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How to Adjust Gears on a 3 Speed Bike UPDATED

How to Adjust Gears on a 3 Speed Bike

In this guide, nosotros'll explain how to suit and index your front and rear derailleurs to fix your shifting, also as demonstrate how to diagnose and set common shifting problems with your bike gears.

A silent and smooth-running transmission can brand all the difference to your ride and fixing your bike's gears is something that fifty-fifty the most mechanically inexperienced can handle.

How to diagnose mutual drivetrain problems

The first affair to exercise is to observe out what'due south really wrong with your gears.

Problem: Gears won't shift up or down perfectly with ane click

Solution: This is most commonly caused by stretched gear cables and you lot will need to re-index your gears.

Trouble: Gears are well indexed but the chain keeps dropping off of either end of the cassette or chainrings

Solution: This is most ordinarily acquired by poorly gear up up derailleur limit screws and these volition require adjusting. Information technology can also exist caused by a bent derailleur hanger.

Problem: My rear gears are properly indexed, but the chain shifts too far in ane management

Solution: If the chain won't run to the bottom of the cassette and shifts over the big cog into the spokes (or vice-versa), it sounds like a bent rear hanger needs straightening or replacing. If you've been in a crash or damaged the bike somehow, this is the likely cause. It is also possible, but less likely, that the limit screws are causing this.

Problem: Down-shifting is fine but upshifting is sticky or slow

Solution: When were your cables concluding replaced? Muddy cables and housing tin can crusade slow or inaccurate shifting.

Trouble: Chain slipping, jumping and generally misbehaving

Solution: Inspect your cassette, chain and chainrings for wear. Can y'all come across a pointy shark-fin-like contour on your cog teeth or chainrings? We're sorry to say, merely that sounds like you may need to replace your concatenation, cassette and chainrings.

How to index the gears on your bicycle

If the gears on your bike are properly indexed, each single click of the shifter will crusade a unmarried shift up or downward the gears, forepart or rear. If you find y'all're skipping a gear or that your shifting is getting stuck, and then there's a good adventure yous need to adjust your indexing.

Indexing problems tin be caused by cablevision stretch, which is a normal part of the bedding-in process for new bikes or cables.

Check that a bent or damaged rear derailleur isn't to blame beginning. If it's all proficient, here's how to index or re-index your gears.

What you need

A hex key to fit your derailleur cable retention bolt, unremarkably a size 4mm or 5mm

How to index bike gears

Step 1

Advisedly and slowly motility the derailleur manually to make certain it won't allow the chain to drop off either end of the cassette

Shift your front derailleur into the middle or smallest band, then wind your rear barrel adjuster in fully clockwise, then out one turn. Release the cable mounting bolt on the dorsum of the derailleur.

Footstep 2

With the chain running in the 2nd smallest cog, pull the shifter cablevision taut and retighten the retention commodities

Pedal gently and push the derailleur until the chain moves up to the second-smallest cog, and so cease pedalling. Pull the shifter cable taut and retighten the retention bolt, taking care not to overtighten it, which can crusade the cablevision to fray.

Pedal gently and the chain should return to the smallest cog, so test the indexing by using the shifter to motion through the cassette.

Use the butt adjuster, either on the derailleur or shifter.

Jesse Wild / Immediate Media

If upshifting is hesitant, gradually increase cable tension past turning the barrel adjuster a quarter plough anticlockwise and trying once more. If your wheel over-shifts, reduce the cable tension by turning your butt adjuster clockwise until the chain runs smoothly in the second smallest cog.

If upshifting is responsive, but downshifting isn't, then there's a high take chances the problem is dirty inner cables or housing, in which case yous should try lubricating them or replacing them.

Adjust your cablevision tension using your barrel adjuster until the chain runs smoothly in the second smallest cog

Step 3

Shift your forepart derailleur to the smallest ring and your rear to a cog virtually the centre of the cassette and so slacken the front derailleur cablevision by winding the butt adjuster fully clockwise.

The barrel accommodate will either be at the shifter, inline on the cable or, if information technology's a modern front derailleur, one of the bolts on the derailleur itself.

Release the cable retentivity bolt, take whatsoever slack out of the cable and and then re-tighten the cable retentivity bolt.

Continue adjusting the cable tension until the chain shifts cleanly onto the outer or, if yous have a triple, heart ring.

Simon Bromley / Firsthand Media

Attempt to shift to the eye or outer band. If shifting is hesitant, wind the barrel adjuster one half plow anticlockwise before pedalling again.

Repeat this procedure until the concatenation steps upwards cleanly onto the bigger band. If you take a third chainring, try upshifting to it and add another half plow if shifting is still hesitant.

