Bicycle Mechanics - Rapid Fire Problem

My bike hasn't been used for about a year, and I pulled it out to find out the rapid fire isn't working right. It moves back and forth, but doesn't catch and change the gears at all. So it is basically stuck in one gear. Is there a way to repair this or is it just over the hill? Thanks

I have overhauled rapidfire shifters in the past with great success. I would only do it if you have access to misc. shifter parts. Most of the repairs I've done are with return springs and small circlips (one of the perks of being a mechanic).

It's probably better to purchase a new one.:D

I would not reccomend taking them apart if you have never done it. There are no replacement parts available for them, and if they totally come apart upon dissasembly then to get it back working correctly will be interesting.
You would be beter off procuring new shifters or better yet switch to a more simplistic grip shifter.

Originally posted by Resident
I have overhauled rapidfire shifters in the past with great success. I would only do it if you have access to misc. shifter parts. Most of the repairs I've done are with return springs and small circlips (one of the perks of being a mechanic).

It's probably better to purchase a new one.:D

Yeah I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the springs. If i put some pressure on the spring with a screwdriver it catches. They are hard to take apart so I didn't really try yet.

Try spraying some teflon lubricant in it to see if that frees it up.

This is what I would do. Loosen your cables first. Then spray some serious cleaner in there.(Carbeurator or Brake cleaner) While holding the shift cable tight action the shifter up and down a bunch. If you are lucky it will clear and start to shift, spray it again and shift some more. This works about three out of four times, especially if the shifters worked when you put it up. After you free it up, spray some light lube like tri-flow in there.

Make sure that your cables are not stuck. If they are, it feels like the shifter is not even trying to do anything.