Cutting cable housing

CptKernow

New Campag levers just arrived but I can't cut the cable housing. My cutters just aren't up to it.

I did a quick search for cable cutters and found Cyclepro Professional Cycle Cable Cutters for under £10. Does anyone know if these will cut the housings too?
If not any suggestions.

Thanks,
Chris

smidsy

Just pop down your LBS and get a set of cable cutters (whatever they stock).

Cable outers are not that tuff so your existing ones must be under performing by a long way.

CptKernow

smidsy wrote:

Cable outers are not that tuff so your existing ones must be under performing by a long way.

Dunno. These seem pretty tough. The cutters I use snip through the inner cable no probs...

smidsy

Are they proper cycle cable cutters? You need to get decent ones so they cut cleanly without cruching/crimping the ends.

Cutting a piece of thin wire and cutting a reinforced tube are entirely different prospects.

keef66

Or use a Dremel with a cutting wheel?

jonomc4

I got a park tools cable cutter - prior to that used pliers - basically proper bike cable cutters are about a 1000 times better - a worthwhile addition to your tool box.

rolf_f

+1. I've just been doing the same for an MTB frame swap. I started by hacksawing the outer on the basis that obviously the cable cutter would mangle the outer. Then I tried it and found out how wrong I was. The cable cutter cuts the outers cleanly and sometimes even without disturbing the roundness of the outer (which otherwise just needs a very gentle squeeze with a pair of pliers to restore shape). Like a knife through butter.

It's not worth doing it any other way.

I think mine are by Pro. Either that or BBB.

CptKernow

OK, I've ordered the CyclePro cutters but in the meantime I managed to cut them with my existing cutters (not cycle specific) Had to really press down though...

Monty Dog

Poor cutters crush the outer too, contributing to a poor gear shift. For a pro job, after the cutters use a bench grinder to get the end square and a sharp, pointy tool to open-out the liner.

JamesB

or use a 1mm ie teh smallest allen key on a multitool to `hollow out` the inner once cable has been cut. Spent about £20 on a pair of Park (or Shimano??) cutters and never found them wanting, always do the job and have a little inset to round off cable if crushed.

Yossie

2 options:

1 use an axe.

2 Dremel then open up with the pointy thing that no one knows what its actually for on a Leatherman. If no Dremel available then good quality snips. Give then end a 2 second run over with a file to make it nice and smooth, nice new ferrule on the end.

1 works for me when 2 doesn't.

buckmulligan

Monty Dog wrote:

Poor cutters crush the outer too, contributing to a poor gear shift. For a pro job, after the cutters use a bench grinder to get the end square and a sharp, pointy tool to open-out the liner.

+1 I recently changed my groupset and (following Sheldon Brown's advice) I used a hand file to square off the end of each outer after cutting; works well for both brake and gear cables. Not sure if it made any difference to performance tbh, but it made me feel like a pro!

As for cutters, I just use a decent pair of normal toolbox wire cutters and a nice sharp squeeze. I've got some for sale in The Classifieds that I can personally vouch for!

buckmulligan

Yossie wrote:

2 options:

1 use an axe.

Haha, I find it hard cutting the housings to the right length using a ruler and a pair of cutters, let alone an axe. The left and right shifter cables especially always look uneven and it drives me mental!

Yossie

When I first started doing it with the axe (not of this nancy namby pampy cleaver business) I found it a bit tricky to get the outer to stay in one place without rolling around so that I could cut it with a clean swing, but now I just get one of the kids to hold it on the chopping block and all is well.