Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Colorado Springs
Posts: 699
Bikes: Gunnar Crosshairs, Giant Trance, Felt Breed, Marin SS MTB, Felt Pyre BMX bike, oldschool GT trials bike
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If there is no resistance at all in the lever it is not a cable issue at all. Its actually a very easy thing to fix and is fairly common when bikes dont get ridden alot or in cold weather. There is a pawl inside the shifter that catches teeth when you push the shift lever moving the cable. Alot of times that pawl will quit moving freely which will keep it from engaging which in turn keeps it from moving the cable at all.
I have saved a number of shifters the owners were expecting to replace by cleaning them out by spraying some brake clean from auto parts stores. Just spray it into the hole that you replace cables through while moving the shifter. If that does not work pull the bottom cover off the shifter and find the pawl I am talking about and taking a pick or sharpened spoke move it back and forth while spraying it with brake clean.
Hope this helps, I have saved alot of shifters by doing this and it only takes about 10 mins to do.