Shifting Problems
 

I just got a new road bike - a Schwinn Paramount 8. It's the first road bike I've owned in about 25 years. The bike has Ultegra SL components except for the rear deraileur which is DA.

I really like the bike -it fits me well and is fast, light, and good looking - but I'v got a couple of problems. First, I'm having trouble shifting to the larger chainring and get "chatter" with certain gear combos when I can get to that chainring. I noticed this right away and took the bike back to Performance. The "head" of their service department disparaged the build it had received originally. (It had been built at a different store and then shipped down to mine.) He spent an hour with it to "get everything right." I rode it again this weekend and still have the same problem. It's my understanding that with the Ultegra (and anything modern) the shifting should be fast and clean and quiet (except the extremes)).

Another issue is that I hear "creaking" when I put the hammer down. Nothing noticeable at normal speeds but when I charge up a hill or accelerate hard I hear creaking.

I guess my question is: should I take it back to Performance and give them another chance to get things right or take by an LBS that is reported to be the best in the city (and is closer) and let them take a shot at it? My main concern is that there's something fundamentally wrong and Performance won't tell me.

Where does the chatter come from? RD or FD? Can you tell?

The rear. It also feels as though I'm not get a clean shift. In other words, I'll shift to a higher or lower gear on the rear and I'll get a pretty noisy chatter then suddenly after a few seconds or longer it'll engage in that different gear. Still there is chatter but quieter.

Sounds like a small adjustment needed. On the RD, there's a little black adjuster, right where the cable enters the derailleur. Unscrew it to tighten the cable, screw it in to loosen the cable. Try unscrewing it a quarter turn to see if you can get the chattering to go away and the shifting to improve. There's a whole set of steps to go through to set up a rear (or front) derailleur that I think any rider should able to go through, instead of hauling it down to the bike shop every time. Try the adjusters...if that doesn't work, go here and look on the right side for maintenance tips. Bookmark it...it's a great resource.

Dstrong. Thanks for the website. It is a trove of useful information. I'm normally a pretty handy guy and plan to learn as much as I can about bike maintenance and repair. In this instance - both because I'm new to biking and the bike itself is new - I think I want a pro to take a look just to assuage my concerns.

I have the same issue on a Jamis Xenith Comp with Shimano 105 compoents, except for the rear derailleur which is Ultegra. I bought it used a couple of months ago. Someone did the adjustment for me on the rear and it no longer shifts on its own like it used to, but I still have initial trouble shifting to the larger chainring. If I'm going downhill and am in a large gear I can do it, but at first attempt on level ground it won't go, and this chatter happens instead, until I press the smaller level as if to "cancel" the attempt. I bought a bike maintenance manual and will take a look at this link too, but any advice is hugely welcome.