MidnightKiss

Ok I've been trying to figure out how to fix things on my bike without having to take it into the store. And I'm sure many people have the same problem that I do. So I spent a long time last night trying to get my Derailleur to shift smoovely. It works fine going from high gear down to low gear but going the opposite way problems come. Examining closley I noticed that when I shift up (when in the lowest gear) that my Derailleur is unresponsive. It takes two "clicks" to get chain to move up one gear. Now I've tried adjusting the tension on the cable and everything. But once before when I was having this problem and I took it into the shop one of the mechanics said that the lines get clogged up with stuff and prevents from smooth shifting. It also seems really hard to shift right now. (Must push lever harder) He replaced the whole cable and then shifting seemed so much easier and smoother. So I was thinking about going and getting new stuff to replace the other cable but I was wondering if theres something else I should do or its not even the cable causing the problem. Much help would be appreciated. Thanks

koine2002

It sounds like your cable might be gummed up somewhere. I'd check all of the places where the cable passes through (bottom bracket guide and entrances and exits of the cable housing) for a dirty/gummy mess. A simple cleaning may help. If your cable passes under the bottom bracket shell (the shell that houses the crank bearings), try a bit of oil/grease there, it may smooth things out a bit. Check for signs of rust too. If you do replace the cables, be sure to have a good cutter (cable cutter, not just diagonals) or a dremel w/ a cutting disk, you can really foul up the ends otherwise and make it impossible to get them through any guides/housing. Also, do you have a "rapid-rise" rear derailleur (tightening the cable upshifts, the opposite of how it normally works). If so, that may be a different diagnosis. Also, check out these helpful articles.

Killer B

WD40 at all entry points into cable housings, and also lube pivot points on derailleur.

I think you may be confused on which is shifting up vs. shifting down. I know I am after reading that post.

The smallest cog on the rear cassette is the highest gear, and the largest cog is the lowest gear... The exact opposite is true for the front chainrings.

Now everyone's on the same level. I hope....

Portis

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

Killer B

Great!

mtb-chop

+1 Park Tool is one of the best resources on the web!