mr,grumpy 

My kid picked up my Specialized Tricross and put it in with a bunch of other bikes. Now, I won't shift into the largest chainring, and if it does it is only with great effort. The limit screw is set all the way out. Any thoughts on how to straighten this out?

Mr. 66

Was it working before? Had it been damaged? Usually the limit screw is set once and never changes. Have you tried WD-40 on the mech and shifter?

_ForceD_

Maybe you need to take a bit of slack out of the cable. Does it have and in-line adjuster? If not you’ll have to take it out at the anchor bolt on the derailleur.

Dan

FBinNY 

Start by isolating the problem. Try shifting by pulling the bare wire away from the frame. If it shifts, use this method to correctly set the outer limit screw.

Now you can look at other possibilitiesx ie. slack cable, something binding, lever problem, etc.

Stay focused, and work methodically, isolating possibilities until you KNOW where the problem lies.

maddog34

"Put it in with a bunch of other bikes"... makes me think that the derailleur has been bumped and Moved out of alignment...

check front der. alignment before you Re-adjust that upper limit screw back to WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE, or start screwing up the cable adjustment as suggested elsewhere...

there is also a possibility that the SHIFTER got moved too far when the bikes got tossed together, which can pull the cable out of adjustment,,, BUT Check Derailleur Alignment Before you do anything else!

there are hundreds of videos on Youtube showing how to correctly "Align a Front Derailleur".. watch one and learn, if you're not certain, ok?

oldbobcat

Seeing as this could be caused by loose cable, worn cable, misalignment, or whatever, and by now the limit screws are probably not doing their job as needed, I recommend a session with the Park Tool front derailleur setup page. The link for it is in the archive in a least a dozen posts. Or you can search with your browser. Trust me, this isn't the first time a front derailleur mysteriously stopped working.

cny-bikeman

FB's recommendation is the first one to follow, as then you know if the derailleur itself is operating properly. But if it is not, then you need to check the derailleurs alignment before you touch the limit screw. If the derailleur has been rotated counterclockwise then it may not properly shift into the large chainring. If it shifts OK when isolated then you can focus on the cable/housing and shift lever. If not, then adjust the derailleur from scratch.

maddog34

So you're saying test der. travel then reset the limit screws BEFORE checking der. alignment?

ummm... wow.. not a good idea.

i always set height and alignment, then set limit screws, then set the cable... especially after the bike was tossed in with a bunch of other bikes, as reported by Mr. Grumpy.

Here's the Park tool Front Der. Procedure.. they prescribe the same thing i did.... except i set the limit screws by eye, then set the cable, then check the limit screws again.. If the height or alignment are out of spec, what happens to the cable and limit screw adjustments? they will need to be done again. TIP: set the front der. SHIFTER's adjustment to two turns out BEFORE setting cable tension... theis willprovide adjustment range in either direction, if needed... i also have used "PRE-Tensioning by turning the Low Limit screw in One Turn Before hooking the cable up.. this takes up any slack without using a "cable stretching tool"... return the limit screw to it's home position after clamping the cable... this works well for rear ders too!

cny-bikeman

No, I am not saying that. FB recommended testing derailleur operation by pulling the cable directly (at the down tube). I said that if it is NOT working properly then check alignment before limit screws, and if it is working as it should then focus elsewhere. Although it would not hurt, there's no need to go through the entire derailleur adjustment process if one finds out that it is shifting fine when isolated. The first step in diagnosis is to isolate causes. Certainly, it's advisable to recheck height if the full derailleur adjustment is needed. I'm familiar with proper derailleur adjustment, and everyone has a slightly different approach. I adjust the slack cable limit first, then set the other limit screw, and finally set the cable - different of course with a new cable.

mr,grumpy 

Thank you all. After days of testing and adjusting I succeeded in making the bike not shift at all. A quick trip to the LBS and it was sorted in less than min.

Andrew R Stewart 

And did they give any indication as to what was going on? It's all fine and dandy to have a pro fix your bike but it's stellar if you also learn something at the same time. Andy

Iride01 

Since everyone here was trying to help you, you could return the favor by letting us know what the actual issue was.

Otherwise your comment is just like slapping us on the face and saying "you are wrong"!

cyccommute 

Let’s see: Won’t shift to the large ring and was fixed in less than a minute? To paraphrase the Church Lady: “Could it be…Cable!”

mr,grumpy 

No. I didn't get a block of instruction, just service. He DID say that the front derailure was out of alignment, so he fixed that, but then he made several other adjustments. What all he did, he didn't say.