Shimano Deore 8 speed rear mech....

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My brother in law has a Trek hybrid fitted with Deore 8 speed. I think the rear mech shifter has somehow been fitted in reverse so that the thumb shift moves the mech away from the wheel, onto a smaller cog.... the Deore fitted on my Orbea MTB shifts toward the wheel (onto a larger cog) with the thumb, and so does my GF's Deore equipped Dawes.

How can this be ? Is the cam inside the shifter fitted upside down? Is it a simple job to alter it for him ?
 
Location
Loch side.
You get two types of derailleurs, especially from that era. A low normal and a high normal.

Most of us have high-normal derailers. This means that if you cut the derailer cable, it will default to the highest gear i.e. smallest sprocket.
A Low normal does the opposite.

The difference is that a low normal has to be pulled towards a smaller sprocket and a high normal has to be pulled towards a larger sprocket.

My guess is that bike there is a mismatch, since the shifters are low/high specific. Does it say Rapid Rise anywhere? That was Shimano's proprietary name for Low Normal derailleurs. I can't remember if they printed it on the derailleur itself.

One way to find out is to cut the cable and turn the wheel to see which way the derailleur defaults. I'll look out for your post on how to fit a new cable and adjust the gears shortly.
 

raleighnut

Legendary Member
There is no need to cut the cable just undo the pinch bolt. If the rear mech moves inward then its a 'rapid rise' type but I'm not sure that Shimano ever did a Deore spec shifter in that configuration.
BTW reverse sprung mechs are $hit which is why they were quietly dropped a few years back, I've got a virtually new one hanging up in my shed (I only kept it for the dolly wheels)
 
Ah. It might well be a reverse spring mech then...... it operates perfectly well, but has led to an exchange of words between SIL and BIL of the "what gear should I be in" .... "use your right finger to make it easier"..... variety, since the Alivio fitted to SIL's WSD Trek operates the opposite way to BIL's !! I'll pass on the knowledge... Thanks. I don't think I'll be opening it up to operate on it !!
 
Location
Loch side.
There is no need to cut the cable just undo the pinch bolt. If the rear mech moves inward then its a 'rapid rise' type but I'm not sure that Shimano ever did a Deore spec shifter in that configuration.
BTW reverse sprung mechs are $hit which is why they were quietly dropped a few years back, I've got a virtually new one hanging up in my shed (I only kept it for the dolly wheels)
Of course, I was just being mischievous, hence my reference to his next post.
 
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