IG chain system to a HG chain system
 

I'm a noobie. I installed a CS-HG41-7 seven speed cassete with a new KMC Z72 chain. The casette and chain are HG Rear derailleur shifts perfectlly up and down. Front derailleur hangs up when shifting up and down from mid gear to granny gear. Also the front chain ring is over 15 years old. Is the shifting problem from a worn chainring or because the cassette and chain are HG and the chain ring is IG? My bike is a 95-96 Trek 930. The sticker on the chainring says "Use IG Chain Only".

shut off your computer and Re submit/ present this question in person to someone in a bike shop

Wut?

Fietsbob works in a bike shop and thinks anyone attempting to do their own diagnosis or mechanical work is acting immorally.

When I went to my LBS to buy an IG chain I was told that the rear cassette was also worn. I was given a HG cassette sprocket Shimano P/N CS-HG41-7 and a HG chain P/N KMC Z72. I informed the bike mechanic that the front chain ring said "USE IG CHAIN ONLY". lbs told me that it "should" be okay. Was also told that the front chain ring was not worn to the point of replacement. Cassette installed, chain installed. Rear shifts flawlessly, front is making all kinds of noise when down shifting and up shifting from mid to granny gear. Also front heitates/slips before shifting into gear. Derailleur adjustment are good. Last night after I finished my ride the LBS was closed so I posted here like I posted many other questions. So my qusetions are....1) can a HG chain work with a IG chainring set Or.... 2) Is the problem worn chainrings?

[strike]IG cassette teeth are thicker, so they need chains that are wide enough to fit -- unless noted, a regular HG chain may not work. According to Sheldon, the SRAM PC-870 chain (eight-speed) works with IG cassettes.[/strike]

Oh wait. Your chainring is marked to use IG chains because it was installed as part of a complete IG system, and it's a more visible place to put the reminder. AFAIK, there's nothing otherwise special about it, and you should be free to use whatever chain you want, provided it's not worn out.

Since you installed the cassette and chain (right?), the shop wouldn't know if the derailleur is out of whack, so unless you're good at it, it may be a good idea to have them check it out. Take a picture of the chainring for us, if you think it might be that.

P.S. I'd be interested to hear how you like the HG41-7 cassette when it's all sorted out. I was surprised/pleased to see that Shimano had added a new silver-colored cassette to their 7-speed range. :thumb:

So far the HG41-7 cassette works great. Very smooth shifting so far. I cannot feel the shift, I got off of my bicycle 3 times to see if the gears shifted....'It did. I also like the 11-28 better than the 13-30 gearing. Less shifting now and less spinning when I'm in the granny gear. Only problem is front shifting. The chain, cassette and chain ring were/are 15-17 years old. My research tells me that a new chain will not shift well on a worn chainring. I had no problems with shifting until I replaced the chain and the rear cassette. I replaced the chain because it was worn beyond my chain gauge. LBS also checked the chain and also recomended changing the cassette. The LBS had a better chain checker than I have. I think I will be getting the chain gauge the LBS had.

those of us who have grown up using friction lever shifting
have learned how to shift a derailleur front mechanism as it works.
you overshift a bit then re adjust the FD cage so as to not touch the chain..

the indexing schemes de-skill that and go clunk into a fixed location..

the adjustments are done on the repair stand, rather than with the hand with each gear change.


IG started twisting the teeth on the hub,
to make the shifting go earlier to get the index stuff to work
and the chains have a bulge in the outer link.

HG they shortened the teeth and reshaped the faces of the teeth
to have ramps and gates to further make the shifting early,

and at the same time create an unsettled chain eager to jump
when the front and the back of the control cable are out of synch.

When I remove the crank I'll take pictures and post. I'll be removing the crank tomorrow. I'll post pictures of the entire drive system.

"I think I will be getting the chain gauge the LBS had. "

Get yourself a good steel rule and learn to measure the chain with that; IMO chain checkers are not as reliable as they only measure a small area of the chain and can be misleading.

If the chainring teeth are hooked, you can file them to prevent chain suck and get more miles out of them.

Took my bicycle to LBS yesterday. A slight adjustment to the front derailleur was all that was needed. Chain rings are okay. LBS informed me that what I thought were worn chainring teath were part of the IG drive system. Was also told that HG is compatable with my bicycle as long as the HG is for a 7/8 speed. LBS mechanic also took my bike for test ride after he adjusted front derailleur. I'm good for at least 1500 miles. I should be able to get 2-3 cassettes per chain. Also when my bicycle was made Shimano had just introduced the IG system. The "USE IG CHAIN ONLY" was to prevent somone from installing a regular chain onto bicycle. I went for my bike ride this morning and evrything is shifting fine.

Good deal! I hope you meant "2-3 chains per cassette" though -- chains are usually the cheaper item, and by replacing them before they are excessively worn, you can make a cassette last quite a while. I would get a good steel ruler and check the chain every couple hundred miles.

Yes. I should go through 2-3 chains before having to buy a new cassette.