Chain Rubbing In summer I bought a Mongoose bike. The chain rubs on the gear shifter and drives me nuts when riding. Only paid $200 for the bike and would like to see if I can fix the problem without taking it to a repair shop and spending an arm and a leg. Any suggestions?
Cycling - Mongoose - Exile 26 Men's Full-Suspension Mountain Bike
Answers & Comments
Kevin:
I'm not sure if it's rubbing on the front or rear shifter. The front is more common, so I'll try that first. The shifter pushes the chain left (lower gear) and right (higher gear) to shift - if it's rubbing, then it may be trying to shift. If it can't be fixed by using the shifter directly, which you've probably tried already, you'll probably need to adjust the cable.
There are two ways to adjust the cable, with a barrel adjuster and with a wrench. The barrel is the piece between the cable housing (plastic tube the cable goes through, usually black) and the shifter. If it's the front shifter, it will be the one one the left of your handlebars. Try 'unscrewing' the barrel a little bit at a time. It may be off in either direction, but 'unscrewing' will tighten the cable, and since you bought the bike in the summer, it's likely that the cable has stretched and become loose since then.
Count the number of turns and try only 1 at a time, watching to see if the rubbing goes away. If not, return it to where it was by turning the same number of turns the other way.
Without knowing whether it's the front or rear, which gear it's in and which side it's rubbing on, this is my best answer. Let me know and I'll adjust my advice!
Dan