Ran across an interesting problem, wanted to see if others have suggestions or have seen thsi before.
(I have a 2006 dual with visiontech bars) Several metal strands of my front derailleur cable housing are protruding out the end of the shifter. I intially thought it was the shifter cable itself, but it’s actually part of the housing. Also, it appears that part of the cable housing near the shifter but under the bar tape has melted! It’s obviously deformed - both flattened and in a sort of S-shape.
To repair, can I just cut thru the cable housing to remove the problem part, then slide the whole thing up and stick it into the shifting lever? I believe I have enough slack to do that.
Any other tips/advice? This seems like an odd problem, and I have no idea how either the housing could have gotten deformed/melted or the metal strands from the housing been forced through the shifting lever and stick out.
Housing can do that if you don’t put an end cap on it. There’s no real way to fix it unless you take the entire shift cable out and cut the housing. If you cut through the housing with the cable in there, you will also cut the cable. It’s a good time to get a tune-up/recable of your bike anyway. If it’s the housing, then I’d recommend just recabling the problem derailler.
Thanks - I will need to either get or borrow a pair of cable cutters and will put in a new shifter cable (bought one anyway since I thought that was the problem).
tom
I’ve read that you can use a dremel to cut the housing without crushing the inside…may save you time trying to hunt down a pair of cable/housing cutters…
Are you sure that they are actually the right kind of cables for shifter cables. I had this problem last year and found out that my shop had put on brake cables as shifter cables. I bought the right cables, swapped them out myself, and problem fixed. I know for Shimano actual shifter cables are a bit thinner and have different housing and ends on them.
I believe the cable is fine - the problem is with the cable housing.
I haven’t had anything done, replaced, etc to this area since I bought the bike about 15 months ago.
What was the problem you were having?
tom
Are you sure that they are actually the right kind of cables for shifter cables. I had this problem last year and found out that my shop had put on brake cables as shifter cables. I bought the right cables, swapped them out myself, and problem fixed. I know for Shimano actual shifter cables are a bit thinner and have different housing and ends on them.
I had little wires from the cable housing sticking out through the end of the housing where the housing ended on the downtube. Never happened before but I had them replaced before that and they used just the regular black housing. I went to another shop and I ended up with a package of shifter cables with the correct housing. I think it says sis on it and the ends are different, quite a bit thinner and tighter ends. Works like a charm. I noticed that on my wife’s new Specialized it has the regular black universal cable housing on it and not a specific set for shifters.
If you get shimano specific housing it says SIS. Generic housing will not say SIS and it is cut to length. You are correct in that there is a specific housing for brake cables and shifter cables. It’s the interior of the housing that is different. Shifter housing is made up of small wires that are all parallel between the inside liner and outside housing. Brake housing is made up of what appears to be a single piece of thin flat metal that is wound around the inner cable liner and outer housing.
Your wife’s bike may have the correct housting, but it might just be a ‘generic’ brand.
The little wires that were sticking out of your shifters could have been frayed cable, or they could have been the small wires that make up a shifter housing. Without cable ends, shifter housing will typically end up getting fouled up at one of the ends.
Yeah it was the small wires that make up the housing. I never paid attention when I had the cables replaced. Actually it took me a while to notice and I kept having to adjust the shifting as the cable housing was getting shorter as the wire stuck out further. The little wires actually punched through the cable ends it was kinds neat. Not neat though was I discovered it while away at bike camp in Penticton. Crappy shifting all week.