Trek Twist Shifter difficult to shift onto large gear

[Dan Braasch]

I picked up a used Trek 220 (24" girl's mountain bike, 21-
speed) for my 9-year old daughter. It has "Twist-Shifters",
where part of the handle is rotated to shift gears. The
bike is in great shape, but she does not have the hand
strength to rotate the front shifter into the #3 (largest
gear) position.

The resistance increases as you twist toward the 3, and
decreases toward the
1. I find it surprising how much effort is required, even
for me (my hand hurts after a while). This resistance I
am speaking of is not the "easy/hard" click stops that
you can adjust with the gray ring, this is more of a
really high spring-tension type of resistance, that only
gets really bad just when the chain is about to jump to
the large gear in front.

The front derailleur is a Shimano Altus, and the rear is a
Shimano SIS.

I have cleaned and lubricated the derailleurs, gears, and
the chain. I have adjusted the derailleurs for best shift. I
have not touched the cables or the shifter yet, for lack of
knowledge about what's inside the shifter.

Is this resistance normal for this type of shifter? Forgive
my ignorance, but it's been a while since I've researched
bikes. My wife and I purchased our last bikes in the late
1980's, and they have Shimano SIS and Exage packages on them
with flip-lever type shifters. I don't remember Twist
Shifters being around then.

One thing I may consider is replacing the shifter with an
SIS flip-lever type if it's available. (I'm sure that will
initiate more questions from
me....... )

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

--
Dan Braasch

 

[Yodelmoaner]

On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 22:55:11 -0500, "Dan Braasch"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>The resistance increases as you twist toward the 3, and
>decreases toward the that only gets really bad just when
>the chain is about to jump to the large gear in front.

I had the same problem on a bike I set up for a friend
recently. In my case, the high-gear limit stop screw was
slightly too restrictive. Try loosening it a small amount
and see if it improves.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/derailer-
adjustment.html#front http://www.parktool.com/repair_hel-
p/howfix_frontderailleur.shtml

Good luck, Steve

 

[Werehatrack]

On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 22:55:11 -0500, "Dan Braasch"
<[email protected]> may have said:

>I picked up a used Trek 220 (24" girl's mountain bike, 21-
>speed) for my 9-year old daughter. It has "Twist-
>Shifters", ...
>
>The resistance increases as you twist toward the 3, and
>decreases toward the
>1. I find it surprising how much effort is required, even
> for me (my hand hurts after a while)....
>
>The front derailleur is a Shimano Altus, and the rear is a
>Shimano SIS.
>
>I have cleaned and lubricated the derailleurs, gears, and
>the chain. I have adjusted the derailleurs for best shift.
>I have not touched the cables or the shifter yet, for lack
>of knowledge about what's inside the shifter.

The cables are a strong contender for part of the
problem at least.

>Is this resistance normal for this type of shifter?

Normal? No. Common? Yes. Correctable? Usually.

>Forgive my ignorance, but it's been a while since I've
>researched bikes. My wife and I purchased our last bikes in
>the late 1980's, and they have Shimano SIS and Exage
>packages on them with flip-lever type shifters. I don't
>remember Twist Shifters being around then.

Your memory is not at fault. They are a relatively recent
development on mass-market bikes.

>One thing I may consider is replacing the shifter with an
>SIS flip-lever type if it's available. (I'm sure that will
>initiate more questions from
>me....... )
>
>Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

My advice: As suggested by another poster, recheck the
adjustment of the front derailleur stop. If that's OK, then
remove and inspect the cables. It's likely that they are
either corroded, dirty, or in need of lubrication. Clean,
lubricate and/or replace them as needed. I would only try to
service the gripshifts if the rest of the potential problems
have been eliminated. Some gripshifts become suicidal when
dismantled; try to get the appropriate diagrams to work with
before taking them apart unless you're pretty sure of your
tech skills.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via
e-mail. Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature. Words
processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[daveornee]

Originally posted by Werehatrack
On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 22:55:11 -0500, "Dan Braasch"
<[email protected]> may have said:

>I picked up a used Trek 220 (24" girl's mountain bike, 21-
>speed) for my 9-year old daughter. It has "Twist-
>Shifters", ...
>
>The resistance increases as you twist toward the 3, and
>decreases toward the
>1. I find it surprising how much effort is required, even
> for me (my hand hurts after a while)....
>
>The front derailleur is a Shimano Altus, and the rear is a
>Shimano SIS.
>
>I have cleaned and lubricated the derailleurs, gears, and
>the chain. I have adjusted the derailleurs for best shift.
>I have not touched the cables or the shifter yet, for lack
>of knowledge about what's inside the shifter.

