duke_of_hazard

Every few weeks my bike develops problems shifting from the gear 2 to gear 1 on a 7 speed. So I used loctite on the adjuster barrel to keep it in place. Now it is difficult to turn without some pliers. My question is do I need to turn it clockwise or counter clockwise to fix my shifting problem? I always forget!

sour01

Counterclockwise if you are having trouble shifting to bigger cogs. Clockwise if you are having trouble shifting to smaller cogs.

thomson

I will try a different explanation.

If you are trying to shift to a larger sprocket and one click doesn't quite get it there, the tension is too slack. If one click overshoots the cog, even by a little, the tension is too tight (the cable is too taut)

If you were able to increase the length of the housing while keeping everything else the same, the cable tension will increase.

The barrel adjuster (effectively) increases the housing length when you unscrew it (turn counterclockwise) and decreases the housing length when you screw the adjuster in.

While this explanation is longer, I am of the belief that if you understand how these things work, it actually becomes easier and more intuitive to adjust.

duke_of_hazard

I am a little confused, as I had to turn mine the opposite you described to the get the desired effect. How are you determing clockwise, is it from looking from the inside our outside of the bike?

JiveTurkey

Barrel adjusters are essentially hollow screws. CW (screwing in) and CCW (screwing out) refer to looking down at the screw.

Another way of looking at it if you're adjusting the adjuster on the rear derailleur: looking from the back of the bike, turning the adjuster left (CCW, screwing out) will make the derailleur go left. The opposite occurs when turning right.

Also, you shouldn't need to use loctite on the barrel adjuster, so there is something else that's going on here. Are you securing the anchor bolt (where the cable attaches to the derailleur) securely? Perhaps it is slowly slipping out. Assuming "gear 2 to gear 1" means to a lower gear (larger cog), this indicates the cable is getting looser.

Dan Burkhart 

If your derailleur is the rapid rise, or low normal type, the reverse of the previous advice will apply. That is, if pulling the cable moves the chain to the smaller cogs, and releasing it moves it to the larger ones.

duke_of_hazard

I just looked it up and you are right, it is a rapid rise:

https://www.dahon.com/components/deluxe/neos.htm

So problem solved, thanks!

sunburst

I was watching a mechanic fix someone's shifting at a Spin Doctor clinic, and he said, be sure not to lube the cable at the anchor point. I usually lube the cables completely by running them through my (lubed) fingers, then installing then in the housing. So, of course, I was also lubing the anchor point. The mechanic installs his, then drips a bit a oil into the housing.