Questions for knowledgeable or experienced with these problems.
2008 Argon 18, E112, DA drive train, FSA Team crank, about 8000-9000mi, chain has been replaced regularly before limits, chain rings don’t look worn. Everything worked like a charm until 70.3 KS and after that just a nightmare.
Cannot duplicate on the stand, only when drivetrain is under load, FD will either not shift from small to big or going very sluggish in 1 out of 5 attempts. 3 trips to bike shop, 2 new cables, 1 teflon coated and still the same thing.
I maintain my bike like a clock work, cables get replaced, chain gets replaced, bike is tuned every 2 months, never had any problems. FD has been adjusted and adjusted over and over for this problem, no cure.
Side note, “the rumor is” that some 150 bikes fell during the winds blowing the night before KS race. Don’t know if my bike was in the bunch. Did not and cannot see any obvious signs of that kind of damage. Just wondering could it have moved BB if it fell and affected the chainline. The rear shifts nice and crisp.
Any suggestions for the 4th trip to the bike shop?
Thanks
I might be stating the obvious to you, but you probably want to rule out cable tension and the high limit screw.
You said you changed the cables, is tension good? Is the anchoring bolt holding the cable securely?
Without the cable attached, can you physically move the cage far enough, to where it would shift into the big ring? You may need to unscrew the high limit screw a half turn at a time, to allow more movement. This problem normally doesn’t just appear, however.
How new are your shifters? Is there a chance something went wrong internally and it isn’t pulling enough cable?
Good luck!
-Physiojoe
This is a perfect opportunity for you to learn wrench skills and become self-sufficient. The genesis of me learning to wrench was born out of multiple trips to the local bike shop for a recurring rear der. problem. Come to find out the guy there didn’t know much more than I did at the time. Lesson: don’t assume b/c it’s an LBS that the mechanic isn’t flipping through a manual to figure it out. Some shops are outstanding, but many are not. I had a bent derailleur hanger, but the guy never considered it in trouble shooting, nor did he have the knowledge to bend one back.
Get a Park/Zinn manual and get crack-a-lackin. You will gain a lot of confidence in your bike’s ability to perform after you work hard on your body! Plus, you will be able to rectify any further issues as fast as you can grab a tool box.
Good luck.
To the point:
-
Make sure your FD cable is routed properly. Post a pic of the cable attachment AND the braze/clamp mount from above and side if possible
-
If you don’t know how to operate limit screws you might want to wait, but sounds to me like you need some tweaking on the limits.
All the work and tuning was done by one tech. High gear limit screw has been adjusted twice, once to the point that the FD was so far out that chain was rubbing the inner arm when in 53-21 (12-25 cassette), and when repositioning the chain from small to big the chain would drop on the outside…spinning incircles.
The left shifter lever has always required a little more force to move than most other I rode. But it always worked.
Shifters have about 13000mi, taken off my previous bike.
I agree totally that these problems don’t just show up. There has to be a reason. Something must have happened or is worn that is causing this.
Thank you very much for your reply.
Shifters are about 13000mi. Off my first tri bike.
Have the Zinn book but am very hesitant to touch anything. Reading the troubleshooting section, went into measuring the chainline, thinking that it maybe a problem there. Than, thinking rear shifts just fine.
I will try to post some pictures in a little. Thanks a lot.
Sounds like sweat/gu coagulation problem. I think you should just clean the thing really well and let your cables sit in oil overnight before re-cabling the FD. Lube everything really well.
I’ve worked with some bike shops who suck and couldn’t identify something simple like this as a problem. Then I just started doing everything myself. Much better.
Have your shop put on some Shimano chainrings if they aren’t already on there. Generally that solves the issue. Make sure whatever chainring you are using has pick up pins. What combo are you using?
And assuming they have adjusted the front der to Shimano’s specs?
Get a Shimano crankset or rings.