Bicycle Mechanics - Front Left Shimano ULTEGRA 10 brake/Shifter Freezing?

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thedips
11-18-07, 09:52 PM
ehh not getting many replies in RBR... so ill try here..

just got my bike redone with new housing and cables a few weeks ago at my LBS.. and ive been seeing some problems...

SHIMANO ULTEGRA 10 shifters... sometimes my left shifter freezes up and i cant shift from my big to small chain ring.. when i press the lever in... it wont click feels... like its stuck... when i apply firm pressure it feels like ill break it... then i dont know how.. but later on i get it un-stuck and it will shift up and down fine... seems hard to replicate... as it is right now its stuck again... and i will leave it alone until i fix it.

one of the LBS mechanics checked the derailleur cables seem fine... said it could be something with the shifters but told me to come back later to see another tech who could better help me out with it...

just wanna come here and ask the forum and if anyone knows anything that i could have possibly overlooked please let me know..

dr.raleigh
11-19-07, 04:35 AM
Sounds like your cables need lubed. My shifter was sticking and I lubed it up, now it works like butter.
Severian
11-19-07, 01:38 PM
Another option, and one that I've seen as common in my practice as a mechanic:

Your shifter itself is gunked up. As I said, this seems pretty common to Shimano brifters in my experience.

Here's what you do. Get some spray degreaser (Finishline Speed Degreaser is what I use) and spray out the inside of the shifter body (through the cable ports is best) let it sit a second and then use the air hose from a compressor to blow out the shifter body (don't worry, it won't hurt anything) and get rid of the gunk. Then spray in some "dry" lubricant like a teflon lube. Things will probably work better after that.

tellyho
11-19-07, 05:10 PM
Nothing to do with the shifter, which I would do both of the above to, but I just recently read an article about the "needs lubed" usage, which I've never heard before. I guess it's a Pennsylvania usage. Funny to see it in context, dr. raleigh.
nitropowered
11-19-07, 07:55 PM
could it be a sticky BB cable guide. I know a lot of times when customers drink sugary drinks, it drips and collects at the bb shell. then it basically freezes the cables down there.

But if the shifter is less than 2 years old, get it replaced under warranty.