Anyone else going through lots of rear der cables?

[Eric.]

Like, LOTS of rear cables? It's 2011 XO ten speed, and I have XO 9 speed rear der's on three other bikes, cable routing all similar, all using same brand of cables (Shimano or Jagwire). For some reason the ten speed bike breaks or frays the shifter cables right at the 'rollamajig' guide thingie constantly, like, every half dozen rides it seems.

I've checked for burrs on the roller/guide deal and it's all smooth, and I've adjusting the b-tension to see if changing the angle of the derailleur a bit makes a difference, but where the cable keeps breaking is between the housing stop portion of the der and the guide, the angle of the cable itself remains constant no matter where the derailleur is.

I don't know if it's just from ham fisted gear grabbing or what, but I don't shift this bike any different than the others and I've never had one of those cables break. At first I though I may have snagged something, then figured maybe a bad cable... but about half a dozen cables in a matter of months has me thinking something else is up. I'll try to post a picture later, just figured I'd see if anyone else has experienced something similar.

TIA!

[Burning Matches]

Actually, I just had a relatively new cable snap on me at that exact spot on an XX rear derailleur. It was during a race unfortunately and caught me by surprise since it wasn't that old...

[WR304]

I had to replace the inner gear cable on my 2011 SRAM X-0 10 speed rear derailleur a few weeks ago. The exposed gear cable where it exits the rear derailleur was frayed and about 1/3 of the wire strands had broken. The broken strands were all on the outside of the cable and fairly high up (cable that would pull through the outer housing) The shifting was increasingly poor but fortunately I noticed before it snapped completely.

The gear cable was 8 months old and had done 411 hours riding.

I never had any gear cable issues with my previous SRAM X-0 9 speed or Shimano Deore XT gears on the same frame.

[David C]

Looks like the rd forged cable stop for the cable housing as sharp edges and the design of this specific model don't succeed into align the ferrule's hole with the guide and then the cable is contacting the rd cable stop and with friction cause the cable to fray and fail...

Any pics yet ?

David

[Eric.]

Almost exactly two months since replacement I noticed the telltale wonky rear shifting, sure enough cable number umpteenth gave up the fight... and this time I took pictures.

I've checked the Rollamajig thingie to make sure there weren't any burrs, even used a length of cable as a file to skim things down. But it's the same failure every time, perfect straight cut right at the fulcrum point of the cable against the roller deal - the first time the cable actually broke while riding it was so clean I thought for sure I had snagged a rock or sharp branch of some sort, the second, third, fourth one had me suspecting sabotage... it looks like someone has used an edge to slice the cable strands.

I'm guessing the design of the roller and angle of the cable create a stress riser at that point, and perhaps the extra oomph of tugging that last big cog shift makes the ten speeds more vulnerable to breakage. I've started monitoring my nine speed bikes closely now and I can certainly see that the cable is a bit mashed in the same area, but none of those bike is or has shredded and snapped the way this one does.

I guess I'm going to keep trying different cables, perhaps at some point I'll find one that's a bit more durable. It's not a huge problem (as long as it doesn't snap mid-ride again), and now that I know about it I'm constantly monitoring that area. I just wish Sram would design a simpler method of swapping cables (like, oh, Shimano's system), taking apart the shifter everytime more or less sucks.

That said, I must say I love ten speed. Not just 2x10, though the 2x part is a bonus for sure (I find myself having to relearn triples whenever I'm on one of those bikes), but there's something about the ten speed gears/chain interface that just feels sooooo smooth. My nine speed bikes all shift just fine, but the 10er just feels like a Rolex... only description I can think of. Similar to Sram/Avid brakes, or dropper posts, it works so well when it's on that it gives you fits when it starts acting up.

Crappy resized phone pic, look familiar to anyone?

[David C]

Sorry you still have problem... Honestly maybe try a X-7 or X-9 instead ? My X-7 have been free of trouble regarding cable wear since I've started use them 2 years ago.

