Indexing nightmare

[confusedcyclist]

I have a headache on my hands. Lately I have had problems with my hybrid's gear shifting. The bike was in storage 6+ years but was relatively unused at the time it was stored. Having taken it out and put the bike to good use, I quickly noticed the indexing of both front and rear derailleur wasn't quite right with hesitant shifting. I have adjusted the the barrels, and seemed to be succesful in my attempts to imrpove the shifting. Yet over time (1-2 weeks) the shifting performance drops quite quickly to former levels.

Any ideas why this would be the case? I seriously hope this isn't the garden gnomes playing tricks on me while the bike is stored in the shed...

 

[Sharky]

Check the ends of the gear cables, those alloy ferrules or plastic ones. If the outer gear cable is a bit frayed or weak, the cable could be stretching a tiny bit and making you shorten or lengthen the inners.

 

[confusedcyclist]

I'll check again later, but I'm 99% sure there is no fraying.

 

[Tim Hall]

Hesitant shifting up or down or both? Remember that shifting from large to small sprocket or chain ring is (usually) done by releasing the cable tension and letting the spring in the mech do the work. After being in storage for 6 years it's a fair bet the cables/mech aren't as free as they should be, so the spring is struggling.

 

[raleighnut]

Hesitant shifting up or down or both? Remember that shifting from large to small sprocket or chain ring is (usually) done by releasing the cable tension and letting the spring in the mech do the work. After being in storage for 6 years it's a fair bet the cables/mech aren't as free as they should be, so the spring is struggling.

^^^^+1Give the cables and mech a good lubing.

 

[Deleted member 35268]

Me cables are definately fraying - will have to replace.

 

[Globalti]

Replace both inners and outers with Shimano cables, not el cheapo cables.

 

[martint235]

You'll have to do it anyway if you change the cables but have you tried resetting your gears. Shift into the the smallest cog then undo the nut holding the cable, with the barrel tensioner about half way, pull the cable as tight as you can with your hand and redo the nut. This might help.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Don't rule out the gnomes.

I have a headache on my hands.

Unusual

 

[confusedcyclist]

Definitely more noticeable when shifting down.

 

[morrisman]

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Never rule out the Gnomes

 

[jagman.2003]

I'd vote for sticking cables. Ideally strip them down & replace. But probably a quick solution would be to lube them.
I have occasionally used a cable lubricator. It clamps on one end of the outer & allows you to inject WD40 or similar under pressure.
I've had sticking cables on my mountain bike. It became like an automatic gearbox. Changing when it felt like it.

 

[confusedcyclist]

I'll try replace the front cable. Funnily enough, I ordered a replacement cable and casing last time I had the indexing problem but assumed it had been resolved with a barrel adjustment. The outer sheath that it came with the cable isn't identical to the one on my bike, so I'll try lube up the new cable and stick it through the old outer sheath.

What can I do to free up the mech, aside from thorough cleaning and lubing? I did that 2 weeks ago.

 

[confusedcyclist]

Never rule out the Gnomes

Yep, they also seem to be loosening my reflectors and bell... whyyyyyyyyyy?!

 

[raleighnut]

Yep, they also seem to be loosening my reflectors and bell... whyyyyyyyyyy?!

They're being helpful