The cables are a strong contender for part of the
problem at least.

>Is this resistance normal for this type of shifter?

Normal? No. Common? Yes. Correctable? Usually.

>Forgive my ignorance, but it's been a while since I've
>researched bikes. My wife and I purchased our last bikes in
>the late 1980's, and they have Shimano SIS and Exage
>packages on them with flip-lever type shifters. I don't
>remember Twist Shifters being around then.

Your memory is not at fault. They are a relatively recent
development on mass-market bikes.

>One thing I may consider is replacing the shifter with an
>SIS flip-lever type if it's available. (I'm sure that will
>initiate more questions from
>me....... )
>
>Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

My advice: As suggested by another poster, recheck the
adjustment of the front derailleur stop. If that's OK, then
remove and inspect the cables. It's likely that they are
either corroded, dirty, or in need of lubrication. Clean,
lubricate and/or replace them as needed. I would only try to
service the gripshifts if the rest of the potential problems
have been eliminated. Some gripshifts become suicidal when
dismantled; try to get the appropriate diagrams to work with
before taking them apart unless you're pretty sure of your
tech skills.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via
e-mail. Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature. Words
processed in a facility that contains nuts.

Agree! + it could also be in the housing, ends, and/routing path.
After you are sure that the stops are set right, disconnect the cable at the derailer and hold onto the end while shifting. It should slide so easy that the only thing your cable-holding-hand should feel is the action of the shifter.
More on the details of cables, housings, ends, and routes at Sheldon Brown's website:

<http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cables.html>

 

[Dan Braasch]

Thanks for all your input, I really do appreciate it.

I know the limiting screw is not the issue in this case, so
it looks like the cables are the next item to work on.

Dan Braasch
------
"daveornee" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
> Werehatrack wrote:
> > On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 22:55:11 -0500, "Dan Braasch"
> > <[email protected]> may have said:
> > >I picked up a used Trek 220 (24" girl's mountain
> > >bike, 21- speed) for my 9-year old daughter. It has
> > >"Twist- Shifters", ...
> > >
> > >The resistance increases as you twist toward the 3,
> > >and decreases toward the
> > >1. I find it surprising how much effort is required,
> > > even for me (my hand hurts after a while)....
> > >
> > >The front derailleur is a Shimano Altus, and the rear
> > >is a Shimano
SIS.
> > >
> > >I have cleaned and lubricated the derailleurs, gears,
> > >and the chain.
I
> > >have adjusted the derailleurs for best shift. I have
> > >not touched the cables or the shifter yet, for lack
> > >of knowledge about what's inside the shifter.
> > The cables are a strong contender for part of the
> > problem at least.
> > >Is this resistance normal for this type of shifter?
> > Normal? No. Common? Yes. Correctable? Usually.
> > >Forgive my ignorance, but it's been a while since
> > >I've researched bikes. My wife and I purchased our
> > >last bikes in the late 1980's, and they have Shimano
> > >SIS and Exage packages on them with flip-lever type
> > >shifters. I don't remember Twist Shifters being
> > >around then.
> > Your memory is not at fault. They are a relatively
> > recent development
on
> > mass-market bikes.
> > >One thing I may consider is replacing the shifter
> > >with an SIS flip- lever type if it's available. (I'm
> > >sure that will initiate more questions from
> > >me....... )
> > >
> > >Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
> > My advice: As suggested by another poster, recheck the
> > adjustment of
the
> > front derailleur stop. If that's OK, then remove and
> > inspect the
cables.
> > It's likely that they are either corroded, dirty, or
> > in need of lubrication. Clean, lubricate and/or
> > replace them as needed. I would only try to service
> > the gripshifts if the rest of the potential
problems
> > have been eliminated. Some gripshifts become suicidal
> > when dismantled; try to get the appropriate diagrams
> > to work with before taking them apart unless you're
> > pretty sure of your tech skills.
> > --
> > My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if
> > replying via e-mail. Typoes are not a bug, they're a
> > feature. Words processed in a facility that contains
> > nuts.
>
>
>
> Agree! + it could also be in the housing, ends,
> and/routing path. After you are sure that the stops are
> set right, disconnect the cable at the derailer and hold
> onto the end while shifting. It should slide so easy that
> the only thing your cable-holding-hand should feel is the
> action of the shifter. More on the details of cables,
> housings, ends, and routes at Sheldon Brown's website:
>
> <http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cables.html>
>
>
>
> --