Front Derailleur not shifting into small gear
#2
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More information gets more useful replies.
The first thing to check with any shifting issue is that the cable is in good condition and moving freely.
After you've checked the cable, you next check will be derailleur function and adjustment. Check this link. https://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=75
If going thoroughly through those does not address your problems you may have a shifter issue.
The first thing to check with any shifting issue is that the cable is in good condition and moving freely.
After you've checked the cable, you next check will be derailleur function and adjustment. Check this link. https://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=75
If going thoroughly through those does not address your problems you may have a shifter issue.
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Disconnect the cable from the derailleur. Check to make sure the cable is not binding in the housing and the shifter is working. Next see if the chain goes onto the small chain ring when you pedal. If not then the low limit screw is not adjusted properly. For the rear derailleur the chain should go to the largest gear (smallest diameter). If it does not then adjust the high limit screw so the pulleys align with the gear. Next attach the cable to the derailleur and set the tension. For a more complete description see either Park Tools web site or Sheldon Browns.
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Assuming that the bike shifted properly in the past, the issue isn't with the limit screws. It's a cable issue. Failure to shift is almost always a cable issue. Failing to shift into a lower gear...again assuming that it shifted in the past...is because the cable is too tight. Have you been adjusting the cable to fix another problem? If so you've probably tightened the cable so that the derailer can't move over properly. Is the housing binding the cable? Then the cable isn't moving far enough to let the derailer move. Is the cable gunky? Or dry?
Your other derailer is having the opposite problem. It's cable is too loose. You need to tighten it so that the cable can move the derailer the proper distance.
The links that DMF provides are good resources to learn how to do it. Outside of that, go to a shop and have them show you.
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Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
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My Copy & Paste.....
___________________________________________________________________________
Take the cable off the FD. Now install it from scratch as per Park Tool Repair:
https://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=75
And BicycleTutor:
https://bicycletutor.com/adjust-front-derailer/
When you have it properly trimmed and are ready for the cable - a new one wouldn't hurt - you want to pull the cable taut - not too tight, taut. Then apply 48 to 60 inch-pounds to the pinch-bolt. Then put it through it's paces.
It's always easier and faster to install a FD from square-one, than it is to make adjustments with it already attached. This tends to fix one thing - while throwing another out of kilter. Start fresh. You'll get it.
Adding a barrel-adjuster can solve many problems with the cable coming loose - or being too tight.
___________________________________________________________________________
Take the cable off the FD. Now install it from scratch as per Park Tool Repair:
https://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=75
And BicycleTutor:
https://bicycletutor.com/adjust-front-derailer/
When you have it properly trimmed and are ready for the cable - a new one wouldn't hurt - you want to pull the cable taut - not too tight, taut. Then apply 48 to 60 inch-pounds to the pinch-bolt. Then put it through it's paces.
It's always easier and faster to install a FD from square-one, than it is to make adjustments with it already attached. This tends to fix one thing - while throwing another out of kilter. Start fresh. You'll get it.
Adding a barrel-adjuster can solve many problems with the cable coming loose - or being too tight.
#15
Senior Member
I usually never say this, but please, do us all a favor and take your bike to a shop. Reading this thread is frustrating due to the lack of useful info in your posts.
Failing that, do some searching on front derailler issues. See how other people describe their issues and figure out if what they are describing fits your situation. Perhaps you could copy and paste someone's else problem description in this thread. What you have provided so far is worthless in helping anyone diagnose your problem.
Failing that, do some searching on front derailler issues. See how other people describe their issues and figure out if what they are describing fits your situation. Perhaps you could copy and paste someone's else problem description in this thread. What you have provided so far is worthless in helping anyone diagnose your problem.