Hello, I am having trouble shifting on the low gear in my front derailleur. It can go up just fine but it struggles coming down. I have three rings and it seems like it wants to struggle coming down into the middle one but it doesn't. The problem comes when i am in the middle one and want to come down one. The chain rubs on the derailleur and after a while it comes down and no more rubbing. What can be the cause of this since it only happens shifting down, not up.
Trouble with down shifting
- Thread starter Siulman
- Start date
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Racing roadkill
Guru
The trim adjuster on the front mech shifter needs to be rolled forward a bit. If this doesn't sort it, adjust the limit screw on the front mech.
fossyant
Ride It Like You Stole It!
- Location
- South Manchester
Crap in the cables causing drag is a prime suspect. When did you last have cables ?
I actually just recently bought this bike for 40 bucks. Its a cheap Schwinn bike that i bought because i am fairly new to cycling and wanted to see if i liked it before buying a new bike so im not sure how long the cables have been there.
mrandmrspoves
Middle aged bald git.
- Location
- Narfuk
Problems down shifting on front mechs is often caused by dirt and grit making the mech pivots too stiff for the return spring to return. Spray the mech at all the hinge points with spray lubricant, WD40 or whatever you have and then grab hold of the mech and manually move it through its full range in and out. (Shifter in low gear position) Initially you may find it is quite stiff - but keep at it, and add more spray a few times too. The important part is taking the mech over into the low position as far as it goes.
I think this is more likely to solve your problem than the previous suggestion of cable renewal. Rear derailleurs are much more prone to cable drag than front derailleurs due to the greater cable length. If you want to check the cable though, put bike onto high chain ring and then move shifter lever over to low while pedalling. Now check the cable at the front mech. If the cable is slack - but the chain hasn't moved over to the inner chain ring either the mech is stiff as I believe or the Low limit screw needs adjusting by turning it anti clockwise. If on the other hand, when you check the cable at the mech it isn't slack, it could be that the cable needs slacking off or more likely, the cable is binding.
I think this is more likely to solve your problem than the previous suggestion of cable renewal. Rear derailleurs are much more prone to cable drag than front derailleurs due to the greater cable length. If you want to check the cable though, put bike onto high chain ring and then move shifter lever over to low while pedalling. Now check the cable at the front mech. If the cable is slack - but the chain hasn't moved over to the inner chain ring either the mech is stiff as I believe or the Low limit screw needs adjusting by turning it anti clockwise. If on the other hand, when you check the cable at the mech it isn't slack, it could be that the cable needs slacking off or more likely, the cable is binding.