In one case y'all're happy with your upshifting, drib back down through the rings to bank check your downshifts.

Setting derailleur limit screws

Limit screws control the range of move of a derailleur. If they're not set up properly, then your chain may be able to driblet from the cassette or chainrings, which tin can be dangerous – for both you and your bike.

Before getting started, ensure your derailleur hanger hasn't been aptitude. If information technology is, you'll need to fix or replace it.

What you need

A modest crosshead screwdriver or hex key

How to set derailleur limit screws

Pace 1

Button the derailleur into the largest cog and accommodate the 'L' limit screw.

Jesse Wild / Firsthand Media

Locate the lower limit spiral, which will usually exist marked with an 'L', and screw it fully clockwise

Push button on the derailleur to manually shift up to the highest gear possible – this should take you to the second or third biggest band on the cassette.

While yet manually pressing on the derailleur, gently plough the cranks and wind out the low finish screw until the cassette shifts to the biggest cog and isn't jumping or clicking.

Step ii

Now set the high (H) limit screw.

Jonny Ashelford / Firsthand Media

Wind out the high (H) adjuster and allow the concatenation to move towards the bottom of the cassette past pedalling gently.

Wind in the high adjuster until the chain returns to the smallest ring/highest gear and runs smoothly without jumping or clicking.

Your rear high and low limits should now exist set.

Step 3

Adjust your jockey-cycle clearance past locating the screw on the peak-rear of the derailleur. This adjustment is referred to as the B-tension or 'dangle-angle'.

With the cycle in the highest gear, the upper jockey wheel should run only clear of the cassette. Turning clockwise will increase the gap, anti-clockwise will close it.

Adjust until at that place is nearly 2mm of clearance between the cassette and the upper jockey wheel.

Step four

Shift the front end gears to the smallest band and the back gears to the largest cog. Fully current of air in the forepart derailleur's low limit (L) adjustment spiral.

You should complete this procedure with a slack gear cablevision, and so you tin be sure that cablevision tension isn't overriding your low limit setting.

To do this, release the cablevision retentiveness commodities on the derailleur. Slowly turn the pedals and wind out the screw until the concatenation returns to the small-scale ring and runs smoothly, without rubbing on the derailleur muzzle.

Pull the slack from the cable and re-tighten the retention bolt, non so tightly that you fray the cable. Wind in the high limit (H) stop screw. Shift the rear gears to the smallest cog.

Pull on the gear cable manually, not with the shifter. You can use a tyre lever to pull on the cablevision so that it doesn't dig into your mitt.

Keeping pressure on the cablevision, wind out the screw a half turn at a fourth dimension until the chain jumps to the biggest band. After this, quarter turns will permit yous to adjust the derailleur so it doesn't rub the chain.

Your high and low stops are now set, but y'all will probably need to brand adjustments to your front indexing using the barrel adjuster.

Replacing a bent rear derailleur hanger

The derailleur hanger – the orange role – is a sacrificial component designed to protect your derailleur. This is a Shimano direct-mount fashion hanger, which isn't as common as regular hangers.

James Huang / Immediate Media

Derailleur hangers are sacrificial parts that are specifically designed to bend or pause in the consequence of an impact to prevent more than plush damage to your derailleur or frame.

If your rear shifting isn't working properly and your wheel has suffered a knock – in a crash or while loading into a car, for example – then at that place'south a skillful gamble your hanger is bent.

Hanger tool

Don't expect until the bike'south in the stand up to check your hanger alignment. Eyeball information technology regularly – y'all'll be catching the mech on things frequently without realising.

A bent hanger tin can cause the mech to shift into the spokes, with potentially disastrous consequences. Investing in an alignment tool isn't for everyone, merely it could save you a lot of money in the long term.

Check the alignment of your hanger regularly.

Dave Caudery / Immediate Media

Bending a hanger is easily done, which is why we'd recommend always carrying a spare with you on the road or trail, as well equally a multi-tool with the right size hex keys.

Any hanger volition work with any derailleur, merely yous might need to do some inquiry to find 1 that is compatible with your frame.

Don't be tempted to try to bend your hanger back to shape during a ride considering it's likely to break, leaving you with a long walk abode.

Instead, you could endeavor readjusting your rear derailleur limits and indexing, past post-obit the videos above, to compensate for the misalignment. This might not give you access to your whole cassette, simply it'll get you lot dwelling house.

Assuming you lot accept a spare to hand, here's how to install it.

A derailleur hanger tool can assistance you lot straighten a hanger out, but using ane takes skill and practice.

David Rome / Immediate Media

For the more mechanically inclined, it is possible to straighten a hanger but should only be done with the correct tools and the knowledge of how to apply them properly.