Originally Posted by
RockiesDad
... 4) stop pedaling, shift to big ring, then start to pedal slowly till in gear.
The last step seems to be the key for whatever reason. It shouldn't be this way but that's the way it is. I'm not racing or anything so it doesn't matter too much but it sure is annoying. I'm already planning to maybe switch over to the Shimano camp soon but in the meantime will deal with what I have for now. The more irritated I get the faster I will switch...
There's no reason or rationalization I can think of that would require you to stop pedaling; but it's a known 'problem' with all front derailleurs that they have varying levels of working terrible when the chain is under load. Also, and I don't know if it's been mentioned here; but derailleurs have 'shift ramps' too. The ones that will work best for you are the ones designed specifically for your chainring combinations. I have a D/A triple FD that absolutely cannot shift a 30/39/53 but works fine for a 30/40/52.