The levers move fine in all directions and the cables are attached etc etc… But there are no clicks or action pulling on the cable in this shifter.
I've tried flooding it with WD-40 and heating with a hairdryer to loosen up old gunk, but nothing seems to make a difference.
by internet_safari_
13 Comments
They are 8 speed shifters btw
Yeah I got an old bike with 105s and the left one wouldn’t engage. Wd40 did the trick.. maybe just wait for it to dry a little then blast it again?
Remove the cap, be ready for flying springs.
Clean all of it with Brake clean … I flooded mine with Brake clean in the ultrasonic cleaner.
I rebuild these if you’re interested, otherwise you can try pouring some boiling water through them. That old Shimano grease hardens into a very thick paste that sometimes even the most aggressive chemical remedies won’t do anything.
Rinsing out with hot water (near boiling) has proven most effective IME, trick was taught to me by a vintage bike master mech. Hot water from several angles, actuate repeatedly (repeat last two steps if needed), obtain excellent shifting, blow out water and debris, lube judiciously (less is more).
Boiling water or brake clean.
I had these exact shifters with the exact same problem. Your only options are having somebody rebuild them or replacing them. Replacing them is probably cheaper.
Flushing the old grease out with boiling water or solvent only works for a little while. Then they start building up too much friction from lack of grease, and you’re back where you started.
I recommend just getting Microshift R8 replacement brifters. They’re much better ergonomically anyway.
Always had good luck with White Lightning clean streak spray, that stuff dissolves basically anything. You need to lube with something after if it works.
Are you sure that the cable ends inside the shifters are securely attached to the cables and haven’t broken off? Happened to me.
PB B’laster- remove the hoods and covers and make sure you spray them outside with gloves. It stinks for days but it has worked 3 times in a row with no failures yet🤞
I regularly get rsx shifters in and they are by far the most problematic brifter ive come across. Good stuff when they work right, but theres almost always issues.
Bike aid dri slide
It fixes this instantly.
So I decided to rebuild the shifter and found the problem. Inside the shifter there’s a latch that’s pushed down by a very flimsy spring. The dowel that the latch rotates around was gunked up in the sliver of space between. This made it extremely difficult to move the latch. You need to pop off a circlip to remove the latch and re-lube it. All is well now! If anyone needs photos or more details feel free to message me
Also rebuilding them wasn’t as bad as people make it out to be and before anyone replaces this part maybe it’s good to at least try! All I needed was a YouTube video for the 7 speed version, Allen keys, a screw driver, grease, WD-40, and a set of mini flathead screwdrivers