Cyclists!

theone8181 · 9 Jun 2021 at 18:57

Why do you have to.... just kidding it's not mocking you lot. I bought my daughter a bike recently from house of fraiser and had it delivered as its too big for a boot. It has a twist shifter but she finds it really hard to go from 6th to first. I've tried it and you can get to say 3rd before it gets real hard. I had a look at it today, and I slackened off the cable and then it twists real easy. I'd it something daft like the spring has too much tension when going down the gears? The box was heavily beaten when it arrived so its possible something might be bent, but there's nothing obvious. Are twist shifts just that much harder work?

Malevolence · 9 Jun 2021 at 19:02

Haven't used a twist shift since my Raleigh Grifter back in the late 70s/early 80s, so couldn't say. How old is she, perhaps you could send it back, citing the damaged box and gears not working, and get her a bike with levers instead.

Uther · 9 Jun 2021 at 19:04

There is a weirdo err I mean cyclists section here where you might get more help:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/forums/community/pedal-powered.127/

touch · 9 Jun 2021 at 19:43

Are trying to change without turning the pedals? It'll get stuck the way you describe if you do that.
The cable tension sets the alignment of the derailleur so don't change that (assuming it was set correctly in the first place)

Liquid_Entity · 9 Jun 2021 at 19:44

House Of Fraser do bikes now?? Oh wait, it's Sports Direct owned

I_M_Weasel · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:02

touch said:
Are trying to change without turning the pedals? It'll get stuck the way you describe if you do that.
The cable tension sets the alignment of the derailleur so don't change that (assuming it was set correctly in the first place)

As touch says, try to get her to do while peddaling - not with much force as you change gear, just rolling the pedals around.

dlockers · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:03

Take it to a bike shop. You can get a government voucher which means they'll sort it out for free. Tweaking gears is like some kind of dark art.

arknor · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:05

dLockers said:
Take it to a bike shop. You can get a government voucher which means they'll sort it out for free. Tweaking gears is like some kind of dark art.

It's pretty simple if you follow a good video on youtube.

just takes a few tries to get the tension right, the sweet spot is quite wide

theone8181 · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:05

dLockers said:
Take it to a bike shop. You can get a government voucher which means they'll sort it out for free. Tweaking gears is like some kind of dark art.

I'm beginning to think that

. I'll see, it's quite hard for me to hold the bike up, peddle and change gear. Might have to ride on it but don't want to overload the thing.

jpaul · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:23

touch said:
Are trying to change without turning the pedals? It'll get stuck the way you describe if you do that.
The cable tension sets the alignment of the derailleur so don't change that (assuming it was set correctly in the first place)

may not have a derailleur - you can get modern versions of sturmey archer ... which might be preferable for the less experienced ...
or those that hate cleaning them.

touch · 9 Jun 2021 at 20:41

jpaul said:
may not have a derailleur - you can get modern versions of sturmey archer

Not on a bike from House of Fraser you won't - it's owned by Sports Direct now. Modern internal geared hubs are usually found on higher-end bikes now. Not as ubiquitous as the old Sturmey Archer 3-speeds used to be.

[FnG]magnolia · 9 Jun 2021 at 21:45

Malevolence said:
Haven't used a twist shift since my Raleigh Grifter back in the late 70s/early 80s, so couldn't say. How old is she, perhaps you could send it back, citing the damaged box and gears not working, and get her a bike with levers instead.

I had a massive young boy crush on an actress in a TV show called Blake's Seven when I was a younger mags, and I used to ride around on my Raleigh Grifter (slate grey, best colour) thinking about her for what felt like most of the day, every day. I don't remember her name but I can still picture her today; unironically rad perm (her, not me).

e: second from left. Younger mags had a fine eye for detail.

theone8181 · 10 Jun 2021 at 06:14

Thanks for moving the thread, I didn't even notice there was a cyclist bit, don't think I've ever visited this section

. She's 7 and it's a 20 inch wheel size, possibly a smidge too big but I didn't want to waste time on an 18 inch and replace it in a tears time.

theone8181 · 11 Jun 2021 at 20:10

I had a go on it today (has anyone tried riding a bike several sizes too small, it's pretty hard). It's still a bit stiff but I don't know if that's just due to it not being a level like on my bike.

ANDARIAL · 16 Jun 2021 at 08:15

[FnG]magnolia said:
I had a massive young boy crush on an actress in a TV show called Blake's Seven when I was a younger mags, and I used to ride around on my Raleigh Grifter (slate grey, best colour) thinking about her for what felt like most of the day, every day. I don't remember her name but I can still picture her today; unironically rad perm (her, not me).

e: second from left. Younger mags had a fine eye for detail.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cally_(Blake's_7) :;

The_Arbiter · 16 Jun 2021 at 08:23

This is normal, cheaper bikes are like this, as well as carry all kind of gross. If you buy from your local bike shop you'll get the after service for free, or at priority if they're any good.

No help, but that's how it is i'm afraid.