Mountain Biking - raleigh m40 help

I saw this bike sitting next to a trash can by my high school and I cant say no to a free bike..... I took it home nd did the best I could and now it works almost flawlessly. The rear shimano acera deraileur cant be shifted into 7th gear because it pivots too far and the chain grinds on itself........... Otherwise a fairly sturdy bike that I look forward to pounding around when the weather permits.... But I dont know how to solve this issue

When you say "the chain grinds on itself", do you mean the derailleur is folded all the way up under the gear, or is it rubbing against the side of the frame next to the gear?

More info -- sounds like an easy fix; if it was in front of me, you'd be rolling in less than 10 min, I'm betting.

It's folded up into the gear and it grinds on itself and the deraileur cage. This bike is going to be used for some pretty challenging x-country trails on a regular basis and I don't need it failing on me.........



I'm 14 and just really getting into mountain biking so everything is harder than it should be for me..... Thanks for the help

where in mass are you? if near cambridge i will come tune it up for you. free. will also answer all your questions. yes your parents/guardian must be present for your safety and mine.

just thinking about this more. sounds like cross chaining in the small/small ring combos.

Raleigh has never been a bike that I have reckoned to be good.

But at a ride and one rider had a problem and I sorted it for him. Before passing the bike back to Him I rode it and got a shock. It was a Raleigh and it rode very well. Can't tell you the specific model but it was an "M" series bike and as I say- It was a goodun.

That Chain grinding- Could be that the chain is too long allowing the derailler to hit on the cassette sprockets in small/small.

stampfam, i know it isn't a very good bike... it was free and i wanted something to work on to try to learn the basics. I have a 1999 Gary Fisher Big Sur that I use for the trails. I don't really know how to explain it. It pivots up to the point where the cage and pulleys are almost touching the cassette and then the chain being fed through is grinding on the chain going over the top pulley. I'll try to get a picture if it helps, also the seatpost is stuck and from what i read isn't the easiest thing to fix

also the seatpost is stuck and from what i read isn't the easiest thing to fix

Jammed seat post---- Take off the saddle and you need a strong metalworkers vice. Turn the bike upside down and clamp the post in the vice---very tightly. Then turn the frame. More leverage that way and although it is a possibility- I doubt that you would damage the frame. If you do- then you would not have been able to release a tight seat post any other way.