimano on it is chrome plated plastic, use only WD-40 to clean it.

Step 4 Remove Deep Scratches

If there are any gouges or deep scratches on the aluminum, use a fine file to cut down the surrounding material and then use emery cloth moisten with water to sand out the roughness left behind by the file. Do a tiny bit at a time, you would be surprised how fast and easy it is to ruin the surface. If the gouge is too deep, then you might have to leave it there or you could fill it in with aluminum weld using a MIG welder.

Be careful, the surface can become wavy if it it is not sanded correctly.

Step 5

Using Aluminum polish, I recommend using Mothers Aluminum Polish sold in most automotive stores, polish the aluminum. A buffing wheel works great, but doing it by hand is easy too. Aluminum is soft so it will polish quickly.

If there are black spots showing up after you finished polishing, then there is still corrosion present. The polish will turn the corrosion black and it will look terrible.

Step 6 Assembly

Use medium weight regular grease to lubricate the small spring that fits in the bottom of the base and by doing so will also keep it in place during assembly. This spring with its T-shaped top is what keeps the shifter from sliding out of gear.

Be sure to install the large thin plastic washer pad before installing any parts. Then install the metal half moon like bottom washer in the correct position as shown here, smooth rounded edges facing up. The large spring that goes into the handle has a lock slot and it does not make any difference which slot on the handle it goes into. 

Lightly grease the larger spring and its base. Do not grease or lubricate any other parts as they will only serve to attract grit.

Finally, replace the top. The star-lock washer is a generic washer available at most hardware stores. Although, the lock washer may not look like it belongs to the shifter, it is factory and required.