And what's difficult to change your cable ? Just shift down to release all cable length, then you push the cable inside the shifter and it will slide right out like the Shimano does

[mikeoffroad]

Its a problem with SRAM's design. The cable rides over a derailleur cam and constantly goes through tight bending as you shift, causing cyclic fatigue. Only option is to inspect it carefully and often and replace when a single strand is broken

[David C]

Its a problem with SRAM's design. The cable rides over a derailleur cam and constantly goes through tight bending as you shift, causing cyclic fatigue. Only option is to inspect it carefully and often and replace when a single strand is broken

I don't see it as a "problem".

In fact, this design is superior to the long housing routing that Shimano normally use. This allow to a very minimal friction of the cable with the housing, and make it less prone to snag. See what they did with the new SLX and up derailleurs ? They dropped the long housing bend to go for a more direct routing.

Yeah, the cable get a good bend, but it never moves, it's always static on the cam and not moving, so no problem there. My guess goes to a defective rd. Manufacturing default. Not a design problem.

[yoeddy20000]

I replaced 5 rear derailler cables in 13 months. Last one broke on me during a race. I called Sram and asked what gives? They said they know about the issue and supposedly the fin or rollamajig angle has now been changed and it supposedly will reduce these torn cables. I had an early model Sram XX (dec 2010) and they said the changed the design since then. As a result, and since I'm under warranty, they are sending me a new XX rear derailler and gore cable housing for FREE. Just go to your local shop, tell them what is happening, have them call SRAM and hopefully this new design will really do what they say.

[kinsler]

Got my bike in August with XO drivetrain 2x10... this is a pic of cable number 5. This conveniently occurred during a 12 hour race- I was a couple threads from the cable completely breaking by the end of the race. So SRAM sent me a new one and I thought I was in the clear, but alas I noticed last week that the cable was breaking again. It seemed to last longer, but still I've never had an issue like this before. The most recent cable lasted about 2.5-3 months with probably about 1,000 miles. I'm using a jagwire cable now... we'll see how long this one lasts.

[awilson40]

Hello
I found this post when researching this problem. I have an X.9 rear changer on my recumbent that just frayed a cable.
I think its a design flaw where the cable is placed at an extreme angle when changed to the larger cogs.
I'm glad to find others are having the same issues. My cable frayed just like yours did and it was not in extreme off road action

[LeadFoot]

I have an X9 rear derailleur, one year old, and the cable just snapped today with about 600miles on it. Looking at the way the cable is bent over the fulcrum it appears that the cable is well past its bend radius and is clearly being bent and unbent at this same point. It appears to be a design oversight. It could so easily be fixed by changing the shape of the fulcrum. Still, now I am stuck with it. I will go back to Trek and see what they can do.

[mtb-ripper]

Same problem today - 15 rides or less on mine. After comparing with my old derailleur it looks like the plastic piece used in the old 9 speed pieces may have helped prevent this problem.

[kinsler]

Yep... replaced another cable last week. Thankfully it's easy and cheap to do since I go through them every 2-3 months. My next bike will have an XTR drive train...

[LeadFoot]

I have about 1 inch of electrical insulation from an electrical cable (about 1/8th inch OD). I slid it over the shifter cable and into place over the fulcrum of the X9 derailleur and it is held in place on the derailleur using a drop of Shoe Goo. As there is no motion of the cable through the insulation, there should be minimal wear of the insulation. The insulation keeps the cable from touching the (now sharpish) metal of the fulcrum of the derailleur. So far so good. Season over, no apparent issues and no miss shifting.

YMMV.

Ask again in 12 months. I hope to use the cable for one and a half seasons to make a point.

Also, I use Shoe Goo on the cable-end instead of a crimp. Much thinner and slides off X9 easily (which I prefer).

[mtb-ripper]

Yup - same problem here. Rigged up a sleeve that should prolong life, but I'm going to can the SRAM stuff. The last thing I need is to be worrying about snapping cables all the time.