how to fix a 3 speed derailleur
 

Hey again,

First, thanks for all the help on the kegerator, working now on getting my housemates on-board.

A new question. I've been trying off and on for about 2 months to fix the drailler on my 3 speed. I bought it from a lady down the street and I'm in a small midwestern town where the only bikeshop closed up a year ago. I actually know quite a bit about "regular" bikes and would have no problem doing a full tune-up. I just have no idea how to hook up my drailler on this 3-speed.

Hopefully if you've followed me this far you'll know what I'm talking about and what to do. Does soldering some lead on the end of the cable work? I tried crimping (with reg pliers) a littel piece of aluminium on the cable but that just fell off. Are special 3-speed cable available, (internet maybe)?

Anyway thanks in advance for any help

Tim

Had to open this out of curiosity to see WTF a drailer was. The word is derailleur. Bicycle cables are made of steel, so solder won't adhere. Google for the bike manufacturer, and you ought to be able to purchase a replacement cable online.

the problem with that is that the bike is made by a company called hiawatha that doesnt make bikes any more. Do you know where generic 3-speed cables can be ordered?

thanks


tim(mah)

You have to fold the cable back on itself and crimp a clamp onto it. Go to a bike shop and they can probably help you find what you need.

galesburg il has no bike shop but i'll try and crimp it with something

thanks

i got to this late. but here in so cali there are many bike shops. if you can get some better description as to what you are looking for, maybe i can hit one up and send to you.

Look at this site for cable and wire stops. One of them should accomplish what you want.

The item you want is called a ferrule. It's a cap you put on the end of the cable to prevent the cable from fraying.

You should probably be able to find something like that at a hardware store.

Ah, good people, thank you so very kindly

Ok so I looked around for ferrule's and I actually have some, they don't work, they're too big to fit inside the derraileur housing clip/thing.

I guess I'll take a picture of this housing thing and post it when I get back to the states (tomorrow hopefully)

...wait, actually I think this is the housing thing, apparently it's called a pyramid 3-speed connector

http://rack2.bikepartsusa.com/produc.../full_3752.jpg

[link]http://www.bikepartsusa.com/product_info.phtml?p=01-80295&large=1[/link]

I think, unless there is some really small and specially designed ferrule that i can't find, what I need is a cable designed for 3-speed hubs

ok, well this is a long post. I've email bike parts usa to see if they have the part.

Otherwise I've found a vintage bike club that seems to sell the full cables so I'm going to try and order one of those. Thanks for the help.

oh, BTW

Old roads Bikes [link]http://oldroads.com/nos_gear.asp[/link]

thanks again

The ferrule slips over the end of the cable. It's just like a cap that fits over the end.

That's an unusual looking derailleur. This is the derailleur down near the rear wheel, right?

yes it is. That thing ^ is not the derailleur it just is what is used to hook the cable to the derailleur. I'm still waiting to hear back from the bike shop...