Is external cabling a step backwards now ?

bristolpete
bristolpete Posts: 2,255
edited July 2015 in Road buying advice
Looking at a deal on an evo as another bike and have seen some great deals for a 2015 evo, non hi mod which is still enough bike for me. The caveat I have / ask is, external cabling on a 2015 bike a retro step.

Not worried about how it looks and we all know external cabling mooted as performing better than some draggy internal set ups. I am very tempted, but suppose I have got used to internal cabling since around 2012. Any opinions..?

Comments

  • iron-clover
    iron-clover Posts: 737
    External cabling is not a step backwards at all. Granted, the cables are exposed but the amount of outer cable they have to run through is minimal- with some internal routing set ups you have to run them through the plastic 'sleeve' you find in cable outers- although it varies frame by frame.

    It's also a lot easier to work on, you won't have them caught on odd bits inside the frame and as far as I know routing the cables internally doesn't really make them last any longer.
  • londoncommuter
    londoncommuter Posts: 1,550
    When we're all running SRAM wireless groupsets all the holes in internally routed frames will look very antiquated so I wouldn't worry!
  • arlowood
    arlowood Posts: 2,561
    As with most things, internal cabling is a trickle down from the pro racing fraternity where it was perceived to give a smoother more aero profile and thus improve performance.

    This might indeed be true for the pro peleton but in the case of us mere mortals, the aero benefit will be non-existent. So we have a cosmetic change that adds complexity to diy maintenance for no real advantage. When you have a tame team mechanic to cope with the set up and re-cabling problems, internal routing is a non-issue.

    Having built up a few framsets over the past couple of years I have deliberately steered clear of internally cabled frames purely to avoid the hassle factor with installation and maintenance.

    If the bike you fancy is a good deal then go for it - don'f worry that it has external cabling. Just be grateful that it will perform as well as an internally cabled frame and be far easier to maintain.
  • sloppyschleckonds
    sloppyschleckonds Posts: 8,019
    Some frames look better with internally routed cables, some worse.
    I'm sorry you don't believe in miracles
  • tim_wand
    tim_wand Posts: 2,552
    Picked up a 2014 ym Evo myself in February and asked myself the same question at the time.

    The only consideration in the negative was whether in the future I would run Di2 which I really can t see me doing.

    I took off the fsa BB30 and 10 speed 105, and run it with Ultegra 6800. I initially got the chainset conversion wrong as I sourced a rotor 30/24 adapter, however the external circumference of the BB shell for press fit bearings is 46 mm and I had to get a wheels manufacturing convertor as I was determined to have a BB where the two halves threaded together and didn't simply just press into the frame.

    All round its a fantastic frame set and I couldn't find anything better at the price (IMO) the bits off the new frame went on my planet x pro carbon and I was able to get £600 back flogging that.
  • bristolpete
    bristolpete Posts: 2,255
    [url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19641719#p19641719]tim wand[/url] wrote:
    Picked up a 2014 ym Evo myself in February and asked myself the same question at the time.

    The only consideration in the negative was whether in the future I would run Di2 which I really can t see me doing.

    I took off the fsa BB30 and 10 speed 105, and run it with Ultegra 6800. I initially got the chainset conversion wrong as I sourced a rotor 30/24 adapter, however the external circumference of the BB shell for press fit bearings is 46 mm and I had to get a wheels manufacturing convertor as I was determined to have a BB where the two halves threaded together and didn't simply just press into the frame.

    All round its a fantastic frame set and I couldn't find anything better at the price (IMO) the bits off the new frame went on my planet x pro carbon and I was able to get £600 back flogging that.

    Nice - I had a Di2 evo back in 2013 but only for a matter of weeks though I went 54cm against my gut instinct and regretted it from the minute I looked at it built. But, no decision yet as mulling my options. Looking at a Medium propel as a fast 2 hour bike too, but not enamoured by deep section anymore, which a frame like that will no doubt lead me to want, on looks alone, though the Giant geo leaves me scratching my head as slack steep type set ups on race bikes which sounds odd but no doubt works.

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