Possible Causes of Slow Shifting in Dura Ace 9 Speed Setup?

19wisconsin64 wrote:
Hi,
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.

Try turning the barrel adjuster (at the rear derailleur) a click or two
clockwise. (Though usually the cable stretches a little and the fix is to
TIGHTEN not slacken.) (Is slacken even a word?!?)

I had some shifting problems on my Klein (internal cable routed), and
discovered the /frame/ (upper?) barrel adjuster had broken. So check over
your drivetrain, just in case.

Bill "road so much less troublesome than mtn." S.

In article ,
19wisconsin64 wrote:
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.
I have cleaned the chain several times, used a very good dry
lubricant, and cleaned and lightly greased the rear derailleur.
Also, I've cleaned the rear cogset.
I have never replaced anything on the bike, except the tires and
brakepads, and over the past 5 years have accumulated about 5,000
miles. Now that I'm putting on a lot more miles, this small
annoyance has me wondering.
Should I replace the chain?

The chain could probably use replacing but may or may not cause
your shifting problem. I would usually start by making sure
everything is properly adjusted (derailleur stops, cable tension)
and at least eyeball check for a bent derailleur tab or derailleur
cage. Then I would lube the derailleur cable, or replace it, and
replace housing if necessary. Pull off the end caps and look at
the cut end of housing, square off any really nasty cuts and use a
spoker poker to open the liner completely. I would also avoid using
"sealed" housing end caps (with a rubber seal inside) as they will
contribute to sluggish cable movement. Feel the movement of the
cable through the housing by pulling it both ways with your hands,
it should move quite easily with very little resistance. I generally
use motor oil on derailleur cables, or tri-flow for a problem case I
don't want to fix properly.

Check chain for stretch and replace if necessary.

Could a spring in the rear derailleur
be weak?

Could be, but I wouldn't start by replacing that. You probably don't have
enough mileage on it to be concerned about the springs.

--Paul

"Paul Southworth" waxed eloquently thusly...

The chain could probably use replacing but may or may not cause
your shifting problem. I would usually start by making sure
everything is properly adjusted (derailleur stops, cable tension)
and at least eyeball check for a bent derailleur tab or derailleur
cage. Then I would lube the derailleur cable, or replace it, and
replace housing if necessary. Pull off the end caps and look at
the cut end of housing, square off any really nasty cuts and use a
spoker poker to open the liner completely. I would also avoid using
"sealed" housing end caps (with a rubber seal inside) as they will
contribute to sluggish cable movement. Feel the movement of the
cable through the housing by pulling it both ways with your hands,
it should move quite easily with very little resistance. I generally
use motor oil on derailleur cables, or tri-flow for a problem case I
don't want to fix properly.

Check chain for stretch and replace if necessary.

Or you could just try turning the barrel adjuster clockwise a bit like Sorni
suggested.

JF

19wisconsin64 wrote:

Hi,
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.
I have cleaned the chain several times, used a very good dry
lubricant, and cleaned and lightly greased the rear derailleur.
Also, I've cleaned the rear cogset.
I have never replaced anything on the bike, except the tires and
brakepads, and over the past 5 years have accumulated about 5,000
miles. Now that I'm putting on a lot more miles, this small
annoyance has me wondering.
Should I replace the chain? Could a spring in the rear derailleur
be weak?

Check the cable casing for a kink or a damaged ferrule,
especially if yours are plastic. Pull back the wires from
the casing if that's possible on your frame (Usually there
is a slotted sop or an unboltable stop ) and note any
corrosion or dirt or even worse kinks in the wires. Even
though modern gear wires are "no lube needed", something
light that won't get sticky (Rock-n-Roll for example) is
nice for wires inside casing. Replace damaged control wires
or casings.

Then evaluate the alignment of the rear changer. The cage
plates should be parallel to the chainrings when viewed from
behind* If the bike has been dropped on the right side at
some point, the changer ( or more exactly its mounting tab)
will be bent in slightly. See which shops in your area can
correct that.
One might do a reasonably good job of that by eye with an
allen key stuck in the top pivot. But I am hesitant to
suggest a user-bend fix to modern aluminum gear tabs as
those can be pretty wimpy . Easy does it.

