Just bought some nice new his/her bikes to replace the toy store bikes we practiced on for a couple of years. Plan to sell the old bikes--some kids will probably enjoy them.
But one of the old bikes has a very hard-to-upshift front derailleur. It's almost impossible to move onto the third chainrail. The high/low adjustment screws are set properly; the dang thing is just tough to move upward. I'd like to fix it before I try to sell it.
Maybe it's just a piece of cheap junk that can't be saved. (The name stickers on the mechanism say TD-One and Torque Drive Systems). But I'm hoping that there's an adjustment or a lubrication that I don't know about that could help a little. Any suggestions?
Just bought some nice new his/her bikes to replace the toy store bikes we practiced on for a couple of years. Plan to sell the old bikes--some kids will probably enjoy them.
But one of the old bikes has a very hard-to-upshift front derailleur. It's almost impossible to move onto the third chainrail. The high/low adjustment screws are set properly; the dang thing is just tough to move upward. I'd like to fix it before I try to sell it.
Maybe it's just a piece of cheap junk that can't be saved. (The name stickers on the mechanism say TD-One and Torque Drive Systems). But I'm hoping that there's an adjustment or a lubrication that I don't know about that could help a little. Any suggestions?
NG
Have you made sure that the cable is running freely?
Disconnect the cable at the derailleur, lube over the full length. check the operation of the shifter alone, no load. Chack the travel of the derailleur, by hand, is it free all the way? Lube everything!
Had a similar problem on a high end Raleigh. OK, I hear you all saying that a high end Raleigh is almost as good as a toy store bike.
Anyway, it got so bad that I finally burst the cable housing trying to shift to the large chainring. I replaced the cable, cable housing, and the BB Cable Guide. Prior to installing the cable, I sprayed silicone lube through the cable housing. I pulled the cable through white lithium grease, and I rubbed paraffin wax on the cable guide where the cables ran on it. It shifts fine now. All that I can figure is that the original cable housing had a crimp in it as the cable that came out of it did not show any signs of corrossion, etc.
