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Front derailleur chain rub

by Marcorossiuk
Sun, Feb 21, 2021 17:55
10

Hello. I haven't had a road bike in a while so please forgive me if my query is stupid (my last bike has Alfine internal hub gears)

I noticed when checking over my new bike that the front derailleur starts to rub on the chain when I I'm on the small front ring and i change to the 3rd smallest gear on the rear. I dare not use the 2nd smallest and smallest on a ride as the rubbing is quite significant. I'm aware of the rule of not using opposite extremes but should there be this amount of rubbing or does the front derailleur need adjusting? If so, what would it involve?

My chainset is campagnolo veloce 10speed

Thankyou in advance.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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10 comments

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Mosmos | 3 years ago
2 likes

Welcome to road cycling.
Most Shimano and Campagnolo road front derailleurs and shifters have a "trim" function. The trim function is essentially a ‘microshift’ or 'half-shift' - it moves the front mech ever so slightly without moving the chain off the chainring like a full or regular shift.

You can google or see a few YouTube videos on how to use it.

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Marcorossiuk replied to Mosmos | 3 years ago
0 likes

Thankyou for your reply mate. I will give this a look 👍

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Spokesnrims | 3 years ago
0 likes

How to adjust your Campy front mech -

http://blog.artscyclery.com/road/ask-a-mechanic-how-to-adjust-campagnolo...

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Marcorossiuk replied to Spokesnrims | 3 years ago
0 likes

Hi mate. I tried following this and it was all going so well until the adjustment of the outside limit screw. It didn't do anything at all no matter which way I turned it. 🤔

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PRSboy replied to Marcorossiuk | 3 years ago
2 likes

Forgive me if I'm teaching you to suck eggs, but bear in mind the hi/lo screws might not make a difference if the derailleur cable is connected and under tension.  Best in my experience to detatch the cable, set the hi/lo limits, then reattach and adjust the cable tension.

The Veloce front trim only works when you are going up from small to large ring, so try giving the left shifter another gentle push and see if it is set up right to give you the 'trim' setting in the combo which rubs.

Setting the front derailleur is a bit of a compromise- you may have to accept a bit of rub at the extremes in order to get a good alignment and change quality in the gear combos you use more (think in terms of generally having the chain running as 'straight' as possible).

Campagnolo have very good manuals on their website, which might help.

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Marcorossiuk replied to PRSboy | 3 years ago
0 likes

Certainly not teaching me to stick eggs pal. All advice is welcome and appreciated. I will start from scratch and have another go at the weekend when I have someone to help me. It was difficult to do on my own without a stand 😅

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Hirsute replied to Marcorossiuk | 3 years ago
1 like

Definitely harder once it is in situ. Last time I got a new one, it came with a plastic tab which fixed the derailleur for the big chain wheel and a stuck on plastic guideline so you could place it the 2-3 mm above the chain wheel.

I'd (re)watch a few more videos and remove the chain if possible before trying again.

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bobbinogs replied to Marcorossiuk | 3 years ago
0 likes

If there is not enough tension on the cable then it won't get to the outer limit, as set by the H screw. See if you can set the H limit properly. Remove the chain, try pushing the mech across with your hand. Note where it stops and then adjust the H stop so that it is perfect. Pop the chain back on...next up is getting the tension right and mech angle but, as stated above, there may have to be a compromise somewhere.
Don't forget to use any barrel adjusters if you need to but don't try to increase tension under load, always shift down first...adjust...shift up...repeat.

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Marcorossiuk replied to bobbinogs | 3 years ago
0 likes

Thankyou for your advice pal. Done really useful tips /advice iv been given. I will give it another go.....i do have a decent bike mechanic I can go to if I mess it up. 😁

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PRSboy replied to Marcorossiuk | 3 years ago
0 likes

Just keep fiddling until you get it right... you are unlikely to do any actual damage doing adjustments like that (though be careful if you need to do the rear hi/lo screws that you don't let the rear derailleur get pushed into the spokes), and you will learn stuff as you go along!  Loads of useful videos etc on youtube, and on this site.

A stand does make life much easier for tweakage- a good investment if you think you might get into this great sport.

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