chain hesitating shifting up gears

triban

Help!

Gear = Shimano Sora.

when shifting up on the rear derailleur the chain hesitates for a second and then suddenly moves to the selected cog.

I've followed the Park Tools guide several times on how to set the H and L limits and then index the gears but when i've finished i still have this problem! :?

i can set the H limit screw so that the chain moves to the outermost cog quickly and smoothly, no problems, manually changing the gears by pulling on the cable. But the minute i start introducing tension back into the cable to index the gears, the hesitation comes back! :x

The gears shift down just fine, the hesitation is only when shifting up.

i've gone through the whole process ten times now, and the problem is never resolved.

Any advice?


thank you.

owenlars

Try tightening the gear cable, using one of the barrel adjusters. That is anti clockwise and do it a very little at a time.

triban

owenlars wrote:

Try tightening the gear cable, using one of the barrel adjusters. That is anti clockwise and do it a very little at a time.

Hi owenlars,

thanks for the reply.

That's where the problem sets in. the minute there's just enough tension to move from the smallest cog to the next one the hesitation when moving up appears.

if i back off the tension to fix that, it won't move down the gears.

keef66

The H and L limit screws have no effect on gear changes. Once they are set so the mech can't overshift at each end of the cassette, leave them alone.

All you then have left is cable tension / routing, or possibly a misaligned or bent mech hanger. (You dropped or crashed the bike onto the drive side?)

Are all the outer cable ends securely located in their respective stops / housings / barrel adjusters? Is the inner cable correctly attached at the rear mech clamp?

Is this a new phenomenon or has it been like that from new?

jgsi

How old is the chain itself?
Similar bad shifting all winter when I was using a chain well past its use by date but wasnt going to ruin a new chain in all the salt and mud.
When I replaced the chain the stretch was probably more than 1/2 inch.

triban

It's my girlfriends bike, and although she's had it for about a year she's only ridden around 500km on it :roll:

i did wonder if it was maybe the chain at fault, but with the it not having travelled very far i'm not so sure... plus i don't know how to tell if has been sctretched! :oops:

jgsi

triban wrote:

It's my girlfriends bike, and although she's had it for about a year she's only ridden around 500km on it :roll:

i did wonder if it was maybe the chain at fault, but with the it not having travelled very far i'm not so sure... plus i don't know how to tell if has been sctretched! :oops:

You can buy the Park tool or equivalent or you can compare it against a new one and go 'hells bells no wonder I couldnt shift gear'
I always attempt to have a new chain in my parts cupboard.... 10 and 11 speed s just do not last that long

owenlars

I still think you should try tightening the gear cable. If you grab the cable where it runs under the down tube and pull it can you get it to change down a gear or two? If push comes to shove disconnect from rear mech and refix slightly tighter.

triban

Thanks for all the advice!

the rear mech looks to be straight, and cable housing appears to be correct.

i'll give connecting the rear mech with a bit more tension a go first, as owenlars suggest (as that's free ) then move on to replaceing the chain if that doesn't fix it.

i know i could just take it to the LBS, but i thought it would be a good opportunity to learn some bike tech!

i'll let you know how i get on.

cheers.

zx6man

LBS will charge pennies for it, and you can watch what they do for next time :-)

owenlars

zx6man wrote:

LBS will charge pennies for it, and you can watch what they do for next time :-)

Spot on!