STI Still good? or Repair? or Replace

Would appreciate opinions about the following problem:

1) I began noticing that my right (most frequently used 9 speed) Shimano
Ultegra STI began "sticking" when I shifted to a larger cassette gear during
the cold weather. The lever would shift the gear but then stay in the
partially inwardly rotated position. I would have to push it back with my
fingers. As it got warmer, this problem seemed to disappear until recently
when the "sticking" started again. The screw to the inner small lever,
which had been the cause of a previous lever return problem, was not the
culprit.

I know the STI units are factory sealed so I checked other possible causes,
e.g. that the rear derailleur cable was intact and not frayed or stretched,
etc. As a last ditch attempt to rectify the problem I flushed the lever
mechanism with alcohol to see if excess road smutch was causing the problem.
The lever seemed to work for about five miles before the old problem
returned. So I then sprayed as much of the mechanism that I could with
silicon lubricant. This seemed to correct the sticking problem, however,
the STI lever seemed to lose the prior tightness on the rear derailleur
cable and the cable became excessively slack, requiring me to pull the cable
to tighten the adjustment for the rear derailleur. Before I spend another
couple of hours putting everything back together and adjusting it, does
anyone know if this is a symptom of a failing STI lever that ultimately will
just need to be replaced? This lever has about 15,000 miles on it.

2) The lever is Shimano "Flight Deck" ready. "Flight Deck" is an
integrated wired speedometer with buttons to control the display in the
right hand STI lever. The part number is ST-6501. This was the "old"
flight deck format which had both control buttons on the right hand lever.
The current Ultegra STI replacement is ST-6510. Does anyone know if this
model or version would support the flight deck format of two control buttons
in the right hand lever? If not, does anyone know where I can get a new
pair of STI ST-6501?

1) I began noticing that my right (most frequently used 9 speed) Shimano
Ultegra STI began "sticking" when I shifted to a larger cassette gear
during
the cold weather. The lever would shift the gear but then stay in the
partially inwardly rotated position. I would have to push it back with my
fingers. As it got warmer, this problem seemed to disappear until
recently
when the "sticking" started again. The screw to the inner small lever,
which had been the cause of a previous lever return problem, was not the
culprit.

Powerlube it. Available at finer auto-parts stores everywhere. The alcohol
that you initially flushed it with might not have been a good idea; I'm not
sure how small plastic bits enjoy being soaked in alcohol. Might not be a
problem, but if you have to try and "clean" it with something separately,
you might try a contact cleaner solution. But Powerlube takes care of
cleaning & lubing in one easy operation.

2) The lever is Shimano "Flight Deck" ready. "Flight Deck" is an
integrated wired speedometer with buttons to control the display in the
right hand STI lever. The part number is ST-6501. This was the "old"
flight deck format which had both control buttons on the right hand lever.
The current Ultegra STI replacement is ST-6510. Does anyone know if this
model or version would support the flight deck format of two control
buttons
in the right hand lever? If not, does anyone know where I can get a new
pair of STI ST-6501?

I'm not sure what you're trying to do... are you saying that you might end
up with two different version levers, a 6501 on one side, and a 6502 on the
other? Interesting scenario if so. I'm not positive, but I think the
contacts are the same on both levers, but you'll have to use the older lever
hoods so you can keep the two button/one lever setup.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

"knowwhen2holdemknowwhen2foldem" wrote in message
news:TYLCc.21078$cj3.399@lakeread01...
Would appreciate opinions about the following problem:

1) I began noticing that my right (most frequently used 9 speed) Shimano
Ultegra STI began "sticking" when I shifted to a larger cassette gear
during
the cold weather. The lever would shift the gear but then stay in the
partially inwardly rotated position. I would have to push it back with my
fingers. As it got warmer, this problem seemed to disappear until
recently
when the "sticking" started again. The screw to the inner small lever,
which had been the cause of a previous lever return problem, was not the
culprit.

