Originally Posted by
JNorm
Thats sorta still up in the air. My buddy who would be driving down with me rides a Shogun steel chromium frame with all the original components. This bike is old man. It's actually older than he is. The problem is his derailleur is starting to kick the bucket and he can't put any real torque on the pedals without slipping a gear. This usually isn't too much of a problem for our casual rides but if this is going to be a real hilly ride, it'll probably be an issue for him. I think he was going to try to either buy a new derailleur or get the shop guys to fix his sometime this week.
Long story short, I don't really feel like driving all the way down there by myself, so if his bike is out of commission, I don't think I'll be coming. I'll try to keep you guys posted though
Sounds more like a chain - cassette issue. Time for a new cassette (or freewheel) and chain. Do them both together. New chains on old cogs almost always skip.
No matter how bad the derailleur, if the cable is tight, it shouldn't slip. The only derailleur thing I can think of is that the pulley bushings are really worn or broken so that they are flapping around and not guiding the chain properly. Not likely, but at least new pulleys would be pretty cheap. Either way, doesn't sound too complicated