Touchy front shifting on Ultegra triple

[Dave]

I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters and a
Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is very
touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I have to
be very careful and "hold my mouth just right " or it will shift straight to the inner ring when I
downshift from the outer ring. This is the best I've been able to get it after two days of trying
everything I can think of. I've set up several front derailleurs before and never had this kind of
trouble, but I'm no pro. I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it and couldn't improve on my
set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible with Shimano. I didn't buy
that. I wanted to take it to another shop, but they're closed for the next several days to digest
their turkey.

I double checked that the fd is indeed the triple model.

Is Ultegra triple front shifting always poor? I doubt it, but I sure can't figure it out. I set up
Ultegra double on my other road bike and it's flawless. Any ideas?

Thanks very much.

 

[Mike Jacoubowsk]

Dave: How old is the Specialized crank? If it doesn't have the various ramps & pins built into it,
shifting might be problematic at best. STI shifting demands a lot more from chainring & chain
performance than friction shifting, and the fact that your crank has non-standard (for STI) sizes
(30/40/50 instead of 30/42/52) implies that it might be of the older, pre-STI style.

If it's a modern Specialized road crank, it should be relatively compatible; nobody would make a new
crankset that didn't work well with STI shifting!

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters and a
> Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is very
> touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I have to
> be very careful and "hold my mouth just right " or it will shift straight to the inner ring when I
> downshift from the outer ring. This is the best I've been able to get it after two days of trying
> everything I can think of. I've set up several front derailleurs before and never had this kind of
> trouble, but I'm no pro. I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it and couldn't improve on my
> set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible with Shimano. I didn't buy
> that. I wanted to take it to another shop, but they're closed for the next several days to digest
> their turkey.
>
> I double checked that the fd is indeed the triple model.
>
> Is Ultegra triple front shifting always poor? I doubt it, but I sure can't figure it out. I set up
> Ultegra double on my other road bike and it's flawless. Any ideas?
>
> Thanks very much.

 

[Qui Si Parla Ca]

sallydog-<< I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters
and a Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is
very touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I have
to be very careful >><BR><BR> << I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it and couldn't improve
on my set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible with Shimano. >><BR><BR>

It's compatible but ya got use a wee bit of cycling finesse when shifting. Just ease up a bit of
pedal pressure when shifting, both front AND back, and you will see how good it is. As if in a bike
stand, type of pressure.

using a shimano triple crank it probably would be better but using the crank you havem it
isn't 'bad'..

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

 

[Dave]

On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 06:15:08 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> wrote:

>Dave: How old is the Specialized crank? If it doesn't have the various ramps & pins built into it,
>shifting might be problematic at best. STI shifting demands a lot more from chainring & chain
>performance than friction shifting, and the fact that your crank has non-standard (for STI) sizes
>(30/40/50 instead of 30/42/52) implies that it might be of the older, pre-STI style.
>
>If it's a modern Specialized road crank, it should be relatively compatible; nobody would make a
>new crankset that didn't work well with STI shifting!
>
>--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

Thanks Mike.

Sorry I wasn't more clear. The crank is a new *Specialties TA Alize* I should have put the "TA" in
my original post to avoid confusion. 'Course, I think there should be more TA in everything, but
that's another story.

Your comment that any crank sold today should be compatible with STI is why I didn't buy the LBS
guy's diagnosis. Peter wrote that there might be some compatibility problems so I'll continue
under his post.
>
>"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>> I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters and a
>> Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is very
>> touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I have to
>> be very careful and "hold my mouth just right " or it will shift straight to the inner ring when
>> I downshift from the outer ring. This is the best I've been able to get it after two days of
>> trying everything I can think of. I've set up several front derailleurs before and never had this
>> kind of trouble, but I'm no pro. I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it and couldn't
>> improve on my set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible with Shimano. I
>> didn't buy that. I wanted to take it to another shop, but they're closed for the next several
>> days to digest their turkey.
>>
>> I double checked that the fd is indeed the triple model.
>>
>> Is Ultegra triple front shifting always poor? I doubt it, but I sure can't figure it out. I set
>> up Ultegra double on my other road bike and it's flawless. Any ideas?
>>
>> Thanks very much.

