Bike gears too hard to shift!

[PHAT]

I got my 6yo a pre-loved big kid bike with gears so she can actually ride around where it’s not perfectly flat. She is finally big enough to ride it, but the gears are so hard to shift, she can’t use them!  It shifts easily from 1-7,  but from 7-1 (especially about 4–>1) is so hard I can hardly do it!  I’ve been messing around trying to fix it, my palms are almost bleeding!
It’s the twist-grip style (shimano revoshift). It is hilariously labelled “easy gear changing”.

I have tried adjusting the tension in the wire according to some online tips…all that did was make it so the gears didn’t line up anymore (ie: couldn’t go all the way to the top or bottom). I plan to try to get some cable lube when my bike shop opens tomorrow, hoping that helps. Anything else I should be trying?  She wants to ride trails, but these gears are useless!  It’s not an expensive bike, but should I be looking into a new shifter?  Replacing the entire gear cable?  What’s my next step?

Thanks for any help!

[Malossi792]

Tension is not the answer here, but it will sound familiar: indexing is what you want to watch a video about.
Also, apply some oil if you haven't already.

[GuitarStv]

Depending on the tension of the derailleur and how smoothly the shifter cable passes through the cable housing, these can be very tough to shift for young hands.  You can try replacing the cables with teflon coated ones and spraying some very light lubricant through the cable housings.  You can also eyeball the cable housing runs . . . make sure there are no sharp turns that are causing binding inside the housing (binding = friction = harder to move) - this will make sure that the system is operating as well as it can.

There's a limit to what you can do unfortunately.  A 6 year old just doesn't have a ton of wrist and hand strength though . . . and at the end of the day you might just have to wait a couple years for her to be able to shift properly.

[yachi]

I'm sure you're pedaling a bit when you shift to slide the chain over to the new gear before you keep going, but just wanted to mention for example if you shift from 7 to 6, pedal a bit to engage the chain on gear 6 before trying to shift to 5.

But here's a popular way to go to replace the twist shifter with a trigger style instead:
$17 at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/SHIMANO-Altus-Right-7-Speed-SL-M315-7R/dp/B0833BY837/
Youtube video to upgrade:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DV9hJuyEDA4

[ChpBstrd]

I was about to say the same thing as @yachi . For around $20 the kiddo could be learning to use shifters that are more common on adult bikes and have better leverage against the derailleur spring. There's a niche market for higher quality grip shifters for certain XC weight weenies, but all other grip shifters are garbage.

The only catch is whether the levers will ergonomically fit smaller hands. Maybe have the kiddo try to shift gears on your bike to see if it'll work.

https://www.jensonusa.com/Shimano-M315-7-Speed-Shift-Lever

First, disassemble the grip shift to see if the problem is with the shifter or the cable or a bunch of crud inside. There should be a thin plastic washer between the stationary part of the grip and the rotating part of the grip. If this is missing, it's rubber rubbing on rubber. There's also a good chance the cable could use replacing.

[PHAT]

Thanks folks!  I stopped by my local bike store intending to pick up some cable lube.  They convinced me to just replace the whole thing.  For $30 I got a brand new button/lever shifter, new cable and new cable housing.  Now to learn a new skill of replacing all of these!

[Malossi792]

What I forgot to mention is that I've been riding the same revoshift bike for 20 years, commuting on it the past 10, distance gradually crept up to 20 miles roundtrip, 3 days a week, rain or shine, summer or winter. I love this forum, only place where it sounds like bragging...
Adjusting the indexing of the rear derailleur takes 1 minute tops, and that includes stopping and starting, getting off and on...
Please do yourself a favour, watch a vid, first time it may take you 5 minutes, then 3...

[FLBiker]

What I forgot to mention is that I've been riding the same revoshift bike for 20 years, commuting on it the past 10, distance gradually crept up to 20 miles roundtrip, 3 days a week, rain or shine, summer or winter. I love this forum, only place where it sounds like bragging...
Adjusting the indexing of the rear derailleur takes 1 minute tops, and that includes stopping and starting, getting off and on...
Please do yourself a favour, watch a vid, first time it may take you 5 minutes, then 3...

Thank you for this!  This is a skill I need to learn, and you've inspired me.  I've been a bike commuter for 20 years or so, and I've lived with hard to shift gears for much of that time.  I've probably paid for repairs for various things 3 or 4 times over those 20 years, and they've typically tuned my gears as part of that.  I've tried to do it a few times, but never really gotten anywhere.  I'd honestly never heard the word "index" before, but I found what seems like a good video on Youtube and will give this a try this weekend.  Thanks!

[GuitarStv]

What I forgot to mention is that I've been riding the same revoshift bike for 20 years, commuting on it the past 10, distance gradually crept up to 20 miles roundtrip, 3 days a week, rain or shine, summer or winter. I love this forum, only place where it sounds like bragging...
Adjusting the indexing of the rear derailleur takes 1 minute tops, and that includes stopping and starting, getting off and on...
Please do yourself a favour, watch a vid, first time it may take you 5 minutes, then 3...

Thank you for this!  This is a skill I need to learn, and you've inspired me.  I've been a bike commuter for 20 years or so, and I've lived with hard to shift gears for much of that time.  I've probably paid for repairs for various things 3 or 4 times over those 20 years, and they've typically tuned my gears as part of that.  I've tried to do it a few times, but never really gotten anywhere.  I'd honestly never heard the word "index" before, but I found what seems like a good video on Youtube and will give this a try this weekend.  Thanks!

Just take it slowly and calmly and you'll be fine.  It can be a bit fiddly and is easy to screw up if you've never worked on the stuff before.

[Malossi792]

What I forgot to mention is that I've been riding the same revoshift bike for 20 years, commuting on it the past 10, distance gradually crept up to 20 miles roundtrip, 3 days a week, rain or shine, summer or winter. I love this forum, only place where it sounds like bragging...
Adjusting the indexing of the rear derailleur takes 1 minute tops, and that includes stopping and starting, getting off and on...
Please do yourself a favour, watch a vid, first time it may take you 5 minutes, then 3...

Thank you for this!  This is a skill I need to learn, and you've inspired me.  I've been a bike commuter for 20 years or so, and I've lived with hard to shift gears for much of that time.  I've probably paid for repairs for various things 3 or 4 times over those 20 years, and they've typically tuned my gears as part of that.  I've tried to do it a few times, but never really gotten anywhere.  I'd honestly never heard the word "index" before, but I found what seems like a good video on Youtube and will give this a try this weekend.  Thanks!

Just take it slowly and calmly and you'll be fine.  It can be a bit fiddly and is easy to screw up if you've never worked on the stuff before.

Glad to have helped :)
Yep, take it slowly the first time, a little adjustment goes a long way, so go like half a turn, test ride, rinse, repeat... If you overdo it, don't panic, go back a bit etc.
I watched the yt vid that comes up if you search for ,,park tools derailleur adjustment".
Great channel for bike maintenance.
Disclaimer: not associated with the company, unless it is in a global index tracker fund which I do not know.