Since I, like Andy, have rebuilt many of these shifters (several hundred) let me add a few pointers to this string. Using the WD-40 flush will make them work for a while. Many of the shifters I have repaired came from people who tried this first. I dissasemble the shifters and remove the ratchet that causes the problem and clean the shaft it rotates on completely so I can guarantee it won't jam up again. If you want to try this flush yourself, I highly recommend that you remove the levers from the bike and remove the hoods. Wetting the hoods with water first makes them much easier to remove and replace. Longterm exposure to WD-40 and various lubes tends to swell the rubber in the hoods and then they will move around on the bracket and wear themselves out. New hoods can be very hard to find. I have a few pair if you need some.

The preferable lube for these shifters is grease, not any kind of oil. I am starting to see a large number of these shifters with a groove worn in the ratchet everyone is talking about due to inadequate lubrication from flushing and inadequate relubrication. The only fix is to replace the ratchet from a parts shifter which requires dissasembly. You can buy a grease that sprays in with a carrier and dries into a normal grease. I use a white lithium and a spray version can be bought at most auto parts stores. White lithium is a synthetic grease that will not dry out like the original organic grease and it is supposed to be waterproof so it will not wash out when you clean your bike. It costs a litlle more, but is well worth it. Shimano seems to use this type of grease in their newest shifters.

Yes they can be completely dissasembled and reassembled. Is it easy, no. I do not recommend you try the complete dissasembly at home. They fit together multiple ways, but only one way works and it is very easy to lose parts. You have to compress springs while at the same time rotating parts and it would be easier to do if a person had three hands. Sometimes it takes me several tries to get it right and I have done piles of them. I charge double my normal repair price if someone else takes them apart and I have to put them back together.

If the flush does not work, there are actually four springs that can be the problem. Three of them can be fixed like a couple of people have described, two of them are easier than what has been described. Who knows how long that fix will last, but it can be worth trying instead of scraping a shifter. That fix is not for the faint of heart as some of you have found out. The easiest and best way to rebend the springs is to remove them from the shifter, but again you probably don't want to try this at home. The ultimate solution is to replace them with a spring from a parts shifter that is broken because of the fourth spring being bent or broken. The fourth spring that can be a problem gets bent from people trying to force a shift when the shifter is not working properly and they jam some of the parts together. Once this spring is bent the shifter is shot and it usually breaks pretty quickly.

One of these days I will get the time to post the numerous pictures I have taken of these shifters in various states of dissasembly, etc. Until then if you want to see pictures of the ratchets that are mentioned, broken springs, complete breakdown, etc. email me direct (jrmcvey@aol.com) and I will try to respond as quickly as possible. If one of you wants to post the pictures you have me permission to do so, but please let me know where so I can access them.

Good luck in your repair efforts.