Originally Posted by
sknhgy
My shifters require a lot of force to shift. Specifically, it's the thumb levers. Shifting from the small to large chainrings in front, and from the small to large cogs in back takes a lot of effort and it's making my thumbs sore. I remember taking my bike to the LBS and they cleaned and lubed the shifting mechanisms but I don't know exactly how they did it. It didn't seem to take them very long, either.
Anyone have a link or something explaining the procedure? Thanks.
Older trigger shifters tend to gum up inside. Squeeze one of the thumb levers to create an opening and squirt some spray lubricant inside. Petroleum-based oil works best- WD-40 is mostly solvents, so it'll help for a bit but then go back to gumming up the works.
If the bike is more than 3 or 4 years old, consider replacing the cables and housing. They gum up, also, but it's pretty easy to replace them all. I did this recently, and the improvement in shifting was amazing.