Problem with shifting

lil_kev

Hi. 2 months ago I've had a full bike service on my Giant hybrid bike. Everything was perfect until recently. I washed my bicycle before my 10-day trip left bike resting in my garage and when I was back from my trip the first day that I started to cycle noticed that my derailleur is not shifting properly. When I try to shift in higher or lower gear my chain doesn't shift. It feels like something like when the gear cable gets snapped and you can easily shift anywhere. First I was thinking that the derailleur might have frozen because at that time the temperature fell below -2C in Ireland. Can somebody give me advice why is this happening even though I tried to play with limit screws and with cable tension?

Please keep in mind that this bike was in perfect condition before going on my trip with full-on service. Thanks

Wishbone Ash

The derailleur may need a bit of lubrication if you have washed it. Is it moving freely?

lil_kev

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

The derailleur may need a bit of lubrication if you have washed it. Is it moving freely?

Noup It stays fixed when I'm changing gears. Thanks

cletus

lil_kev wrote: »

Noup It stays fixed when I'm changing gears. Thanks

Try moving the derailleur by hand. If it moves, check the cable. Relatively easy to change a cable on a derailleur, park tools have a YouTube website with videos covering pretty much any job you can do on a bike

Cee-Jay-Cee

So the shift lever moves easily but the rear derailleur doesn’t? If that’s the case the the cable has become detached or snapped.

If the lever doesn’t move then I’m guessing after you washed the bike you didn’t dry it and lube the rear mech and it has rusted/seized. But as it was only a week or two ago it should be easy enough to free up. Spray a good dose of WD40 in around the whole mech and move it in and out by hand till it moving freely and then try the shift lever again.

magicbastarder

the fact that the OP mentions trying to shift to 'a higher or lower gear' suggests the derailleur hasn't returned to the smallest cog, which is what you would expect if it was a clean cable snap.
OP, is the cable to the rear derailleur exposed for any section along the chainstay, and if so, does it feel taut?

smacl

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

So the shift lever moves easily but the rear derailleur doesn’t? If that’s the case the the cable has become detached or snapped.

If the lever doesn’t move then I’m guessing after you washed the bike you didn’t dry it and lube the rear mech and it has rusted/seized. But as it was only a week or two ago it should be easy enough to free up. Spray a good dose of WD40 in around the whole mech and move it in and out by hand till it moving freely and then try the shift lever again.

Probably the above, or while washing you've managed to get a bit of grit jammed in between the cable inner and outer that is stopping it from moving. That or if the cable outer got a bang it could have a kink that is snagging the inner cable. Either way, push the RD back (most spring resistance) and check if you can move it easily by hand. If not, take the cable off with a view to replacing at least the inner and maybe the outer. Not a difficult job if you watch a couple of youtube videos on it and have a decent cable cutter and worth knowing, or local bike shop if you don't fancy DIY.

Fighting Tao

I first thought this was going to be a personal issues post. I am disappointed!

Had something similar and the cable had snapped. Basically, it was slowing fraying. It didn't show any issues until it finally snapped. It's usually a quick job for a bike shop to fix if you don't fancy doing it yourself.

Wishbone Ash

Fighting Tao wrote: »

I first thought this was going to be a personal issues post. I am disappointed! ....

LOL

lil_kev

Thank you all for advice. Went today to the bike shop and got gear cable repaired. Cheers