left side gear change

[s7ephanie]

Its really hard to turn the left hand handle to change the front gears, is this normal or am i just a weak, limp wristed girl !!!!!
trying to do more on the big wheel (cog ?) but by time i have managed to turn thre thing i have come to a hill and itd too late !

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

A squirt of WD-40 or light oil might loosen it up.

 

[steve52]

it does depend a lot on the quality of the twist grip too, well worrth upgradeing imo.but you can try befor you buy in most shops

 

[Chris S]

I had the same problem changing to the big front cog as you when I had an MTB. The secret is to do it at before you slow down, which means reading the road ahead.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Yes Steph, wiping gear cables with an oiled (lubed?) cloth helps smooth gear changing.
Also quirt some spray lube on the front derailleur from time to time (I do when I wash the bike) watch not to get any on the rims, or if you do clean it after.
I find easing quite a bit on the pedals when you change front gear helpful.
It is true that once you are on the big ring a hill promptly appears lol!

 

[s7ephanie]

did most of todays' ride with the big ring !!!! AND it was mostly an incline, was easier to change today so maybe it just needed to be 'used more'
Thanks everybody

 

[dasy2k1]

Whenever I relube my chain, the cloth I use to wipe off the excess gets wiped over all the exposed inners of my brake and gear cables, chain lube seems to work great on cables