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A quick cable lubing tip
Good shifting is dependent mostly upon the condition of your bike’s cables and cable housings. In a perfect world, you’d always have clean shifting parts but, in reality, dirt and grit get inside the housing and can cause excess friction, something that makes it difficult to get the shifters to engage and causes problems when moving your chain down the cogset. While the best solution to imperfect shifting is new housing and a new cable (or a new drivetrain), this isn’t a realistic option for most people, especially if you ride in a wet/gritty environment.
This article will help you prolong the length of time between your housing changes and it’s easy to do too — you never remove the cable or undo the cable anchor bolt.
Note that this tip requires split cable stops to work properly.
You get better shifting with clean cables and housing
- Shift into the biggest cog in the back (easiest gear) while turning the cranks.
- Shift to the hardest gear without turning the cranks — this removes almost all the tension on the cable.
- Remove the cable housing from the cable stop. If you need the cable to be more slack to get the housing out of the stop, all you need to do is push the ‘knuckle’ of the rear derailleur with your thumb. To remove the housing from the stops simply pull the housing backwards and lift the cable through the ’split’ in the cable stop.
- Clean the cable. Once the housing is taken out of the stops, you can move the housing up and down the length of the cable and wiping down the cable that is normally inside the housing. If a rag doesn’t do the job, I’ll rub it with some steel wool. Lately, I’ve been using Silicone spray to lube the cable up rather than typical bicycle oil. To apply it, I usually spray it onto a rag then wipe it on the cable. I’ve also been using the spray when installing new housing. I simply spray it into the new housing and then let it dry.
- Replace the cable housing in the stops. Next, you move the newly cleaned cable housing back into the cable stops. If you find that you’re having a hard time with the last piece of housing, just push on the knuckle of the rear derailleur to get that little extra bit that you need.
- Shift back to the easiest gear at the shifter then turn the crank. Before you start turning the crank, remember to shift the shifter back to the easiest gear. Now turn the crank and shift away.
Conclusion
If you ride in wet / gritty conditions, this tip can help restore some of the snap to your shifting. It won’t cure all your problems though — if you see frayed cable ends, or cracked or buggered housing then you are better off changing the whole thing. But this trick can usually get you a few more miles out of a housing set.
[editor’s note: there are pictures to come! Check back later in the day!]
1. Posted by Guitar Ted | 6:10 am, 14 February 2006
Great tip! I use this method all the time and teach it at our mechanics series at our shop. One thing that I would add is that Tri-Flow is about the best rust remover I have ever used. I used to work in an auto repair shop. We tried every industrial strength rust penetrant that you can buy on the market, but nothing worked as well as Tri-Flow. It will get the rusty grime off cables and from the inside of housings. It also has Teflon, which is a pretty slippery lubricant.
I do not work for Tri-Flow, nor am I affiliated with that company in any way! I just found out that it really works well, and if you use the drip applicator bottle, it will make your technique on lubing cables even better.
Just wanted to chime in with that tip, and to say that you guys are doing a great job! Keep up the good work!