The bike is upside down sitting on the handlebars and seat because I don’t have a stand. The shifter that shifts up is completely loose, the shifter that shifts down still seems to be spring loaded but doesn’t feel connected to anything. The derailleur does not move.
by justworse
5 Comments
Is the cable disconnected at the derailleur ? Follow the cable from the shifter to the derailleur, check that it is not disconnected somewhere.
Looks like your cable is extremely loose or even disconnected. Basically when you click those levers it loosens or tightens that cable and moves your derailleur left/right. The tension makes the mechanism work. There is no tension.
I could be being stupid, but I think the other diagnosies might be wrong. By the fact that your shifter isn’t clicking, it probably means that the shifter is gummed up somehow, eithe by old grease or the cablehead disloging and getting stuck inside the mechanism. If it was simply disconnected you should still hear the clicks.
How long have you had this problem?
It’s dead, time for a new bike.
Whoops didn’t realize this was r/bikewrench
Definitely explore the cable issue first.
But before you toss this and buy a new one… if you get to that point…
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This may be an extreme action for some.. whether you work in a shop or not but…
You can open it up… carefully, patiently, on a surface where you can collect any parts that jump out before you can contain them.
There are plenty of diagrams for these types of shifters that show the various parts.
Also some videos of people taking these apart. You might not get good instruction on disassembly/reassembly, but you’ll get a good look at the inside parts and possibly where/how they hook up and work.
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I’ve opened up various grades of shifters and solved issues and not solved issues.
Good luck on yours!
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This is not my video… just an example of what’s on YT…
[https://youtu.be/HYVUdDT38-o?si=VJduzFcfRRi7pyMt](https://youtu.be/HYVUdDT38-o?si=VJduzFcfRRi7pyMt)