Rear derailleur weirdness
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Rear derailleur weirdness
all last week when I'd shift it would take a couple taps to get my rear derailleur to shift, then today it stopped shifting completely so I turned around headed home ( I was very sad) spinning at like a million revs per minute to go very slow. Then suddenly about a mile or two from home it started working almost perfectly again. Shimano 105 with about 8000 miles on it.
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When was the last time you re-cabled? Just replace the cable AND housing. Always a good place to start. When the shifter starts needing continual adjustment - MORE tension - that's a sign the cable is about to snap. The individual strands are snapping. This will leave you stranded. Worse - the final failure is typically in the shifter, making the repair a bigger pain in the ass.
Oh, and WD40 shouldn't be used on shifters... it's for bottom brackets and brake pads.
Oh, and WD40 shouldn't be used on shifters... it's for bottom brackets and brake pads.
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When was the last time you re-cabled? Just replace the cable AND housing. Always a good place to start. When the shifter starts needing continual adjustment - MORE tension - that's a sign the cable is about to snap. The individual strands are snapping. This will leave you stranded. Worse - the final failure is typically in the shifter, making the repair a bigger pain in the ass.
The OP didn't say which version 105 he has, but based on the low mileage, I'd guess it's 5800 or 7000 series 105. Fraying cables inside the shifter sounds like the cause of his issues.
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YES this may explain the "weirdness" the OP mentions.
I had RSX shifters back in the mid 90's. Brifters were acting strange, shift but no shift at times. Read about the WD 40. Used it after the bike sat a while and wouldn't shift. Now I have and Ultegra bike that has this weirdness. All new cables. I believe it is a mechanism inside the shifter.
After the spray, the shifter worked perfectly fine. Once it works, it works. If it sits for a long period without riding, it will act this way.
But once it starts working, it works fine. I bet the OP just happened to get it working, luckily, then it was fine after that. WEIRD!
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I had this happen on my old bike. The ratcheting mechanism in the shifter wouldn't catch. Follow
Last edited by MidTNBrad; 10-28-19 at 09:52 PM.
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Let me see if I have this right... "flood" or wash the shifter with WD40 then add lube. That's it? I see a couple issues with this...
- The WD40 is now in the cable housing and under the tape, etc.
- Adding the chainlube to the shifter either makes a diluted solvent or a diluted lube... with solvent
Wouldn't it be better to:
- Remove the shifters
- Clean the shifters - with WD40 or another solvent
- Flush out the cleaner/solvent
- Relube the shifter
- Reinstall the shifter
- The WD40 is now in the cable housing and under the tape, etc.
- Adding the chainlube to the shifter either makes a diluted solvent or a diluted lube... with solvent
Wouldn't it be better to:
- Remove the shifters
- Clean the shifters - with WD40 or another solvent
- Flush out the cleaner/solvent
- Relube the shifter
- Reinstall the shifter
#13
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Maybe a small spray of dry-lube onto the brifter gears, instead of flooding them with WD40?
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Let me see if I have this right... "flood" or wash the shifter with WD40 then add lube. That's it? I see a couple issues with this...
- The WD40 is now in the cable housing and under the tape, etc.
- Adding the chainlube to the shifter either makes a diluted solvent or a diluted lube... with solvent
Wouldn't it be better to:
- Remove the shifters
- Clean the shifters - with WD40 or another solvent
- Flush out the cleaner/solvent
- Relube the shifter
- Reinstall the shifter
- The WD40 is now in the cable housing and under the tape, etc.
- Adding the chainlube to the shifter either makes a diluted solvent or a diluted lube... with solvent
Wouldn't it be better to:
- Remove the shifters
- Clean the shifters - with WD40 or another solvent
- Flush out the cleaner/solvent
- Relube the shifter
- Reinstall the shifter