ballistic

I'm new to cycling, and bought my first bike from Performance Bike a little over a week ago, a floor model Fuji Roubaix ACR 2.0 (Shimano 105). Tires were well worn, so it got quite a bit test riding. Bike seemed in good working order though, and it went through a final inspection before I took it home.

I've ridden it a little since then. Maybe ten miles total. I don't mess with the front gears much, but I decided to on Monday. It started out on the outside gear. It took quite a lot of work to get it to shift, but eventually it did. Later in the ride, I tried to shift it back, and it wouldn't. A couple times I really pushed the levers and held them, and the derailleur started to work, the chain moved to the outside gear, but when I let go of the lever, the chain moved back to the inside. I feel I prefer the inside gear, so I let it alone.

Today, I went around a neighborhood with my girlfriend. While riding beside each other, she pointed out a weird noise. BaDUM, BaDUM, BaDUM. Like a car going over evenly-spaced bumps in a road, or a bridge. I never noticed it before, so it seemed to be new today. I stopped several times and lifted the back wheel to spin it, but I couldn't reproduce the noise. It was apparently only with weight on the bike.

I also tried shifting the front derailleur again, and got absolutely nothing.

Back at home, I looked for anything rubbing against something, and found nothing. But then I noticed that the front derailleur cable is loose, like an untightened guitar string. The other cable is quite taut, and I have no problems shifting the back gears. I looked at my girlfriend's bike and both cables are pretty tight, and her front derailleaur has three gears and it's on the innermost gear. So mine should definitely be tighter.

I looked at the front derailleaur, but I don't know enough about them to know if anything is amiss. If I push on the levers, the cable tightens, so it's connected to both ends. Just maybe it's so loose that pushing on the levers simply doesn't tighten it enough to engage it. Is this a major problem, or does it merely need tightened somehow?

In addition, why would the noise only happen when I sat on the bike? I couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from, and nothing seemed to be rubbing against anything. Really at a loss with the noise. It seemed independent of pedaling. I thought it was coming from the rear of the bike, but then it seemed I could hear it towards the front.

RT

I recently bought a new Fuji as well, and the 105 stuff is 'sticky' to me too. I am convinced that some of it has to do with that crap they put on new chains (Cosmoline?). I recently replaced a chain on another of my bikes, and the first thing I did was strip the chain with mineral spirits, re-lube and reinstall. Works so much better now.

That being said, if you are having shifting issues and are not confident with your wrenching abilities, take it back for an adjustment - they will do it for free (assuming this is Performance).

...and have them SHOW you how to use the barrel adjusters and tune the drivetrain. It is not complicated.

ballistic

I did notice that my 105 rear brake assembly is a bit sticky.

RT

This wouldn't be with the brakes, it is strictly related to the chain. I would take it back and have them give it the once-over again.

ballistic

I know it isn't the brakes. Was responding to Todd's sticky observation.

Is there anything I can try myself first? PB is about 20 minutes away. Oddly enough, the mechanic who inspected it before I took it home came out to his car to go home while I was putting the bike in my car. In a hurry to leave?

joejack951

Your bike should have an adjuster for cable tension for the front derailler. Follow the path of the housing exiting from the left shifter and look for a knurled knob. It will either be inline with the housing or mounted on the frame. Use this adjuster to add cable tension until the front derailler operates properly. It is possible to add too much so work in 1/2 turns to start and then 1/4 turns to get a finer adjustment when you feel it's close. If downshifting to the inner ring becomes really difficult, you have added too much tension and need to back off.

Read up at www.parktool.com if you want to learn more about setting up deraillers. It's not rocket science but if you don't know what you are doing, it's very easy to screw it up.

RT

Park Tool has a good guide to derailleur adjustment, front and rear. As for chain cleaning, head over to the Mechanics forum. It is a widely debated issue whether cleaning that sticky gunk off helps, but from practical experience, I can tell you it works.

ballistic

It's the outer gear that it won't shift to.

I haven't touched the chain. Seems to work well enough. What does cleaning it do?. I'm not worried about it, as I'll probably get an Ultegra 10-sp. chain eventually.

RT

You don't need a new chain, you just need a less sticky chain. This issue is likely independent of any derailleur adjustments that need to be made.

kayakdiver

If your cable is loose as you mention... it has nothing to do with the chain. The shifter cable has either slipped in the clamp at the FD or the cables have stretched. Very common for new bikes.

ballistic

I know it isn't the chain. We're just talking about other things for some reason.

I just checked out the front shifters. I can pull on the cable coming out of them and it comes out a few centimeters. The rear shifters cable doesn't budge at all. I tried turning the front cable's knob a little, and it seemed to tighten the cable. I pushed on the front shifters, which tightened the cable, then let go, and the cable was just as loose as before.

znomit

Take it to the shop.

kayakdiver

release all tension in the front shifter... loosen bolt take up slack in cable at fd. Tighten bolt and you should be good to go. this is making the assumption that it's the cable that has stretched.

if that doesn't work... time to head for your lbs.

irish pat

You may need to adjust the screws, check out the park tool website about that, it can be tricky doing the right screw, when I first did it, I made it worse and ruined the cables by trying to fix it, I would say tighten the cable and adjust the screws my 2c.

ballistic

So I should loosen the bolt and pull on the excess cable that's sticking out of the front derailleur?

What about the fact that the cable can me pulled out of the front lever assembly but not the rear's?

kayakdiver

If the cable can be pulled out of the shifter? if that is what you are saying you have a broken cable.

If you loosen the bolt at the FD.. you should be able to take up the little bit of slack in the cable you have. Tighten bolt and you're done. If you are saying that doing this the cable just keeps coming.. well then i'm guessing you have a broken cable at the shifter I would imagine.

ballistic

The lever still tightens the cable, so it can't be broken, or entirely broken. I just can pull on the cable and it gives, whereas the cable coming out of the other shifter doesn't give at all. Can I open the shifter?

znomit

Two options:

• Take it to the shop and say "hey look what its doing, please fix it"
• Take it to the shop and say "Before I took it apart completely it was doing something funny, please put it back together and then fix whatever was wrong. Heres the box full of parts"

kayakdiver

Don't open the shifter. Go to park tools website and you should be able to find a how to video for taking up the slack. it's really simple but i think it's getting lost in translation. maybe someone else can explain it better than I.

ballistic

Heh, the scenario did cross my mind. I suppose PB's 100% satisfaction guarantee covers it?

kayakdiver

I'm sure they will be more than happy to help you with it. You should watch what they do... Learn to do this stuff yourself. It will save you wasted days when the bike is in the shop. Pick up Bicycling Magazines... "bicycle maintenance and repair" or other similar repair book. It will pay for itself in the first month of using it.

znomit

Have a gripe about the tires while you're there

ballistic

I griped about the tires before I bought the bike. He wouldn't put new ones on.

znomit

Its likely you might be suffering from the stupid 105-triple-on-a-double issue which stuffs front shifters, which will mean a warranty claim for a new shifter. More reason not to mess with things.
Or it might be something simple.

ballistic

Is that something I call Fuji or Shimano about, or something PB has to diagnose?