I know the STI units are factory sealed so I checked other possible
causes,
e.g. that the rear derailleur cable was intact and not frayed or
stretched,
etc. As a last ditch attempt to rectify the problem I flushed the lever
mechanism with alcohol to see if excess road smutch was causing the
problem.
The lever seemed to work for about five miles before the old problem
returned. So I then sprayed as much of the mechanism that I could with
silicon lubricant. This seemed to correct the sticking problem, however,
the STI lever seemed to lose the prior tightness on the rear derailleur
cable and the cable became excessively slack, requiring me to pull the
cable
to tighten the adjustment for the rear derailleur. Before I spend another
couple of hours putting everything back together and adjusting it, does
anyone know if this is a symptom of a failing STI lever that ultimately
will
just need to be replaced? This lever has about 15,000 miles on it.

2) The lever is Shimano "Flight Deck" ready. "Flight Deck" is an
integrated wired speedometer with buttons to control the display in the
right hand STI lever. The part number is ST-6501. This was the "old"
flight deck format which had both control buttons on the right hand lever.
The current Ultegra STI replacement is ST-6510. Does anyone know if this
model or version would support the flight deck format of two control
buttons
in the right hand lever? If not, does anyone know where I can get a new
pair of STI ST-6501?

"knowwhen2holdemknowwhen2foldem" wrote in message
news:TYLCc.21078$cj3.399@lakeread01...
Would appreciate opinions about the following problem:

1) I began noticing that my right (most frequently used 9 speed) Shimano
Ultegra STI began "sticking" when I shifted to a larger cassette gear
during
the cold weather. The lever would shift the gear but then stay in the
partially inwardly rotated position. I would have to push it back with my
fingers. As it got warmer, this problem seemed to disappear until
recently
when the "sticking" started again. The screw to the inner small lever,
which had been the cause of a previous lever return problem, was not the
culprit.

I know the STI units are factory sealed so I checked other possible
causes,
e.g. that the rear derailleur cable was intact and not frayed or
stretched,
etc. As a last ditch attempt to rectify the problem I flushed the lever
mechanism with alcohol to see if excess road smutch was causing the
problem.
The lever seemed to work for about five miles before the old problem
returned. So I then sprayed as much of the mechanism that I could with
silicon lubricant. This seemed to correct the sticking problem, however,
the STI lever seemed to lose the prior tightness on the rear derailleur
cable and the cable became excessively slack, requiring me to pull the
cable
to tighten the adjustment for the rear derailleur. Before I spend another
couple of hours putting everything back together and adjusting it, does
anyone know if this is a symptom of a failing STI lever that ultimately
will
just need to be replaced? This lever has about 15,000 miles on it.

2) The lever is Shimano "Flight Deck" ready. "Flight Deck" is an
integrated wired speedometer with buttons to control the display in the
right hand STI lever. The part number is ST-6501. This was the "old"
flight deck format which had both control buttons on the right hand lever.
The current Ultegra STI replacement is ST-6510. Does anyone know if this
model or version would support the flight deck format of two control
buttons
in the right hand lever? If not, does anyone know where I can get a new
pair of STI ST-6501?


Google on STI WD40 flush. It works. The Shimano grease turns to adhesive
over time.
Results will be similar to:
Message 2 in thread
From: Andy M-S )
Subject: repair DA STI right lever?


View this article only
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Date: 2003-09-15 14:37:00 PST


"Andre" wrote in message
le.rogers.com...
Anyone successfully followed shimano service instructions for the DA right
STI lever? I can go up the block (larger cogs), but the small lever
actuation sticks when going down. Thanks.

Assuming that it's not a cable problem (not a bad idea to replace the
cable first)...

I recently fixed an Ultegra 600 shifter with the same problem. In
essence, the mechanism has become fouled with grease/dirt, etc.

I put the bike in my workstand and tipped it so the levers were
pointing more or less at the floor. Then, I released the rear brake
cable so that I could open the shifter all the way. Then I pried up
the plastic disk that seals the back of the actual shift mechanism and
pumped a large amount of WD40 through the shifter (tilting the bike
limits damage to your bar tape). You want to use a LOT of WD40 for
the flush; I went through between 1/2 and 1 cup. It's not a bad idea
to put a bucket under the shifter so you can catch the overflow.

