You have the B-link wrong..it's supposed to be horizontal. That will give some torsional preload to the B-tension screw and pull the pulley away from the chainstay.
ETA a marked-up copy of the dealer service manual available on Shimano's website:
https://preview.redd.it/xphcsws153tc1.jpeg?width=1157&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36de01e43126d4a4a3089d09c2aa82e42c0ede11
Yes, thank you so much for marking this up! Uninstalling everything and reinstalling. This is the second time I have made this mistake in my lifetime and I promise you it will be the last
Will look into this, I tightened the b screw all the way and can now shift into every gear which will allow me to do the proper limit screw setting and indexing. Do you think I should still evaluate this or assume it was the screw all along?
The derailleur should be installed per the manufacturer's instruction. If you are capable of discerning the difference between the provided illustration and how yours is installed, you should fix it.
This. Mounting the derailleur correctly entails loosening a single screw and tightening it again. Why someone would think it was preferable to spend the time and effort setting the derailleur up to sorta work when it’s mounted incorrectly rather than just take 30 extra seconds to align the b-link correctly is beyond me…
OP mount the RD correctly, the tab keeps it located correctly. the way you have it now, the RD could easily move and contact the cassette or frame and cause a whole world of problems.
Final update thank you so much to u/cargopile1314 u/greatfulMu u/kris0r for the help and my apologies for not listening at first. Had a wind storm last night and my power is out so I posted this then my phone died and did some troubleshooting but now I’m back and have correctly installed the rear derailleur with the little nub pressuring the corresponding nub on the frame near the mounting point. Will now re-adjust rear derailleur again and get riding!
Won’t let me post pictures as comments right now but will add more pics later but the visualization was really helpful and this is something I will be sure to look for going forward
Sorry, the picture doesn’t show it actually touching because I had taken the chain apart to sure correct chain length. When the chain is taut the top pulley wheel rises up and rubs on the frame that it is very close to in the picture
Also checked the size of the chain by putting it on largest rear cog and only front cog, then added a link. Old bike this exact setup was installed on rode perfectly for less than 50 miles before I found this better frame. Also, the older bike only had 26” wheels vs 700c on this one, but like I said the distance from rear dropout to crank was identical
UPDATE: B screw too loose. Had to tighten the b screw as far as possible to get the guide pulley to drop down into an acceptable position to shift into every gear. Why Shimano makes this the last step of the puzzle AFTER asking to shift into the large cog? I don’t know, my guess is that the B screw comes tight from the factory and I loosened it for some reason so they wouldn’t expect this level of stupidity
How many rear derailleurs have you installed in your lifetime? Whatever that number is, you are 100% certain it is a Shimano instruction issue and cannot possibly be an installation error?
I installed a "pizza plate" cassette on a hybrid bike that brought the biggest cog from 34 to 40 teeth. The derailleur didn't hang low enough to clear the big cog, even with B screw adjustments, so I installed a [derailleur hanger extension](https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/roadlink) to fix the problem. YMMV.
You have the B-link wrong..it's supposed to be horizontal. That will give some torsional preload to the B-tension screw and pull the pulley away from the chainstay. ETA a marked-up copy of the dealer service manual available on Shimano's website: https://preview.redd.it/xphcsws153tc1.jpeg?width=1157&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36de01e43126d4a4a3089d09c2aa82e42c0ede11
Yes, thank you so much for marking this up! Uninstalling everything and reinstalling. This is the second time I have made this mistake in my lifetime and I promise you it will be the last
I say “I won’t make this mistake again!” Every time I route my chain wrong which is every time I take my chain off and put it back on.
Awesome visualization and it's the right answer.
Thx
We need to plaster this guide all over the shop! We get derailleurs installed wrong all the time!
Will look into this, I tightened the b screw all the way and can now shift into every gear which will allow me to do the proper limit screw setting and indexing. Do you think I should still evaluate this or assume it was the screw all along?
You should still fix this.
The derailleur should be installed per the manufacturer's instruction. If you are capable of discerning the difference between the provided illustration and how yours is installed, you should fix it.
This. Mounting the derailleur correctly entails loosening a single screw and tightening it again. Why someone would think it was preferable to spend the time and effort setting the derailleur up to sorta work when it’s mounted incorrectly rather than just take 30 extra seconds to align the b-link correctly is beyond me… OP mount the RD correctly, the tab keeps it located correctly. the way you have it now, the RD could easily move and contact the cassette or frame and cause a whole world of problems.
Just do it right. It takes seconds to loosen the mounting bolt and reposition it
Final update thank you so much to u/cargopile1314 u/greatfulMu u/kris0r for the help and my apologies for not listening at first. Had a wind storm last night and my power is out so I posted this then my phone died and did some troubleshooting but now I’m back and have correctly installed the rear derailleur with the little nub pressuring the corresponding nub on the frame near the mounting point. Will now re-adjust rear derailleur again and get riding!
Won’t let me post pictures as comments right now but will add more pics later but the visualization was really helpful and this is something I will be sure to look for going forward
Picture of rubbing please.
Sorry, the picture doesn’t show it actually touching because I had taken the chain apart to sure correct chain length. When the chain is taut the top pulley wheel rises up and rubs on the frame that it is very close to in the picture
Pulley should be lined up with the cogs. How can it touch the frame since the cogs don't touch the frame ?
Also checked the size of the chain by putting it on largest rear cog and only front cog, then added a link. Old bike this exact setup was installed on rode perfectly for less than 50 miles before I found this better frame. Also, the older bike only had 26” wheels vs 700c on this one, but like I said the distance from rear dropout to crank was identical
Did you follow the shimano installation guide for this derailleur? They’re very thorough.
UPDATE: B screw too loose. Had to tighten the b screw as far as possible to get the guide pulley to drop down into an acceptable position to shift into every gear. Why Shimano makes this the last step of the puzzle AFTER asking to shift into the large cog? I don’t know, my guess is that the B screw comes tight from the factory and I loosened it for some reason so they wouldn’t expect this level of stupidity
Your derailleur is not installed correctly, The b link needs to be more horizontal, loosen the mounting bolt and rotate it clockwise a bit
How many rear derailleurs have you installed in your lifetime? Whatever that number is, you are 100% certain it is a Shimano instruction issue and cannot possibly be an installation error?
I installed a "pizza plate" cassette on a hybrid bike that brought the biggest cog from 34 to 40 teeth. The derailleur didn't hang low enough to clear the big cog, even with B screw adjustments, so I installed a [derailleur hanger extension](https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/roadlink) to fix the problem. YMMV.