Shimano Rapidfire Service? (newby)

[desertsailor]

Hello Folks,

I have LX rapidfire shifters on two MTB's (mine and my wife's). My
right (front) shifter began acting up a while ago. Depressing the
thumb lever to downshift, the lever would often do nothing, just feel
like it wasn't "catching." The slower I pushed, the better the chance
of actually shifting. A fast push (like, when there's an unexpected
climb) almost always does nothing. Now my wife's shifter is doing the
same.

What it feels like is that it's gummed up, and there's some ratchet
that isn't catching??? I've shot some lube at it in the past, and
that seemed to help a bit. I'm riding in some coldish (40*f), dry
conditions, and that's caused more problem.

I'm thinking of just removing one screw and blasting in some tri-lube,
as I'm afraid complete disassembly would result in releasing the
dreaded bouncy little parts and shooting springs. All the shop wants
to do is sell me a new shifter...

[jim beam]

the shifters are very very reliable - try not to mess with them before
you've eliminated the more probable cause of problems, muck in the cables.

fine dust & grit get dragged into the gap between the cable and outer
each time a cable shifts in. over time this accumulates and wedges the
cable hard.

cleaning is apita. best to replace the cables and make sure you use
high quality cable ferrules that have proper o-ring seals in them. or
better yet, "wet weather" ferrules that have both an o-ring and an outer
"wiper" that keeps the whole exterior moving section of the cable clean.

shimano part # 6AM 9808.

jb

[desertsailor]

Thanks! You're right that I need new cables, and I'll take your
advice when shopping for them, but that wasn't the problem. In the
interest of community (and cuz I'm so golsh derned proud of myself),
I'll post my solution:

On the back side of the shifters, near where the levers meet the body,
is a screw. Turns out, this is actually a plastic plug, which comes
out in one turn. I dribbled a bunch of tri-lube inside, and the
shifters are working like new. Note that these bikes are exposed to
extreme conditions (salt air, long trips on top of the car in driving
rain, desert sand, etc.), so I wouldn't be shocked to find that this
is rare.

By the way, the oil dribbled out of the shifters like mad. They're
not sealed, as some think -- more like splash-resistant. That said,
these have been a great improvement over twist-shift SRAM, and very
reliable. This is the first time I've had trouble, and I'm hard on
this bike (SC Heckler).

Guess I can tell the bike shop "dude" that I'll be spending my $50
elsewhere...

Have fun!

jim beam <u...@ftc.gov> wrote in message news:<xTFHb.2964$tm1....@newssvr25.news.prodigy.com>...

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

> What it feels like is that it's gummed up, and there's some ratchet
> that isn't catching??? I've shot some lube at it in the past, and
> that seemed to help a bit. I'm riding in some coldish (40*f), dry
> conditions, and that's caused more problem.

Many lubes are simply too thick; you need something that will flush out the
gunk, and thin enough that it doesn't get in the way. We use PowerLube
(available at better auto-parts stores everywhere!) and have had phenomenal
results rescuing "dead" shifters. Doesn't always work, but the success rate
is well over 50%, and it typically lasts for quite a while.

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

"desertsailor" <mrteste...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:9f85fbca.03122...@posting.google.com...

[Qui si parla Campagnolo]

desertssailor-<< I have LX rapidfire shifters on two MTB's (mine and my
wife's). My
right (front) shifter began acting up a while ago. >><BR><BR>

<< I'm thinking of just removing one screw and blasting in some tri-lube,

>><BR><BR>

Flush it with WD-40. May help but it may be history.

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

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

> Flush it with WD-40. May help but it may be history.

Peter: You gotta drink the KoolAid. My experience has shown that WD-40
doesn't have the staying power of PowerLube. It's (WD-40) good for
cleaning, but PowerLube seems to keep them going, mile after mile after
mile.

I ought to get kickbacks for all the times I recommend the stuff...

[Qui si parla Campagnolo]

Mike-<< Peter: You gotta drink the KoolAid. My experience has shown that
WD-40
doesn't have the staying power of PowerLube. >><BR><BR>

Agree but with a lot of these the problem is just 'gunk' in the lever, where a
solvent like WD-40 works well(plus it's cheap, when ya use so much). Then a
squirt of aerosol ProGold, is what we do, if the shifter comes back to life.