Any one know How a Trek fx 7.3 Front Derailleur Cable is Routed?
 

Bought a 7.3 for $150. The front Derailleur won't shift toward the larger gears. The Barrel adjuster is backed out all the way as are both limit screws. I think the cable has been incorrectly routed. Anybody have a picture or diagram of the correct way to route the cable?

You might consider telling us what derailleur you have first? You can also just search for the derailleur online and Shimano usually has their tech guides up even from stuff from the 80s and maybe also so 70s stuff till today. SI.Shimano.com

It sounds like that bike needs quite a bit of work or potentially needs a professional mechanic to look at it if it was you who did it.

Typically modern bikes have the FD cable routed under the BB and up between the chainstays.

However, based on your description I suspect the issue isn't routing, but simply that you haven't pulled all the slack out.

It's can be hard to get all the slack out, so I like to wedge something into the FD to hold the cage between the chainrings as I pull it slack and tighten the pinch bolt.

Find your derailleur here Shimano

Gotta love the ignore list.:thumb:

Wasn't me who "did it.". Long story short I bought it knowing that it wasn't shifting onto the large cog up front but shifted well enough back and forth to the middle and small cogs. I thought if I adjusted the limit screws and adjust the barrel adjuster I might be able to fix it. When I looked at the front cable it didn't look quite right to me although it worked somewhat. Thus my question. If I can't find the info I need on here or elsewhere I will probably just have the LBS look at it. I only paid $150 so if I have to pay another $75 it's not the end of the world. I still have the other bike.

I know the other FD you asked about baffled you as well but they really aren't that difficult. Look up your derailleur in the Shimano website and follow the instructions in order and don't skip anything. It won't cost you anything except a little effort. No special tools needed. And resist messing with the limit screws as a first remedy. I know they are enticing but they rarely need attention after initial setup.

You're on the ignore list, boss, so don't waste the bandwidth.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f4f1649598.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...306e27cecf.jpg
Don't know if these help, but it seems as though there is a "groove" on the front Derailleur that the cable should run along, but doesn't. Does that front cable look correct? The Shimano pages won't load on my phone for some reason.

Have you ever heard of a dual pull derailleur? If you want it corrected I suggest taking bicycle repair classes, Maybe at a local bike co op or pay a bike shop to set it up. Looking at many of your other posts it is clear you are not quite qualified to perform your own bicycle repairs yet. And asking questions here are not lessons and not helping set your bicycles up properly. These are basic tasks that your asking about. Yes we all had to learn the trade but this is not the way to learn

I just wanted a picture or some suggestions on how the cable should be routed. Not judgement about whether I'm "qualified" to fix the bike. I'll add you to the ignore list as well. Now go back to your troll hut and troll someone else.

Maybe while "your" there you can learn how to write. You obviously aren't qualified to communicate in English.

No, what you want is for everybody to donate their time for free to you because your special I guess. Did not intend to be rude like you at all. I just gave you sound advice to help you learn and enjoy cycling. You need to get past yourself if you ever want to learn anything.

From your blurry photos, it can be seen that your derailleur is mounted way too high and the cable is frayed. Hard to ascertain anything about angle, cable routing and tension, which are other potential issues.

Seems like your ignore list is preventing you from getting helpful info as well.

The frayed cable has nothing to do with why the derailleur won't shift to the large cog. The derailleur has been lowered and that has not changed anything. I also straightened it per the park tools video. Sorry the pics are not up to your standards. I'll take my chances on the ignore list. They are people who historically have offered nothing except negative comments so I feel pretty good about ignoring them. Thanks for your help.

Ok fair dinkum. Wasn't sure given the lack of the info needed to answer your question. It is not uncommon for people to go for it themselves and then ask for help in fixing it which is fine.

If you are interested in specifics for whatever derailleur you have, you might post which derailleur you have and not just "it's a Shimano Deore" be specific so someone could help you effectively. Like Trek FXs, Shimano makes changes and different models to the same level.

Ok. It's too late tonight. I'll try to supply more information in the AM. What specifics would you need? Unfortunately, the seller couldn't tell me which year the bike is. I took a picture of the serial number if that helps. Since it's a newer model the trek vintage site was no help. Is there another way to supply you with the info.you would need?
For the record I have realigned and tuned up derailleurs before that were maladjusted.

You'd think someone with so little knowledge and competence would be grateful for help, whatever the origin. :foo: Anyway, the advice to ID the derailleur and look it up on the Shimano site has been shared by others as well. Guess we'll have to wait and see if OP will make the effort.

You are still on ignore, DB. It's all buzzes and clicks on this end.:thumb:.

None of that matters. It will be on the derailleur itself. Like say FD-7403 which refers to a Front Derailleur from the 7403 series which in this case would be Dura-Ace but you might find an FD-M737 which is the same and then mountain and then 737 which is XT. Pretty much every Shimano part has that info stamped or embossed or something into it.

Once you have that info just head to SI.Shimano.com and you can search and it will pull up the tech docs for it. Such as these for that aforementioned derailleur: https://si.shimano.com/en/manual/sea..._model=FD-M737

It is quite nice that it goes back pretty far which also means you will find stuff that they no longer make and support but you might find an exploded diagram and can figure out a missing part and maybe just maybe find someone who has one. Though in your case it would probably be cheaper and easier to replace rather than seek parts.

I appreciate the help. I looked at some of the diagrams but none of them seem to show how the cable is supposed to be routed. I think the guy was having issues shifting and disconnected the cable and then didn't know how it was supposed to go so just buttoned it up the best he could. I thought it would be a simple adjustment but I guess I should have just walked. Usually that's what I do. Especially if I ask them beforehand if the bike is 100% and they tell me "yes" and then I get there and find out otherwise. I'll probably just take it to the shop nearby. They have given me plenty of free advice and even helped me get a stuck pedal off once for free so I owe them some business anyway.

Search 'shimano altus front derailleur manual'

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c51c67922f.png

Lower left?

If you haven’t threaded the barrel adjuster into the shifter, that is the first thing to do to get it working properly. If the barrel adjuster isn’t in place the cable won’t be rigid enough.

If that has been done, the cable routing that you currently have is proper for that particular top pull/bottom swing derailer. The model you have is a is made for either a top pull or bottom pull cable routing. For a bottom pull, the cable would come up and over that black plastic cam on the back of the derailer. The cable would then pull the whole cam around and pull upwards on the cable anchor bolt. You don’t need the cam if you are pulling straight up on the anchor bolt.

You should lower the front derailer. It will shift better.

I'd say yes but the slotted area is actually on top. Right now it looks more like the one in the upper right. I'll take another look tomorrow. But yes there is a slotted area like the lower left

Thank You!!! Yes I think you are right. And yes, I think the guy also backed the barrel adjuster out. I guess I need to release the tension/pinch bolt first so the cable will have some slack. Then try to screw the barrel adjuster back in. I hope he didn't break it. And yes the derailleur is too high. I know it's supposed to be 1-3mm from the teeth of the biggest chainring.