…. and back to the beginning!

I tried mounting the latest front derailleur mechanism I bought and guess what? It doesn’t fit! My frame has a raised boss for internal cable routing (probably for a seat dropper cable). This is exactly in the place where the 105 mech needs to be fitted. It is the same for both the 10 and 11 speed versions. I now have three mechs, each with slightly different cage shapes and heights. They all mount on the frame in slightly different positions and heights. The band I ordered is the largest diameter that shimano do so there’s not even an alternative way by maybe packing the frame to allow it to fit over the boss.

There are another couple of options for me to try. These will involve buying a couple more different mechs and just trying them out. One is a braze-on version of the FD R-7000 mech along with a band-on adapter bracket. This mount style achieves vertical adjustment by the derailleur moving up and down while the bracket remains in a fixed position. Hopefully the bracket will sit either above or below the boss. It may or may not fit but I’m going to have to spend the money to find out. I think it may be worth trying it as the updated mechanism is a lot more efficient when it comes to adjustment and operation. It will also remove the need for two brackets. Another is to try a high mount fitting. As the name suggests this would (hopefully) clamp on above the cable port but I won’t know which would be the best solution or if either will fit until I try each out. So I’ll order one of each and see how it goes. If I buy new items I can try them out and return them if they are not suitable.

If none of these work I will need to try again to get the original one working with the additional cable stop clamp. It may take a lot of tinkering and adjusting but if I want to keep the x2 front gear then I need to get it working. The final alternative, if the latest idea doesn’t work out, is to go back to a single chain-ring. I think I’m going to be offering a good few FDs on e-bay soon.