HiYoSilver

I'd sure appreciate some simple help in understanding how to adjust shifters. I've tried looking at some
pages but I must have mechanics block. It is just not registering for me.

Tasks want to master:

1. adjust limit on shifter to lower chainring so chain does not fall off
2. adjust limit of shifter to uper chainring so chain does not fall off
3. how to adjust when chain is taking forever to click between gears. I don't know if the chain just needs more lube or if the shifter is putting chain between rings instead of over ring.

Current system: Shamino STI ultergra shifters, and deore LX derailers.

Current puzzlers:
1. barrel adjusters by shifters.
1.1 clockwise twist does what?
1.2 count clockwise does what?

2. which screw is for inner stop and which is for outer stop

3. how to know if shifter is working properly, other than riding the bike, is there something to look for when trying to determine a good adjustment or poor adjustment?


Thanks!!!!

Ed Holland

Well, I could go into it, but the Park Tool website will do a better job than I ever could

try here: https://www.parktool.com/repair/byregion.asp?catid=53

There should be plenty of info to answer your questions. Gear set-up is not difficult once you have the logic worked out.

Good luck,

Ed

AndrewP

Limit screws on front drailler need to be screwed in to stop the chain falling off. Cable tension needs to be adjusted to centre the cage over the middle chainring (if you have a triple). To move the cage outwards you need more cable tension, which is done byturning the turnbarrel by the shifter anti clockwise. Do the opposite to move the cage inwards.

To fix sluggish shifting you need to clean and lubricate the chain and the shifter cables and cable housings. Also clean the cassette, but dont lubricate it as that will collect more dirt.

HiYoSilver

So that's why I got the park stand.

How do you clean and lube shifer cables and housing? Won't lube gum it up? I just cleaned the chain but may not have lubed it enough. It's sluggish in shifting from 7 to 8 and 8 to 9. [big wheels.}

AndrewP

WD-40 can be used to clean the housing and cables. I use a Silicon spray lubricant on the shifter cables and housings, but you can rub the cables with parafin wax. I use White Lightning lubricant on the chain

n4zou

WD-40 is good for cleaning and displacing water but a long lasting lubricant its not. The easiest and best way to lube cable and casing is Super TECH White Grease in the spray can from Wal-Mart. Make sure the straw is still taped to the side of the can before you purchase it. Remove the cable from the casing and wipe off any crud it may have collected. You don’t need to remove the casing from underneath the handlebar tape but you should remove the ends from the shifters, brake levers, and cable stops. Have the cable ready to install in the casing immediately after you squirt the grease into the casing! Don't worry about threading it through the shifters, brake levers, or cable stops. You want the grease while it's in a liquid state to be pushed through the casing and soak into the cable and casing before it congeals into a thick paste like normal grease. Put the straw that’s taped to the side of the spray can of grease into the nozzle and about a 1/4" or 5mm into the shifter or brake lever end of the casing and shoot some grease into the cable. Immediately push the cable into the casing. You can prep the next section of casing while waiting for the grease to congeal, which does not take very much time. After you have worked all the sections of casing and cable and all the grease has congealed you may remove the cable and thread it through the shifters, brake levers, casings, and cable stops. Wipe away any excess grease on exposed cables between cable stops and casings.

HardyWeinberg

I think I was missing that bolded part from my efforts to wrestle my FD into a reasonable amount of submission. Once I found it, everything else started to make sense. Thanks for spelling it out.

Al1943

Actually the front derailleur on Shimano road triples should not be centered over the middle chainring. There are two detents (click stops) that should center the front derailleur slightly to the left or slightly to the right of the middle chainring. These to positions allow the chain to run on the extreme left or right side of the cassette.

Starting with the shifter set in the smallest ring position and with the cable properly attached, the barrel adjustor can be used to add enough tension to shift to the big ring. This should not require much tension.

Al

HardyWeinberg

Yesterday I noticed shifting to the big ring from the middle increasing in sluggishness, and today it basically won't go to the big one at all. My barrel adjuster is (loosened?) all the way, so I can't get the frame-side (plate? cage?) of the front derailer any closer to the chain (presuming I want the derailer closer to the frame side of the chain so it can push it farther to get it up onto the big ring). Does that mean I need to change the tension on the cable at the end where it attaches to the derailer?

Al1943

Usually this particular problem means that either 1) the cable has slipped where attached to the front derailleur or 2) the cable was not all of the way out of the shifter when attached.
Before attaching the cable you need to flip the small shift lever several times while pulling the free end of the cable, this is to assure that all of the cable is out of the shifter. If the cable is properly attached then try turning the front barrel adjustor 1/2 turn or so counter-clockwise. This will add some tension to the cable and may move the derailleur outward. If you go too far you'll have trouble shifting to the smallest chainring.

If your front derailleur is Deore (mtn.) and the front shifter is Ultegra (road) it's my understanding that you've got an incompatability problem because the mtn. derailleur's throw ratio is not the same as a road derailleur's. But I'm also aware that some people make this compination work fine. Road shifters are not actually indexed to the chainrings anyway, but the click stops may not work in quite the same positions as they would if you had a road derailleur.

Let us know how it goes.

Al

HardyWeinberg

The barrel adjuster on the shifter was already maxed to counter-clockwise. I haven't yet checked how the cable is connected. I can't really explain it but loosening the high limit adjuster screw a *lot* seems to have done it, for the ride home anyway. It was backed out maybe 1/8", and I loosened it more, close to a quarter inch out now.

The shifter and front derailer (both shimano) came stock w/ bike so I have to assume no conflict there.

Thanks for the thought you put into this. The f/d is still uncomfortably black boxy to me.