 

[Dave]

On 29 Nov 2003 14:43:30 GMT, [email protected] (Qui si parla Campagnolo) wrote:

>sallydog-<< I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters
>and a Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is
>very touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I have
>to be very careful >><BR><BR> << I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it and couldn't
>improve on my set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible with Shimano.
>>><BR><BR>
>
>It's compatible but ya got use a wee bit of cycling finesse when shifting. Just ease up a bit of
>pedal pressure when shifting, both front AND back, and you will see how good it is. As if in a bike
>stand, type of pressure.
>
>using a shimano triple crank it probably would be better but using the crank you havem it
>isn't 'bad'..
>
Thanks Peter.

The biggest problem is in downshifting from the big ring to the
middle. The shift lever seems to go past the middle "stop" and derailleur drops directly to the
inner ring. It's not smooth either. Kind of goes "clunk." Is it possible that that
condition is caused by derailleur adjustment that compensates for the crank incompatibility
but causes shifting problems?
>Peter Chisholm Vecchio's Bicicletteria 1833 Pearl St. Boulder, CO, 80302
>(303)440-3535 http://www.vecchios.com "Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"

 

[Mike Jacoubowsk]

> Sorry I wasn't more clear. The crank is a new *Specialties TA Alize* I should have put the "TA" in
> my original post to avoid confusion. 'Course, I think there should be more TA in everything, but
> that's another story.
>
> Your comment that any crank sold today should be compatible with STI is why I didn't buy the LBS
> guy's diagnosis. Peter wrote that there might be some compatibility problems so I'll continue
> under his post.

Sorry I misunderstood; I was thinking "Specialized Alleze" with creative spelling. The TA cranks
are better than those of yesteryear, but my experience has been that they don't shift as well as
the Shimano (or most other Japanese) cranksets. A Campagnolo Ergo system would have no difficulty,
because *you* control how fast & far the derailleur moves, but the Shimano is definitely a bit
picky up front.

It's also possible that your crankset is too far out from the frame (too long a
bottom-bracket spindle).

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReaction.com

"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 06:15:08 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >Dave: How old is the Specialized crank? If it doesn't have the various ramps & pins built into
> >it, shifting might be problematic at best. STI shifting demands a lot more from chainring & chain
> >performance than
friction
> >shifting, and the fact that your crank has non-standard (for STI) sizes
> >(30/40/50 instead of 30/42/52) implies that it might be of the older, pre-STI style.
> >
> >If it's a modern Specialized road crank, it should be relatively
compatible;
> >nobody would make a new crankset that didn't work well with STI shifting!
> >
> >--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
>
> Thanks Mike.
>
> Sorry I wasn't more clear. The crank is a new *Specialties TA Alize* I should have put the "TA" in
> my original post to avoid confusion. 'Course, I think there should be more TA in everything, but
> that's another story.
>
> Your comment that any crank sold today should be compatible with STI is why I didn't buy the LBS
> guy's diagnosis. Peter wrote that there might be some compatibility problems so I'll continue
> under his post.
> >
> >"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >news:[email protected]...
> >> I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters and a
> >> Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is
> >> very touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I
> >> have to be very careful and "hold my mouth just right " or it will shift straight to the inner
> >> ring when I downshift from the outer ring. This is the best I've been able to get it after two
> >> days of trying everything I can think of. I've set up several front derailleurs before and
> >> never had this kind of trouble, but I'm no pro. I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it
> >> and couldn't improve on my set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible
> >> with Shimano. I didn't buy that. I wanted to take it to another shop, but they're closed for
> >> the next several days to digest their turkey.
> >>
> >> I double checked that the fd is indeed the triple model.
> >>
> >> Is Ultegra triple front shifting always poor? I doubt it, but I sure can't figure it out. I set
> >> up Ultegra double on my other road bike and it's flawless. Any ideas?
> >>
> >> Thanks very much.

 

[Gary Mishler]

"Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction Bicycles" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> It's also possible that your crankset is too far out from the frame (too long a bottom-bracket
> spindle).

If so, how would you deal with that? A spacer? Different spindle?

I had a similar situation when I switched from Ultegra rings to TA.

