COLD weather shifter issues
03-25-09 | 02:49 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
From: Happy (Fairbanks), AK
Bikes: 2008 GF Paragon 29r, 1989 Hard Rock
COLD weather shifter issues
I'm riding a 2008 GF Paragon with SRAM X0.9 shifters. Love the bike on the snowy trail commute, but the shifters quit working when it's colder than -20F. The problem is that the shifter won't release the cable to shift to smaller sprocket; the release trigger won't move. All other parts of the system work: I can shift up, if I release tension on the cables the derailers move. It's in the shifter mechanism. The shop had the bike and they worked on it (WD40 in the shifter housing), and there seemed to be some improvement, but only by a couple of degrees. I posted this in the mechanics forum and got no answers, so thought that I'd come here.
Anybody out there suffering similar problem?
Better yet anybody found a solution (other than not riding when it is that cold)?
Anybody out there suffering similar problem?
Better yet anybody found a solution (other than not riding when it is that cold)?
03-25-09 | 03:37 PM
#2
META
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 945
Likes: 3
From: Madison, WI
Bikes: Gary Fisher Aquila (retired), Specialized Allez Sport (in parts), Cannondale R500, HP Velotechnic Street Machine, Dented Blue Fixed Gear (retired), Seven Tsunami SSFG, Specialized Stumpjumper Comp Hardtail (alloy version)
Not really a whole heck of a lot you can do. There may be two problems. One is that the lubricant that manufacturers use in their shifters seizes up when it gets very cold. I've had the same problem wish Shimano STIs. WD40 helped probably because it dissolved some of that grease. Your shifters may have had their lifespan shortened because of it though. The other possible cause is that the return spring in the shifter body gets stiff when it gets cold. Or both problems together cause your issue. If it is the spring then there isn't anything at all you can do.
03-26-09 | 05:13 AM
#3
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 12,257
Likes: 5
From: A Coffin Called Earth. or Toronto, ON
Bikes: Bianchi, Miyata, Dahon, Rossin
-20F is cold enough for using a lighter lubricant because the stock stuff can freeze at that temperature.
there's cold, and then there's really cold. for really cold you just have to use lighter lubricants, oils and greases, or they just freeze.
check icebike.
thing is, it will work good in cold temperatures, but when it gets warmer you will want the thicker stuff to make your parts last longer.
there's cold, and then there's really cold. for really cold you just have to use lighter lubricants, oils and greases, or they just freeze.
check icebike.
thing is, it will work good in cold temperatures, but when it gets warmer you will want the thicker stuff to make your parts last longer.
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Food for thought: if you aren't dead by 2050, you and your entire family will be within a few years from starvation. Now that is a cruel gift to leave for your offspring. ;)
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Food for thought: if you aren't dead by 2050, you and your entire family will be within a few years from starvation. Now that is a cruel gift to leave for your offspring. ;)
https://sanfrancisco.ibtimes.com/arti...ger-photos.htm
Last edited by AEO; 03-26-09 at 05:21 AM.
03-26-09 | 09:16 AM
#4
I hose down moving parts with this dry lube. It's under a lot of pressure and has a very high solvent content, so I get remarkable results on small tensioned bits like shifters. Leaves a dry film that's not very long lasting but impervious to cold IME. Good for cleaning chains/cassettes in a pinch, too.
03-26-09 | 11:55 AM
#5
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
From: Happy (Fairbanks), AK
Bikes: 2008 GF Paragon 29r, 1989 Hard Rock
Thanks for the advice all, hopefully we're done with -20 F here until Novemeber, I'll try and find the Liquid Wrench dry lube and use that. Also, thanks for the reminder to put new lube in the shifters for the warm weather.
