djlarroc

My right shifter (rear) has been "slipping" lately. When I push to go to an easier gear, the thumb shifter will go all the way in w/out catching. I have to push it 2,3 times before it catches.

I took to bike shop and they adjusted and said it was loose cable, but it's still doing it.

Anything I can do to fix this? Or am I looking at a new shifter? It's on a '01 Rock Hopper btw, Deore SL.

Thanks

bikinfool

Sounds like the old sticky grease in the shifter syndrome....flush it out with something like WD40 or some other solvent kinda stuff and work the shifter a bunch then spray in some lube. You don't need to take it apart, just use the access point of the cable. Your shop saying it's a "loose cable" is nuts if they couldn't put some tension on it.

djlarroc

Just wanted to update. You were right! I sprayed the shifter w/PB blaster, blew it out w/the air hose, put bike lube in there, and it's working normal again. Thanks!

une_vitesse

that'll work for some time, but unless you get lube in the right place, the shifter will probably revert back to its old ways. i know, because that's what we used to do, until we started getting unhappy clients coming back to the shop saying the repair didn't last. now, when my shop does a shifter overhaul, we remove the cable, take the shifter apart, and lube the pawls' actual pivots with some triflow from a drip bottle. drip triflow onto the pivot, use a pick to work the pawl until it rotates smoothly, put shifter back together again with new cable. you almost always have to remove the cable to take the shifter apart.