Flush that sucker good, then work the shifter, keeping tension on the
cable. For the bike I was working on, this cleared the problem right
up. Then squirt some light lube (TriFlow or ProLink) into the
mechanism, and all should be right with the world.Bill Brannon

Thanks for your reply. I took the STI off the handle bar which means I
disconnected the brake and shift cables and unwrapped the handlebar tape.
So I can easily Powerlube it. However, I noticed something when it started
to fail that is making me pause before I reinstall the shifter. Here is
what happened. I was noticing that the shifting was not the same crisp
shifting that had existed since I installed my cables about 3000 miles ago.
The shift just didn't cleanly occur or I would miss shifts. After I sprayed
silicon into the mechanism, I went riding and found that after a few shifts
the rear derailleur cable was slack so that I couldn't shift down to the
lowest cassette gear (biggest ring). It seemed to me that perhaps something
loosened internally in the shift mechanism. However, this just doesn't make
any sense since the derailleur cable is inserted and tightened with the gear
on the smallest cassette ring and the shifter is locked at the highest
cassette gear (smallest ring). It is adjusted from that point and the
indexed shifting goes up 8 notches from there to the ninth and largest
cassette gear. I know that the cable was tightly cinched into the rear
derailleur so it did not get loose there, and I examined the cable, there
was no fraying, stretching, etc. I just don't know if I am missing
something here and I am reluctant to spend the two hours to reattach
everything, rewind the bar tape, etc just to have something like this happen
again.

Regarding the "Flight Deck" question. The new shifters ST-6510 have a
control button on either side. I was wondering if the only difference was
that the hood has only one button but the electronics are the same.
Therefore I could use the two new shifters with my old hoods.

"Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction Bicycles" wrote
in message . com...
1) I began noticing that my right (most frequently used 9 speed)
Shimano
Ultegra STI began "sticking" when I shifted to a larger cassette gear
during
the cold weather. The lever would shift the gear but then stay in the
partially inwardly rotated position. I would have to push it back with
my
fingers. As it got warmer, this problem seemed to disappear until
recently
when the "sticking" started again. The screw to the inner small lever,
which had been the cause of a previous lever return problem, was not the
culprit.

Powerlube it. Available at finer auto-parts stores everywhere. The
alcohol
that you initially flushed it with might not have been a good idea; I'm
not
sure how small plastic bits enjoy being soaked in alcohol. Might not be a
problem, but if you have to try and "clean" it with something separately,
you might try a contact cleaner solution. But Powerlube takes care of
cleaning & lubing in one easy operation.

2) The lever is Shimano "Flight Deck" ready. "Flight Deck" is an
integrated wired speedometer with buttons to control the display in the
right hand STI lever. The part number is ST-6501. This was the "old"
flight deck format which had both control buttons on the right hand
lever.
The current Ultegra STI replacement is ST-6510. Does anyone know if
this
model or version would support the flight deck format of two control
buttons
in the right hand lever? If not, does anyone know where I can get a new
pair of STI ST-6501?

I'm not sure what you're trying to do... are you saying that you might end
up with two different version levers, a 6501 on one side, and a 6502 on
the
other? Interesting scenario if so. I'm not positive, but I think the
contacts are the same on both levers, but you'll have to use the older
lever
hoods so you can keep the two button/one lever setup.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

"knowwhen2holdemknowwhen2foldem" wrote:
I went riding and found that after a few shifts
the rear derailleur cable was slack so that I couldn't shift down to the
lowest cassette gear (biggest ring). It seemed to me that perhaps
something
loosened internally in the shift mechanism.

Sounds like the cable head wasn't fully seated in the shifter when you
reinstalled the cable. Then when it did seat, the cable went slack. Shift to
the smallest cog, re-tension the cable, and try again.

Art Harris

I think you may be right. I'll try that.

"Arthur Harris" wrote in message
t...

"knowwhen2holdemknowwhen2foldem" wrote:
I went riding and found that after a few shifts
the rear derailleur cable was slack so that I couldn't shift down to the
lowest cassette gear (biggest ring). It seemed to me that perhaps
something
loosened internally in the shift mechanism.

Sounds like the cable head wasn't fully seated in the shifter when you
reinstalled the cable. Then when it did seat, the cable went slack. Shift
to
the smallest cog, re-tension the cable, and try again.

Art Harris