Front Derailer problems.

[JeProject]

Hi,

I've followed the park tool guide on setting up my front derailer but I just can't get it right.

I can only get onto the 2nd chain ring if there's a slight amount of rubbing (using innermost rear cog). If I use the barrel adjuster making quarter turns I can stop the rubbing but then it wont shift the front 2 from 1.

Spent hours just going between these two situations, no matter how little I change the cable length I can't get both to be true.

Crummy CBR bike that I've changed just about everything on as a year later everything started dying.
3 rings on the front and 7 gears at the back.

 

[JeProject]

 

[betty swollocks]

Are you trying to use all three front chainrings with all seven rear sprockets? If you are, don't!
If you do, you'll not be able to eliminate the chain rubbing on either the inner or then outer plates in some gear combinations.
In big chainring, use only the four (1-4) smallest sprockets
in the middle one, use only 2-6
and in the smallest, use only 3-7.
Hope this helps.

 

[raleighnut]

Adjust the inner limit screw to allow the front mech to move in further, not much mind. On a triple front set up the inner and outer rings are controlled by limit stops and the centre only by cable tension. Ah the joys of indexing a triple, have fun.

 

[JeProject]

Thanks for the replies. I'm currently only trying to get biggest rear cog and middle chain ring. I've been informed about not having access to all gears but was told the middle chain ring should have access too all rear gears. I'll see what the other gears are like. Edit: The second rear gear also rubs in the 2nd chainring.

With no cable tension the inner chainring is fine, and I can select the outter one just fine too. So it seems to be purely a cable tension issue. I have to have a lot of slack in the cable for the front derailer. If I have it with no slack the derailer moves way to far on the first click, far more than I can adjust with the barrel adjuster so I'm having to leave the cable extra slack which is obviously a bad start. Is the front derailer bent do you think? It seems to be straight but its hard to tell with all the fancy curves.

It's annoying having to replace bits you aren't even sure are broken but the next step will have to be replacing the front derailer and if that doesn't work maybe changing the shifters?

 

[JeProject]

Could it be the FD is incompatible with my new chain set?

The FD is branded Shimano but it came with the bike and probably isn't very good.
The Chainset is FC M131 48/38/28 170mm which is slightly larger than the old one and I had to reposition the FD slightly.

Probably a "why didn't you say earlier" situation but I'm not sure what info is relevant.

 

[User33236]

Double check the FD is parallel with the chainset. Mrs SG had trouble with her Boardman rubbing no matter how it was adjusted until I spotted that the FD had been set a couple of mm off parallel. Once corrected the setup was easy.

 

[raleighnut]

Its quite common to have some slack in the cable on the small/inner/granny ring. Adjust the cable tension until the front mech is central on the middle ring when 2 is selected which should give silent access to 2-6 on a 7spd rear or 2-7 on an 8spd.

 

[JeProject]

Thanks User33236 but I'm struggling to make sure it is straight tbh with all the curves in it. I might have to get someone to just check it.

Raleighnut that's not something I've heard of doing. Thanks for the advice I will see how I get on trying that method. Cheers.