Rear Derailleur Cable snapped again -Shimano 5700 shifter

sebbyp
sebbyp Posts: 106
edited November 2016 in Workshop
Hi guys,
bike sh*t itself again 88miles into a 103miles sportive yesterday...
The rear gear cable has done the usual fraying then snapped in the 5700 shifter housing. It was a fancy PTFE coated cable this time. They seem to be breaking every 4500-5000miles. Is it my installion or an inherent fault with 5700 shifters. obviously its quite a tight turn into the shifter from the bars, but there are two cable holes, now that i've probably damaged the plastic bit the cable runs over inside the shifter, should i use the other hole and it that ok? it will be less of a sharp turn.
Has anyone ever snapped a cable using an Ultegra 6700 shifter? could upgrade..
any ideas?
Ta,
20160606_0759211_zpsxvlsnekx.jpg
20160606_0808261_zpshthih88l.jpg

Comments

  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    It is an issue with that and the previous series of 105 shifters... just replace the inner more often... if you buy transfil inners, they cost a couple of pounds each
    left the forum March 2023
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    Wot he said. My 5600 shifter eats the inner wire fairly predictably. I've just got used to replacing it every couple of years, and if shifting ever starts to become a bit vague, that's the first thing I check. Pretty easy with mine cos the cable comes out of the side of the shifter, and all the bike cables are external.

    You could get a bit more life out of the cable by choosing the alternative routing, but I suspect it's more to do with how tight a radius it has to take once inside the shifter itself
  • sebbyp
    sebbyp Posts: 106
    Fair do's guys just nipped to the LBS and got a £3 shimano cable and fitted it and some new bar tape as the old stuff had crash damage anyway. I'll keep an eye on it more in future, like you said Keef you know its probably freying when the cable starts sticking on downshifts!
  • darkhairedlord
    darkhairedlord Posts: 7,180
    Keep the cable lubed in the outers. If the RD is slow to drop, especially on quick multiple shifts, the cable will go slack in the shifter body and lead to eventually failure. Use a light lube, not grease, or the cable will be slower still.
  • mikenetic
    mikenetic Posts: 486
    Also, consider using the alternate exit point from the shifter and route the shift cable around the back of the bar - you want to maximise the radius of the curve with 5700 to give the shift as much help as you can. It's not Shimano's finest hour.

    I've found the fancy polymer gear cables introduced for the latest gen of Shimano really do help improve the feel of the shift as well.
  • harryquinn
    harryquinn Posts: 5
    Seems to be a similar problem with Ultegra 6700 shifters. I have them on my main road bike and have had to replace the rear mech. cable twice in the five years I've owned the bike. Last time was about a year ago so, so it's once every two years so far. Each time I've replaced the inner wire only.
  • mostly
    mostly Posts: 113
    Let's bump this, happened to me today on an ultregra 6800. A lot of swearing, gt85 and tweezers to get the remaining cable out of the housing. It's done about 5.5k. Is it worth getting ££ cabling?
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,310
    mostly wrote:
    Let's bump this, happened to me today on an ultregra 6800. A lot of swearing, gt85 and tweezers to get the remaining cable out of the housing. It's done about 5.5k. Is it worth getting ££ cabling?

    Is this caused by junk getting into the cable from the frame mount end? I have never ever had this problem or even heard of it with Campag. Why not upgrade to Jagwire/Dura Ace or even a Campag set - don't know if the gear lever end nipples are the same though.

    Aaah: viewtopic.php?t=12923148#p18332131

    Pretty cheap (well, cheaper than a rear mech should it happen):

    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/jagw ... lsrc=aw.ds
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • mostly
    mostly Posts: 113
    cheers, I think the cables supplied with my tcr were jags although I'm guessing low end ones. The cable looked in good condition although it had been a couple of weeks since I'd checked. The unf###ing of the shifter has left me in no mood for internal cable bother so off to the lbs it is.
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,310
    mostly wrote:
    cheers, I think the cables supplied with my tcr were jags although I'm guessing low end ones. The cable looked in good condition although it had been a couple of weeks since I'd checked. The unf###ing of the shifter has left me in no mood for internal cable bother so off to the lbs it is.

