Wouldn't shift down into the bottom sprockets
For background, I use Shimano Ultegra with RS685 hydraulic shifters.
I had an odd scenario a few days ago, on my commute home, when I couldn't shift down into the bottom 4 sprockets. The small leaver had stopped clicking after repeatedly pressing it, so you'd assume that the chain would fall onto the last (small) sprocket but it didn't. My journey home was quite hilly so it didn't affect the ride that much.
When I got home I...
• inspected the rear mech's movement and the mech hanger alignment
• removed the cable bolt (on the rear mech) and checked the cable was moving freely in the housing
• held onto the cable whilst shifting the lever to check the cable was being pulled and released
All seemed OK until I pulled the rubber cover back on the right shifter to inspect the cable end was rotating back to the access hole (with a magnifying glass) and noticed it looked a little frayed. To remove the cable, I had to apply a little pressure to the part of the ratchet mechanism that rotates round the main barrel whilst clicking the small paddle. To see this, a small access panel directly behind the shift lever needs to be removed. Then I could I expose the cable end and pull it out via the access hole.
Thankfully, the mechanism hasn't been damaged by the frayed cable and a new cable has sorted the shifting. Hope this helps someone who may have a similar problem.
I'd done about 5k miles on this cable and didn't notice any poor shifting until this point.
I had an odd scenario a few days ago, on my commute home, when I couldn't shift down into the bottom 4 sprockets. The small leaver had stopped clicking after repeatedly pressing it, so you'd assume that the chain would fall onto the last (small) sprocket but it didn't. My journey home was quite hilly so it didn't affect the ride that much.
When I got home I...
• inspected the rear mech's movement and the mech hanger alignment
• removed the cable bolt (on the rear mech) and checked the cable was moving freely in the housing
• held onto the cable whilst shifting the lever to check the cable was being pulled and released
All seemed OK until I pulled the rubber cover back on the right shifter to inspect the cable end was rotating back to the access hole (with a magnifying glass) and noticed it looked a little frayed. To remove the cable, I had to apply a little pressure to the part of the ratchet mechanism that rotates round the main barrel whilst clicking the small paddle. To see this, a small access panel directly behind the shift lever needs to be removed. Then I could I expose the cable end and pull it out via the access hole.
Thankfully, the mechanism hasn't been damaged by the frayed cable and a new cable has sorted the shifting. Hope this helps someone who may have a similar problem.
I'd done about 5k miles on this cable and didn't notice any poor shifting until this point.
0
Comments
-
Generally speaking it's worth replacing the rear shifter cable each year to be safe.0
-
Shirley Basso wrote:Generally speaking it's worth replacing the rear shifter cable each year to be safe.
Very true. I do 7k miles a year so it wasn't far off a replacement.
The fraying happened at the cables tightest angles, on Shimano shifters but the hardest area to spot problems.0 -
SkeetAM wrote:Shirley Basso wrote:Generally speaking it's worth replacing the rear shifter cable each year to be safe.
Very true. I do 7k miles a year so it wasn't far off a replacement.
The fraying happened at the cables tightest angles, on Shimano shifters but the hardest area to spot problems.
And even harder to replace when the cable snaps, unless you're lucky.0
