problems changing gear

[Lerxt]

Hi,
I've been riding my Synapse 105 compact for about six months now (my first road bike) and I'm still struggling to get used to the gears and wondered if anyone could offer any advice/pointers. The two problems I seem to have are: firstly I can't always change from the small ring to the large one (with the double shift of the l/h break leaver).

The second problem is almost the reverse - when I try and shift down from the big ring to the small ring I end up dropping the chain (as I did yesterday which was quite scary as I was on a hill with loads of car traffic behind me).

I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong - could I be on the wrong rear cog when I'm changing (does this matter at all)? Or should I modify my cadence when changing gear? It doesn't happen all the time but when I do manage to move the chain on the front rings without a hassle I don't know quite how I manage it.

I love going out on the bike (I've been on mountain bikes for years) but I still don't feel comfortable with the gears. I've had the bike checked out and it's apparently fine. From what I read about Shimano 105 groupsets they shouldn't be giving me grief like this, so I must be doing something not quite right.

Any advice would be welcome.

Lerxt

 

[Peter10]

I had an issue with my front big/small ring. It turned out that the gear cable wasn't tight enough which meant there wasn't enough tension on the lever when I pulled it. I adjusted it and it was fine. This was probably due to the cable stretching as it was brand new and needed a slight tweak.

The issue with the back gears I'm unsure of, so I won't try and help here. From what you describe thought, something isn't wrong. Even for someone new to road bikes (like I was with mine) gear changing should be very easy after 6 months.

 

[Gerry Attrick]

Sounds as though the front and rear derailleurs need adjusting.

Have a look at this and this.

 

[swee'pea99]

Check this out, especially the low and high limit screws.

 

[ian turner]

Shops usually offer a free six week check up to set the bike up properly after it's been given time to stretch the gear cables and the like from use.
Did you get that ? If not it might be an idea to take it in as it sounds like the gears need adjusting.

 

[Lerxt]

Hi,
Thanks for the responses. I took the bike back to the shop for a six week check up and they said it was fine, hence me thinking that I'm doing something wrong when changing the front rings (that coupled with the bemused looks I got from the staff at the shop when I said I wasn't sure if I was doing something wrong!).
I'll check out the vids and look at making some adjustments to the front derailleur. Hopefully that will help.

Thanks again,

Lerxt.

 

[guitarpete247]

When they said it was fine had they done anything to it. If they hadn't I'm sure they should. All new cables will stretch slightly in the first few months and do need a little tweak. As a guitarist I know that new strings tend to bed in for a few weeks and tend to need tuning up more regularly when first fitted. Take it back and let them have another look at it. If they are a decent shop they will tell you if anything is wrong or needs another tweak.

 

[Lerxt]

When they said it was fine had they done anything to it. If they hadn't I'm sure they should. All new cables will stretch slightly in the first few months and do need a little tweak. As a guitarist I know that new strings tend to bed in for a few weeks and tend to need tuning up more regularly when first fitted. Take it back and let them have another look at it. If they are a decent shop they will tell you if anything is wrong or needs another tweak.

Yes, thanks, I should have said. They did tighten all the loose nuts etc. but said the gears were working fine as far as they could tell. I've had a look at the vids mentioned above and will have a look at checking the alignment and checking the tension of the cables etc. If all else fails I'll take it back to the shop.

Thanks again,

L.

 

[ian turner]

Short of changing between gears on the front derailleur while on the higher or lower gears on the rear you shouldn't be dropping the chain

 

[mudplugger]

Have you got a friend who is a decent cyclist? if so let him ride it. If he has the same problem then its likely to be an adjustment issue. If he has no problem its down to your technique. Ask him to go through it and explain..

 

[Lerxt]

I know a couple of people who have road bikes so might approach them and ask for their views. Thanks for the suggestion.

As for dropping the chain, it's happened a couple of times when moving from the larger to the smaller chain ring. I wondered if it might be that I'm in the wrong rear sprocket, in fact this might be the case with both the problems I have.

If so, presumably I just have to get used to making sure that when I'm on the larger chainwheel at the front that I stay within the smallest (1st?) and 5th rear cog (?); and when I'm on the smaller front chainwheel I make sure I don't go smaller than 5th. Does this sound about right?

Thanks again.

L.

 

[dellzeqq]

it shouldn't drop under any circumstances, but you're always best changing when the chain is on one of the middle sprockets (say 3rd to 7th out of 9 or 3rd to 5th out of 7). The other thing is to change from big ring to small ring in good time - as you reach the bottom of the hill. You'll get a smoother change if you're not stomping on the pedals.

Try shifting from big ring to small ring and changing up one at the back to minimise the lurch between ratios.

I agree that you should see if you can find a friend to test-ride it.