    Bargain (if the LBS doesn't mind fitting a gear set bought elsewhere):

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Shimano-Dura- ... SwYmZXMzf4

    Although, you really ought to be able to DIY. :wink:
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • Nick Payne
    Nick Payne Posts: 288
    I have never ever had this problem or even heard of it with Campag. Why not upgrade to Jagwire/Dura Ace or even a Campag set - don't know if the gear lever end nipples are the same though.
    Using Campagnolo is no guarantee of the cable not fraying/breaking. This is the rear shift cable (the original cable fitted to the shifter as it comes from the factory) from my Chorus 11s Ergo. The bike had slightly less than a year of use. The rear derailleur started going our of adjustment on a ride - chain no longer centred on the sprocket and trying to change gear on its own. When I got home I pulled the cable and found it like this:
    gear_cable.jpg
  • Secteur
    Secteur Posts: 1,971
    Common problem - had the same thing here (Ultegra 6800) - viewtopic.php?f=40004&t=13039045&hilit=Cable+shifter#p19733986

    Ensure the cable outer has been cut and filed well, underneath the ferrule. Because the cable itself is under a slight bend at this point, it's a common friction point and is the cause of much of this problem.
  • proto
    proto Posts: 1,483
    FWIW my daughter's team suffered a number rear gear cable breakages this season, running Dura Ace shifters and cables, so upgrading the shifters/cables not necessarily the answer. They all broke at the same place, on the plastic guide inside the shifter. Lesson qucikly learned.

    Only thing to do is change the cables regularly. Use cheap ones, expensive ones don't last any longer, in fact a mechanic on one team suggested that DA cables were to be avoided as the plastic coating comes away (he called it the snakeskin shedding effect) causing further problems with shifting.

    FWIW I've used Campag shifters for years and never broken a gear cable. :)
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,310
    Nick Payne wrote:
    I...though.
    Using Campagnolo is no guarantee of the cable not fraying/breaking. This is the rear shift cable (the original cable fitted to the shifter as it comes from the factory) from my Chorus 11s Ergo. The bike had slightly less than a year of use. The rear derailleur started going our of adjustment on a ride - chain no longer centred on the sprocket and trying to change gear on its own. When I got home I pulled the cable and found it like this:

    That must be because of a an oblique route exiting the gear lever.

    As I have said before, it's never happened to me.

    Re.: Gear cable failure at rear: due to over tightening the derailler cable clamp bolt?
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • mikenetic
    mikenetic Posts: 486
    proto wrote:
    FWIW my daughter's team suffered a number rear gear cable breakages this season, running Dura Ace shifters and cables, so upgrading the shifters/cables not necessarily the answer. They all broke at the same place, on the plastic guide inside the shifter. Lesson qucikly learned.

    Only thing to do is change the cables regularly. Use cheap ones, expensive ones don't last any longer, in fact a mechanic on one team suggested that DA cables were to be avoided as the plastic coating comes away (he called it the snakeskin shedding effect) causing further problems with shifting.

    FWIW I've used Campag shifters for years and never broken a gear cable. :)

    The new Shimano polymer cables don't seem to suffer from the shedding issue that definitely caused problems with the older PTFE type.

    I've pulled broken cables from a couple of generations of both Campag and Shimano. As you say, replacing them regularly is the best approach to take.
  • Rightarmbad
    Rightarmbad Posts: 216
    On 5800/6800/9000, the problem is caused by using the wrong ferule at the shifter as well as some ham fisted mechanics fitting the cable while the cable housing is taped to the bar.
    This makes the cable kink as it finally snaps in and that sets up a flexing point just like a spoke that has not been bent for a good spoke line and destressed.
    Undo your bartape, any tape holding the outers and use the correct ferrules and it will be fine unless you have rough cut outers.
    It is rare for the 5700/6700/7900 series to break cables in that place unless they have also had the bendy fitment treatment.

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