Forum | Teething issue with my lovely new Guvnor

Greetings,

I have just taken delivery of my Guvnor 3 speed and I’m completely smitten with it. It is as they say, the business. There are however just a couple of issues that seem to irritating me. Firstly it seems to slip out of first gear into second ever so easily. I’ve managed to stop this from happening when riding in a straight line but a sharp corner in either direction causes enough tension release in the cable to initiate an automatic gear change! I’ll probably find the right tension setting soon but just wondered if anyone else had experienced this.

Secondly and more importantly my wrists really ache after a ride. I’ve got the handle bars as high as the headstock allows and the seat is now adjusted for my leg length but I still seem to have all my weight on my wrists. Is this normal? Will I get used to it or should I be re-thinking the handlebar/seat position?

All comments welcome.

Richard.  

Dear Richard,

Many congratulations!

I can’t comment on the gear issues as my own steed is a single speed but I have had similar problems with my Roadster (5 speed SA) and, as with Mrs Terry’s Poppy, the issue was resolved by tweaking the cable adjuster.

I agree with Mr Terry’s solution of rotating the ‘bar upwards, which has made a significant difference to my own comfort. Only this weekend I also tilted the nose of the saddle upwards slightly which seems to work. I suspect that finding the ideal position is an ongoing process as I’m still ‘tweaking’ after 2 years of ownership.

Cheers!

Many thanks for such useful advice chaps. I’ll have a good think about the saddle/ handlebar relationship and try a few alternative positions.

Cheers.

Richard,

Just to echo the other fellows’ words.  The gear tweak is a known issue.  You may have to do the fine tuning of the spindle thingy several times — I did — then it settles down.  Not quite sure why turning throws it out of kilter unless it is very finely balanced at the moment.

Re wrist ache:  I agree that raising the saddle will probably not help.  Swinging the handlebars up surely will; your weight will be more evenly distributed along the handlebars.  I tried a racier (that is to say angled downwards more)  angle for the bars for a day or two and found a similar problem affecting my wrists.  

Tweaking of the saddle angle and position on its rails pays dividends and as Morse says this can be a continuous process.

Rest assured you will soon be spinning along without a care in the world!

Alex

RMG.….…firstly welcome.

Now this Sturmey-Archer problem you are having, you probably will have to adjust after some initial use, the operating cable will bed in. Follow the Owners’ Manual instructions, or better still Sheldon Brown website: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/st.….r/adj.html  

A few tips: put some Tippex or white paint on the end of the indicator spindle, this helps see its position through the sight hole to aid adjustment. Don’t screw the indicator spindle (chain) right home, back it off ½ a turn, also check the operating cable pulley wheel pivot screw (small crosshead) is secure. I had a problem with this screw working loose and the cable slipped off the pulley, resulting in no first gear!  

Safe rides, ‘One & All’.

DW.

All,

Last night I made a few tweaks which have made a huge difference. They were:

• Moving the seat forwards 
• Rotating the handlebars down slightly as I had previously roataed them too far upwards.
• Tensioning the gear selector cable slightly.

The ride is now much more comfortable and of course, enjoyable. The gear situation has improved so that it now stays in first unless the handlebars are turned so far round to almost touch the crossbar. I can live with this and won’t be dissapointed if it doesn’t improve further but as things bed in more we shall see.

Many thanks again to you all for such speedy and useful advice.

Now I can concentrate on the ride and perhaps meeting other Guvnor owners.

Cheers

Richard.

RMG, have a look on Youtube at an interesting six minute video entitled “how to fit a road bike” 

Some of that may help. 

dt