Loose front derailluer cable

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    • #118083

      I changed out my worn out front crank. I went to a similar Shimano triple crank but it had a few less teeth on the largest ring (not sure of the teeth number). I had to lower my front derailluer to get it shifting. Now when it is on the smallest chainring the cable is very loose. I would tighten it up with the barrel adjusters or by pulling the cable tight but if I do that it won’t shift right. If I tighten it, when it’s in the largest ring, it doesn’t allow the derailluer to move enough to get the chain off the largest and onto the middle. This normal? Should i just leave it loose?

    • #118084

      Hi there Kyle,

      Here’s the scoop on the front derailleur. What aligns the guide at both the smallest ring and the biggest ring is really not the cable, but the high and low limit screws. You should see two screws on the body. One sets the maximum limit over the low ring and one sets it on the high ring. A loose cable won’t alter that(a tight cable, however could alter the position of the guide over the smallest, since it wouldn’t allow the limit screw to do it’s job).

      What a loose cable will alter, however, is the shifting between rings. A loosened cable means you need more pull to climb up the rings. If you are noticing that you either need to push through farther or double-shift to get it to climb up the chain rings, you’ll want to pull the slack out of the cable.

      If it’s shifting fine, I would say you’re A-OK leaving it as it is.

      Hope it helps!

    • #118085

      Thanks Schwim,
      Yeah the limit screws are good. The chain isn’t coming off the rings on either extreme. Plus they wouldn’t have anything to do with the chain not going to the middle right….correct? I guess it is just the difference in the new crank and the index movement of my shifter. I’ll just continue removing the slack when I shift. I think I’ll remove the derailluer and clean it up and readjust and get it the best i can. It just seems goofy that getting the slack out the correct way would alter the shifting and now allow enough movement to get from the largest back to the middle…oh well…

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