Crankarm2short

Hi,was wondering if someone has any experience or knowledge repairing or refurbishing these components from what I'm reading it seems that some say to replace them because there junk! While others say that they are of good quality & victims of nothing more than lubricant that was used at the time (early 90's) that has succumbed to time & the elements in the form of a hard waxy & sticking build up that disables proper function & requires disassembly, cleaning & fresh lubrication to have these brake/ shifters operating smoothly. I have recently acquired an early 90's 58cm GT Force ( dark purple 7005 triple triangle frame ) although its in excellent condition & a beautiful design handmade in Colorado,unfortunately the head tube has about a one inch top down crack I'm looking into another frame ( 54,55,56cm) (58 is a little to much bike for me anyway) of similar vintage for a parts swap but I would like to use these nice looking as well as comfortable controls, derailleurs & brakes also want to keep costs as low as possible. Is the disassemble & cleaning & reassemble of these problematic or relatively straight forward, would I be more likely to have success or failure,if anyone has any knowledge or experience reworking these components I would appreciate you sharing your wisdom & expertise.Its hard for me to accept that these all metal components are junk. Although technology & time improve almost all things I can't ever remember thinking of Shimano as a manufacturer of junk on the contrary I think of Shimano as quality, it just works & last also.
Thank you

Retro Grouch 

How thinly can you slice the baloney?

Shimano has so many tiers of bicycle components that I can't keep track of them all. Know what? They all do the same things and they all work. As you move up the food chain the components tend to get a tiny bit more crisp operating, a little lighter in weight and a little nicer looking. Prices, however, shoot up exponentially. I remember once pricing some component to find that Ultegra was double the cost of 105 and Dura Ace cost twice as much as Ultegra.

If you're interested in building a functional bike, RSX components will certainly do you fine and you'll never lose style points because nobody else will ever notice notice.

pdlamb

Everything can be disassembled, cleaned, and reassembled with a modicum of mechanical ability, patience, and an abundance of paper towels.

Except the shifters. Your best bet there is to shoot them full of WD-30 spray, let all the schmuck drain out, and then spray some good lithium grease into the shifters. Ask the mechanic at your LBS for his recommendation, then go buy the nearest thing at your hardware store.

Shinkers

To begin with, I recall reading here somewhere in the classic/vintage forum that RSX was the same as 105 but with a lower quality finish to bring the cost down a bit. 105 has long been the 'affordable race group' and is well known for being high quality and durable.


Second, I really think that people get way too hung up on component levels. It turns into a pissing match about how many grams you can save over what everyone else has. I have new 4700 on my bike and it shifts perfectly. Even the new Sora is supposed to be pretty dang good.

bargainguy

I've had good success flushing gummed up STI shifters with CRC PowerLube in the red can, about $3 at auto parts and hardware stores. It has PTFE (Teflon) so it works to both flush and lubricate in one shot.

Stick the red nozzle as far into the shifter guts as you can get it (retract the rubber hood if possible so it doesn't get full of spray), let drain, work the shifter in both directions, repeat. It may take several cycles to get nonfunctional shifters working again.

What happens is that the shifters go from no shifting whatsoever to maybe shifting one or two sprockets or chainrings to full range shifting.

It's the relatively easy way of doing what Barnett's manual recommends - disassembly and let the shifter soak in solvent overnight.

niceboy

I managed to disassemble and fix a broken spring in mine. Was fiddly, and well worth checking some you tube tutorials. And be sure to take lots of photos as you take it apart!

Been as good as new since then though. For me these old RSX brifters have a sturdier more quality feel than a lot of the newer stuff...

ramzilla

I've got RSX components on an old 1989 Fuji Club. It seems like the first year that Fuji outsourced manufacturing from Japan to Taiwan. And likely, the first non-Suntour equipped Fuji. Shimano really took over the component business once all the bike companies flooded into Taiwan. My technique for cleaning old shifters & derailleurs involves soaking them in diesel fuel. Soak them for at least a week. Get goggles & elbow length nitrile gloves. Manually work the mechanicals in all directions while soaking. Work them down with a toothbrush. Good as new in no time.

Jean_TX

I also have RSX on one of my bikes. There is no need to disassemble the shifters - just pull the levers in, flush the internals with WD-40, work the levers a few times, then spritz in some lube (I like SuperLube).

AlexCyclistRoch

What I heard was the RX100 was essentially a 105 with a cheaper finish. Whether or not RSX is the same......

Crankarm2short

Thank you for your response, I also read a similar post except that it said that RSX was the predecessor to the Sora group set, but as you say with more affordable material used to lower cost making for a lower cost alternative,I also agree that unless your a professional cyclist looking for any advantage available to you over a highly competitive field of other world class cyclist climbing to the summit of Alpe Du Huez or the Col Du Tormelet in the Tour like a Chris Fromm or Alberto Contidor I don't think a few grams are going to make a very big difference in most people's performance? I tell people that spending some time in the saddle peddling up the biggest hills you have available & losing some extra & unneeded body fat will make a substantial difference in your performance & losing a pound or two cost much less than Dura Ace although Sora not going to get your bike much attention parked against the wall at your local Coffee shop or LBS. Don't get me wrong I love a feather weight, high dollar top end rig just as much as the next guy but its not something someone needs. I know there guys out there on $500 bikes that can grind guys on $15,000 bikes into a mass of flesh laying on the ground crying in his own vomit unable to stand up on his own two legs. Anyway I would like to be able to get these working smoothly again because #1 the entire group set is RSX & I'd like to maintain the time period integrity of the rebuild
#2 I like the design there sturdy smooth aero look & comfortable ergonomic's along with there all metal construction look like quality pieces.
#3 Its what I now have in my possession at the moment & if I can get them shifting properly ( brakes are working fine) there would be no need to replace them.
So if someone with experience can advise me on repairing that side of it i would appreciated the helping hand. I didn't get into yet I'm still working on a replacement frame, but soon.
Thanks

mstateglfr 

Rx100 is what you are referring to.

