Lee Hill
You should be thankful for gear technology. They have made a cyclist’s life simpler and more comfortable. When your bikes have gears, you can climb steep slopes and tackle rugged terrains a lot easier.
If you are a Shimano cyclist and cannot shift gears while riding, it can quickly become a headache. It’s pretty frustrating when you want to climb up, and your gears don’t work correctly. The primary reason for your gears not working is the front derailleur.
You can find this component on the front side of your bicycle. The derailleur changes the gear by moving the chain from one front sprocket to another. But, when your derailleur is not in the correct position, the chain cannot shift appropriately from a higher gear to a lower gear.
It can cause rubbing and wear and tear of the components of your bike. You may also fall from your bike, which is quite dangerous. So, you need to take care of the front derailleur properly.
Now the main question comes how to adjust Shimano 105 front derailleur. Well, you don’t have to panic. It’s pretty easy, and you need to follow some steps which will solve your problem.
What Is a Shimano 105 Front Derailleur?
Shimano is one of the most reputed cycling components manufacturers in the world. It is a Japanese company and uses high-quality materials while manufacturing multiple parts of a bicycle. The Shimano company also manufactures front derailleurs, which are usually present in almost all gear bikes.
Shimano 105 front derailleur plays a primary role in gear bikes by shifting gears by moving the chain from one sprocket to another. Like other derailleurs, these Shimano 105 front derailleurs have a low limit screw, high limit screw, a cage, and cable anchor adjustment.
There is another nice feature in Shimano front derailleurs, i.e., SIS front index shifting, which provides smooth shifting of your bike at each rear position even in heavy loads. Even if you use this derailleur, you don’t have to trim the outer chainring.
So, the chain rubbing problem is less in Shimano derailleurs. The body consists of aluminum to lower the weight of the derailleur, but they are durable.
How Can You Adjust Shimano Front Derailleurs?
As a rider, you should always try to keep the derailleur in the proper position. But, if it is misaligned, then you don’t need to panic. You can follow a few steps below on how to adjust your Shimano 105 front derailleur.
#1. Adjust Height of Front Derailleur
First, you should focus on the height of the Shimano front derailleur and the largest chainring. The height in between them should be between one to three millimeters. There is an extended curve portion on the body of the derailleur. We call that a derailleur cage, and when that cage is too far from the chainring, then the bike will shift the gear poorly, and if it goes too below the chainring, then the chain will rub.
So, it’s a matter of some millimeters. That’s why you need to be very precise while adjusting. You can keep your bike on a repair stand, and you can correct the height by a penny.
Another thing you can do is to lose the clamp bolt with which the derailleur attaches to the frame of your bike. Then you can correct the height and angle of the front Shimano derailleur. After that, tighten the clamp bolt. But try to do it when your bike is on the lowest gear. You should remember one thing that the cage of the derailleur should be parallel to the chainring.
#2. Limit Screw Adjustments
There are two limit screws on the derailleur, i.e., lower limit screw and higher limit screw, which you can easily indicate; L stands for the lower limit, and H stands for the higher limit.
You should adjust the lower limit screw so that the derailleur’s cage should not go below the chainring. Shift the front derailleur into the smallest chainring and rear derailleur to the largest cog. For that, you need to turn the screw by the screwdriver. The inner portion of the cage should be near the chain, but it should not touch it. Lose the cable on the derailleur body during adjustment. Once you adjust the Lscrew, tight the cable tightly.
Now for adjusting the higher limit screw, you need to keep the front derailleur on the largest sprocket of the front end and the rear derailleur on the smallest rear sprocket. You need to adjust the screw so that the derailleur cage will be near the then chain but will not touch each other. Well. If you can’t make the limit adjustments by yourself, you can go to a bike mechanic shop for help.
#3. Fine Tuning
Sometimes you think that your front derailleur is in the proper position, but in actual it slightly deviates from the accurate position. For that, you need to tune the Shimano front derailleur by the barrel adjuster. They are present on the handlebar. Even you can make few adjustments at the time of riding.
#4. Clean the Front Derailleur
You need to clean your front Shimano derailleur within regular intervals. Otherwise, it will get dirty and can’t shift the gears properly. Lubing of the derailleur is even quite important. You need to give some lubricating oil to the derailleur at a minimum gap of one month.
Conclusion
The Shimano front derailleur on your bike plays a vital role at the time of riding. It can make your riding smooth by changing gears. But its misalignment can cause several problems during riding, like you need to pedal at a great force at the time of riding, or you may fall from your bike while riding and various others. So, this article lists a few steps above on how to adjust Shimano 105 front derailleur with the hope that you like it and follow them when your bike has front derailleur misalignment.