*Not all derailleurs are deigned to be dead vertical. Some
have a cant designed in.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

"19wisconsin64" wrote in message
om...
Hi,
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.
I have cleaned the chain several times, used a very good dry
lubricant, and cleaned and lightly greased the rear derailleur.
Also, I've cleaned the rear cogset.
I have never replaced anything on the bike, except the tires and
brakepads, and over the past 5 years have accumulated about 5,000
miles. Now that I'm putting on a lot more miles, this small
annoyance has me wondering.
Should I replace the chain? Could a spring in the rear derailleur
be weak?

The "weak link" is usually the last section of cable housing, the loop that
goes from the seatstay to the rear derailer. I think this should probably just
be replaced every couple of years. Water runs down the cable & into the
housing, carrying crap with it. The friction causes slow shifts to smaller
rear sprockets. It's a $2 fix.

david- but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay. BRBR

Something is preventing the rear der from pulling the chain to those cogs.
Either an over adjusted(adjusted too high) rear der or a sluggish inner wire,
dirty housing or both. Since it has been working well, i think new inner wire
and housing is called for.

I would get 5mm der housing(get rid of the awful 4mm stuff from shimano) and a
new inner wire. Then adjust the rear der well. Also clean the under BB guide
well.

Peter Chisholm
Vecchio's Bicicletteria
1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535
http://www.vecchios.com
"Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"

19wisconsin64 wrote:
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.

Doubt it's the chain. If it's shifting from the 12 to 13 and 13 to 14 OK,
but not the other way, then the likely cause is cable friction. Check your
cables and housings as well as the cable guide under the BB.

Art Harris

19wisconsin64 wrote:

I have never replaced anything on the bike, except the tires and
brakepads, and over the past 5 years have accumulated about 5,000
miles.

While the chain probably isn't the cause of this problem, it's probably
due for replacement since you say it's got 5000 miles on it.

Art Harris

Qui Si Parla Ca wrote:
david- but for some reason when I am on the 53 tooth chainring, and I
try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or the 13 cog to the 12
(smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Something is preventing the rear der from pulling the chain to those
cogs. Either an over adjusted(adjusted too high) rear der or a sluggish
inner wire, dirty housing or both. Since it has been working well, i
think new inner wire and housing is called for.
I would get 5mm der housing(get rid of the awful 4mm stuff from shimano)
and a new inner wire. Then adjust the rear der well. Also clean the
under BB guide well.
Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com/http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote
convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"


If you have 5,000 miles on your chain and cogs it may be time to chang
them too. I agree with Peter on his suggestions. Check Sheldon'
articles at: http://sheldonbrown.com/derailer-adjustment.htm
http://sheldonbrown.com/cables.html http://sheldonbrown.com/chains.htm


-

"19wisconsin64" wrote in message
om...
Hi,
I have a Trek OCLV framed bike, with all Dura Ace 7700 components.
It's really a great bike, but for some reason when I am on the 53
tooth chainring, and I try shifting from my 14 cog to my 13 cog, or
the 13 cog to the 12 (smallest) rear cog there is a short delay.
Sometimes the delay is for a few seconds.
I have cleaned the chain several times, used a very good dry
lubricant, and cleaned and lightly greased the rear derailleur.
Also, I've cleaned the rear cogset.
I have never replaced anything on the bike, except the tires and
brakepads, and over the past 5 years have accumulated about 5,000
miles. Now that I'm putting on a lot more miles, this small
annoyance has me wondering.
Should I replace the chain? Could a spring in the rear derailleur
be weak?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Honestly, being an eighties kind of guy, this whole STI/ERGO thing
has me flummoxed.

Thanks, Dave

I'd bet money on one of two problems and maybe a combination of both.
Replace the rear derailleur cable. If you have 5k on it then it will be
damaged where it wraps in the shift lever. I figure that cable is good for a
reliable 3,000 miles, any thing beyond is a grace period. A failure also has
the possibility of fine wires breaking off in the shifter and making it a
paperweight.

Also if the problem is temperature related. Particularly slow when it is
cold and gets better in warm weather then it is probably the Shimano grease
in the shift lever turning to glue. Time for the WD40 rinse.
http://tinyurl.com/3y63y I used WD40 to purge and then dripped a little
Phil Wood oil in for lubrication. That resurrected a lever I was going to
replace. Works as good as new. Since it's a Dura Ace 8 speed that's not
saying a lot but the price was right.
Bill Brannon