It’s Mountain Bike Monday! Today I’ve got a great tip that will turn the clock back on your shifting and make it feel nearly brand new again.
This weekend, I was working my wife’s Gary Fisher Sugar, which she wants to sell since she’s gone down the Dark Path of triathlon and roadieism. I figured the next owner deserves to have everything run smoothly as possible.
And man, did the shifting on this bike ever suck! I found that odd since I’ve got an XTR shifter/brake combo calling the orders out to an XT derailleur. But the huge amount of effort required to downshift told me that this was a problem with the cable and housing.
See, as you ride, your cables can start to fray. It can also get odd kinks in it, along with the housing. That means big drag on your cable. Nothing will run smoothly when your cable is hanging up inside the housing.
I yanked the derailleur cable out along with the housing (and the same for my Fisher Cake 2 DLX), and hauled it down to Bike Barn, the nearest local bike shop. There, the friendly staff cut lengths of housing to match, plus set me up with endcaps (which go on the end of the cables when it’s cut to length) and ferules (which go on the cut ends of the housing). High-quality cutters that will go through housing are big bucks – I’ve heard the Hosan cutters I used as a mechanic at Adventure Bicycle Company in Mesa go for close to $200.
I got back home and used a sharp, pointy tool to widen the plastic sleeve inside the housing. I then re-installed first the cables, and then the housing. I had the shifter set into the highest gear, threaded the cable through the anchor bolt and cinched it down. From there, I did just a few minor turns of the barrel adjuster to dial the shifting in. Then, I snipped the cable to length and put the end cap on.
And wouldn’t you know? That Sugar went from shifting like it had glue in the housing to super-fluid and fast. And it took barely any time and a paltry $10 in parts. Here’s a video that might help you learn the process a bit easier than just seeing it written.
Got a question or idea for Mountain Bike Monday? Send it to wandering.justins@gmail.com!
More From wandering_justin
- Mountain Bike Monday – 5 Things About Bike Shorts
- Riding Your Bike? Leave the iPod at Home
- Mountain Bike Monday – Two Tubeless Tire Tips
wandering_justin Recommends
- Family Adventure Vacations – New Zealand (Gear Up and Play)
- New campaign: Support a Reporter (Heat City)
- New Zealand – Mecca for Overseas Adventure Travel (Gear Up and Play)
