I certainly won't sneer at them, and I guess I'm a purist of a sort (former amateur racer with decent racing results and a preference for classic round handlebars; also see my user name).No use on an existing bike, but let me say that I have a "commuter" bike with a 9-speed rear hub, and anyone who has found derailleurs irritating should be aware that nine-speed hubs with very wide gear ranges exist and work beautifully. They click into a gear setting you get that gear, no "technique" required. And they hold their "tune" and setting well, and it's really easy to make the necessary adjustment if they drift out. I forget the reasons why purists sneer at them.
Having said that, derailleur cables all eventually get gunked up one way or another, and it becomes very annoying, in particular to people with OCD tendencies such as yours truly. I had a 10-speed Sram system that worked flawlessly and never missed a shift; this, of course, had an important prerequisite of cable replacement at an interval of at most 18 months. None issue when I raced, but I then stopped racing and didn't pay attention to it. Sure enough, the shifting was no longer precise ~2 years after the previous cable replacement. At first, I couldn't figure out why, but then, I was forced to swap shifting cable + housing. Then it was back to buttery smooth shifting.
Front derailleur has greater tolerance, but at the price point of the component level on OP's bike, one shouldn't expect much. Then again, my wife had a beater Trex FX (bought third hand) had Shimano Alivio components, which I think is one step above Tourney. They were so old as to be 3 x 8 speed (current generation is 9 speed). With new cables and housing, the derailleurs shifted just fine.
The economical solution for the OP is to take the bike to a reputable bike co-op (that is to say, a non-profit that sells a lot of used bikes) and get everything tuned up. Used to cost $20 for labor and maybe $15 for parts, but I guess one could pay up to $50 now? If the problem goes away, one can stop there. If it doesn't, it's time to begin thinking about upgrades.
Statistics: Posted by InvisibleAerobar — Sun Sep 01, 2024 8:35 pm — Replies 17 — Views 1226