Thanks, Mish

 

[Dave]

On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 18:53:14 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction Bicycles"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>> Sorry I wasn't more clear. The crank is a new *Specialties TA Alize* I should have put the "TA"
>> in my original post to avoid confusion. 'Course, I think there should be more TA in everything,
>> but that's another story.
>>
>> Your comment that any crank sold today should be compatible with STI is why I didn't buy the LBS
>> guy's diagnosis. Peter wrote that there might be some compatibility problems so I'll continue
>> under his post.
>
>Sorry I misunderstood; I was thinking "Specialized Alleze" with creative spelling. The TA cranks
>are better than those of yesteryear, but my experience has been that they don't shift as well as
>the Shimano (or most other Japanese) cranksets. A Campagnolo Ergo system would have no difficulty,
>because *you* control how fast & far the derailleur moves, but the Shimano is definitely a bit
>picky up front.
>
>It's also possible that your crankset is too far out from the frame (too long a bottom-bracket
>spindle).
>
Well, Alleze or Alize, either way you seem to have been right. I tried a new Ultegra triple BB and
crankset and it all works perfectly. The guy at the good LBS I took it to agreed exactly with you.
He said the chainline was out of whack and that the TA cranks and rings just don't match up as well
as the Shimano parts.

Thanks!

>--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReaction.com
>
>"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>> On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 06:15:08 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>> >Dave: How old is the Specialized crank? If it doesn't have the various ramps & pins built into
>> >it, shifting might be problematic at best. STI shifting demands a lot more from chainring &
>> >chain performance than
>friction
>> >shifting, and the fact that your crank has non-standard (for STI) sizes
>> >(30/40/50 instead of 30/42/52) implies that it might be of the older, pre-STI style.
>> >
>> >If it's a modern Specialized road crank, it should be relatively
>compatible;
>> >nobody would make a new crankset that didn't work well with STI shifting!
>> >
>> >--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
>>
>> Thanks Mike.
>>
>> Sorry I wasn't more clear. The crank is a new *Specialties TA Alize* I should have put the "TA"
>> in my original post to avoid confusion. 'Course, I think there should be more TA in everything,
>> but that's another story.
>>
>> Your comment that any crank sold today should be compatible with STI is why I didn't buy the LBS
>> guy's diagnosis. Peter wrote that there might be some compatibility problems so I'll continue
>> under his post.
>> >
>> >"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> >news:[email protected]...
>> >> I just set up a bike with Ultegra triple. All new Shimano drivetrain parts and shifters and a
>> >> Specialties Alize crank with 50-40-30 rings. Rear shifting is perfect, but front shifting is
>> >> very touchy. It feels very "notchy", grinds a bit on upshifts, and downshifts go "clunk" and I
>> >> have to be very careful and "hold my mouth just right " or it will shift straight to the inner
>> >> ring when I downshift from the outer ring. This is the best I've been able to get it after two
>> >> days of trying everything I can think of. I've set up several front derailleurs before and
>> >> never had this kind of trouble, but I'm no pro. I took it to my LBS and the guy played with it
>> >> and couldn't improve on my set-up. Then he told me that Specialties cranks are not compatible
>> >> with Shimano. I didn't buy that. I wanted to take it to another shop, but they're closed for
>> >> the next several days to digest their turkey.
>> >>
>> >> I double checked that the fd is indeed the triple model.
>> >>
>> >> Is Ultegra triple front shifting always poor? I doubt it, but I sure can't figure it out. I
>> >> set up Ultegra double on my other road bike and it's flawless. Any ideas?
>> >>
>> >> Thanks very much.
>> >
>

 

[Mike Jacoubowsk]

> > It's also possible that your crankset is too far out from the frame (too long a bottom-bracket
> > spindle).
>
> If so, how would you deal with that? A spacer? Different spindle?
>
> I had a similar situation when I switched from Ultegra rings to TA.

Sounds like his problem is that the crank is out too far, so a spacer isn't going to be of any help;
rather, he needs a shorter spindle (*if* that's the cause of his problems).

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReaction.com

"Gary Mishler" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:Cz7yb.358420$Fm2.358047@attbi_s04...
> "Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction Bicycles" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
> > It's also possible that your crankset is too far out from the frame (too long a bottom-bracket
> > spindle).
>
> If so, how would you deal with that? A spacer? Different spindle?
>
> I had a similar situation when I switched from Ultegra rings to TA.
>
> Thanks, Mish