nicoth

Hi. I got a Fuji "Finest" circa 2004 from craigslist. The front shifter only seems to move to two positions, but I have a triple chainring. First I tried adjusting the barrel screw and limit stops to no avail. I then disconnected the cable, and if I hold onto the cable and operate the shifter, I can only get the shifter to click once in either direction. Is there something wrong with it? I think it originally would shift to any of the front gears. This is the first time I've had integrated shifters, so I'm kind of ignorant about them. Thank you for any help.

update: It looks like hole that the barrel adjuster screw goes into is stripped, so I can't adjust the tension in the cable. Is there a way to fix that?

CACycling

I'd flood the shifter with WD40 or PB Blaster to see if you can un-gunk the mechanism. Failing that, a left triple Sora brifter should be pretty cheap.

BCRider

Integrated brifters (brake/shifter combos) come in two versions for the left side. One is for double rings and the other for triples. It's possible that a previous owner either replaced the crankset with a triple and left it when they discovered that the shifter was not the right one or that they damaged the brifter and replaced it with the one you have only to find that they got the wrong one. Check the model number on it and see what it says at the Shimano website.

motobecane69

souns odd, even a double shifter typically has 3 clicks, one click is a trim position. not sure if that was the case with sora. I agree with the other posters, look for the model number and google it and you can find out exactly what you have and sora left shifters are cheap, heck, pretty much all left hand shifters are pretty cheap.

CACycling

Sora brifters do not have a trim function and are double or triple specific.

nicoth

Ok. It actually says right on the front that it's a triple shifter. I sprayed it with WD-40 to no avail. After looking at it some more, what happens is that the cable gets stuck on the largest sprocket. If I give the cable a pull then it moves down. I miss downtube shifters.

Is there a good source of mechanical information about these shifters? I haven't been able to find much about them.

CACycling

Could be getting stuck in the brifter, the cable could be getting hung up in the housing or the FD itself could be getting hung up. Need to try and isolate a bit. Shimano web site has pretty good documentation. Just go there and search by the model number. Should at least get an exploded diagram and set up instructions.

nicoth

The end of the cable housing that goes into the shifter has a bunch of rods coming out of the end. Is that normal? It doesn't look that way in the installation instructions.

motobecane69

yes that is normal....for a cable that hasn't had a ferrule put on the end of it. you need to get a ferrule put on the end of the housing.

nicoth

Well… there is a ferrule. It's the plastic cap with a little hole on one end, right? The housing has stiff wires sticking out about 1/4 – 1/2 an inch. So those stay inside the ferrule? Thanks everyone for walking me through this.

FastJake

If your shifters turn out to be junk you could get bar-end shifters and normal brake levers. They might outlive you. Or just do that to the left side. IMO, brifters are too fragile and unnecessary for anything other than serious racing. Every week it seems there's a new "my STI won't shift anymore" thread.

Sundance89

This is your problem. Your cable is shot. Replace your cable, and while your at it, replace the housing. Simple fix.

Standalone 

Not that I think my Sora Triple Brifter works all that great, but I'm pretty sure it does trim.

It does not like to take the chain out to the big ring as cleanly as I like. Part of the technique that works is to throw it over several times. I guess it needs to sort of "reload."

Standalone 

Yeah, this is the direction I'll probably go.

Sundance89

1rst: Yes, Sora does trim.

2nd: No, this is not acceptable shifting for Sora. Like any FD, proper adjustment is critical, but maybe more so with Sora. Also, I changed out my cable with 5mm and of course the appropriate housing. (Big difference in my book. Shifts like buttah.)

CACycling

Must have been added to later versions. My '07 Sora triple does not have a trim function. I do agree that, once adjusted and working properly, they work great.