Rsx is further down the line.

Crankarm2short

Thank you so much for all the great feedback, very much appreciated, I was actually thinking of a soak & wash before actual disassembling them for all the obvious reasons ( I really didn't want to take them apart unless absolutely necessary!) so its great to learn that just doing a soak that it may resolve the problem. Just a thought,I know that a soak in diesel, kerosene or WD40 will clean metal wonderfully but petroleum products are kinda detrimental to rubber seals & bits that are inside these controls wouldn't you think that a citrus degreaser can do the same job in this application or did anyone already try this & not get good result possibly because its not strong enough to break down that old dried out waxy built up lubricant? Just so you understand this bicycle was taken care of & not abused always stored indoors & was not ridden for quite some time its in very good condition except for the shifting function for the derailleurs. I actually think the front is working ok at the moment although the cable is missing spring tension is good at the control as well as the front derailleur. Rear derailleur is in working order also its the rear control that seems to be sticking although it still has light spring tension available so ( hopefully ) I don't believe I have a broken spring issue inside the control also both front & rear brakes operate well.

Shinkers

Ah. Those ran together in my mind.


Either way, I still think component hierarchy is blown out of proportion.

AnkleWork

For more anonymous contradicting opinions you've come to the right forum, but how many do you want?

bradtx

Crankarm2Short, The WD40 soaking will help determine if there is a hardened grease problem or a mechanical problem. Soak with WD40 and exercise both the up and down shift levers. May take a few soakings, have patience. If the levers are still on the bike, shift to the largest sprocket if you can, or by hand and then don't turn the crank arms while exercising the levers.

Brad

Crankarm2short

Point well taken!
I'm just a bit skeptical when someone says a particular Shimano product is junk personally I don't believe any product, group set or equipment they ever made could be classified as junk, & believe me I don't have a company bias toward Shimano I have bicycles equipped with (1w)SRAM, (2w) SUNTOUR & the (3w) Shimano, & in the past had a bicycle with a Campagnolo group set with no complaint's or issues at all. But may be that person either had a bad experience owning RSX or is making a comparison to what is currently available? Its a bit of a stretch to compare state of the art technology, lets say the new 2017 Dura ace group set with something from the early 90's as far as performance is concern there can simply be no comparison!
Not just measuring grams but also in function,durability from advances in materials less friction as well as aero dynamics & aesthetics. The same holds true for caliper brakes can they & will they stop you safely & dependably each & ever time you apply them? Absolutely without a doubt they will & have for many many years but compared to a new road hydraulic disc brake system,
No comparison! Especially if your out in the wet weather, also if you like carbon fiber rims a disc brake frame set would be a much better alternative than exploding wheel sets at 50 or 60mph! Didn't happen yet? Probably won't if you have an alloy brake track otherwise Good Luck with that because the research & science basically say in due time? Catastrophic failure the resin bonding the carbon fibers just cannot take the heat, weakening the rim while heating & expanding the air inside the tire. Time & Chance who can say when the inevitable BOOM will be heard.
Anyway sometimes contradicting opinions are a good thing as long as there based in some factual evidence or experience of some kind, its how improvements are made or discovered.
Enjoy the rest of your day

Dave Mayer

The advice on soaking the insides of the shifters is perfect. I recommend electrical contact cleaner (spray can) to degunk the innards, followed by white lithium grease in a spray can. The electrical contact cleaner is very penetrating and volatile, and strips everything out of the shifter guts in no time. However, with the dirt removal, it also strips any trace of lubrication. This is why the cleaning stage should be followed up by the lithium grease spray, to replace the necessary grease lube.

As far as citrus cleaners, (as with anything 'green') being water-based, this is hopelessly ineffective as a degreaser or for cleaning bike parts in general. Being loaded up with acids and water, if any trace of this is left inside the levers, they will suffer from lingering corrosive demise.

Don't worry about the hoods - they are not rubber, and they are formulated to handle hydrocarbon greases.

RSX shifters, when working, are as functional as any STI shifters, just heavier. RSX brakes are keepers. I've owned about 30 different sets of road brakes, including multiple iterations of Dura-Ace and Record. RSX brakes are crudely finished, and heavy, but they are stiff and powerful.

Crankarm2short

Hi I got a question to put out there about weather or not a frame with an (Italian) bottom bracket thread (36mm) will be compatable with a RSX triple crank & a RSX front & rear Derailleur or will I have to choose another frame or is there another alternative available to making it work on an alloy Italian frame?