The stock answer is change every year. The lazy answer is change when your shifting gets bad. I lean toward lazy with shift cables, more proactive with brakes. I'm curious about the SS vs teflon question too.
had them last as long as two years, I am partial to XTR cables, housing and ferrules ect, I use bulk cable and add a bit of teflon lube to the cable, the pre cut xtr kits come lubed allready, teflon cables are a waste of money.
I bought a bike used...no telling how old the cables were...and I got about 3 more years out of those same cables till I sold the bike...but like the other gentelman said, about once a year - or when they start to malfuntion.
In my experience, with regular lovin' you can expect about two years before the performance starts to drop off. Every once in a while i pump 'em full of teflon lube; about every 2-3 times that I oil my chain. Generally speaking, I have problems from them rubbing together externally before there's any internal drag issues.
A few days after I bought a used bike, the rear shift cable snapped while I was adjusting the derailleur (no wonder it miss-shifted); and the other one during a rainy night ride (a rock kept me in the middle plate, costing me a bit of paint).
Moral of the story, change them every few years, and check them if you start to see miss-shifts. Also, throw in an extra cable in your camelbak.
had them last as long as two years, I am partial to XTR cables, housing and ferrules ect, I use bulk cable and add a bit of teflon lube to the cable, the pre cut xtr kits come lubed allready, teflon cables are a waste of money.
OK, you're buying XTR and teflon cables (which are cheaper) are a waste of money? Thanks, I needed a chuckle today.
I run teflons, with a thin coat of Slick50 One grease inside the housings; best of both worlds. Two years on my present cableset, no issues. (Due to a cascade of money issues, it may turn out to be three years! Hope not, but...)
OK, you're buying XTR and teflon cables (which are cheaper) are a waste of money? Thanks, I needed a chuckle today.
I run teflons, with a thin coat of Slick50 One grease inside the housings; best of both worlds. Two years on my present cableset, no issues. (Due to a cascade of money issues, it may turn out to be three years! Hope not, but...)
you are ignorant, xtr cables do not have a teflon coat as in a solid permanent coating of teflon as some non shimano cables are sold as...not gel teflon lube that is replenished periodically...dude get a life.
It depends on how much you ride, the conditions you ride in, and how you clean your bike. If they continue to work OK, don't replace them. Try to keep the ends from fraying. Either make sure the crimp-on ends stay on, or use heat shrink tubing and a soldering iron.
you are ignorant, xtr cables do not have a teflon coat as in a solid permanent coating of teflon as some non shimano cables are sold as...not gel teflon lube that is replenished periodically...dude get a life.
had them last as long as two years, I am partial to XTR cables, housing and ferrules ect, I use bulk cable and add a bit of teflon lube to the cable, the pre cut xtr kits come lubed allready, teflon cables are a waste of money.
As mentioned already, depends on usage, just play it by ear, if your shifting starts messing up or gets harder and harder change. or more often if you like. I've seen xtr kits on ebay for like $12 , cheap enough for silky smooth shifting
found this on their web site
The SIS-SP41 is a housing system that was specifically designed to work with Shimano groups. It comes fully lined with silicone grease and has been designed to reduce friction by 10%. This will keep your group shifting smoother and more accurately.
so no additional grease is needed
the teflon is a coating on stainless steel cables so other than being slicker they are both stainless
Nothing unusual about a couple of years... All depends on how much you ride, what conditions, etc. One thing you might want to consider is fully closed outers. There's two schools of thought on this one. If you are greasing and lubing a cable, then that grease/lube can attract dirt; get into the outers and mess up shifting (reducing cable lifespan). With a full outer, you can grease/lube without too much fear of dirt getting into the cable. However, you might find with a full outer that the cable shifting becomes 'restricted' and the shifting isn't great to begin with.
All swings and roundabouts really (if you get the expression - not 'one thing or another').
let me explain from another approach....some brands of derailleur cables are stainless steel dipped in teflon that dries to a solid coat of teflon, IT IS NOT A SILICON GREASE.Some brands, like shimano xtr sell a cable set with a bit of silicon grease in the very end of the xtr embossed cable housing, you insert the xtr stainless steel cable in that end and it picks up the grease and distributes it into the entire lenght of the housing.I buy xtr housing by the foot and it has NO silicon grease,( that only comes with the cable set) I have a small container of silicon grease I apply to the cable, I save alot of money buying bulk xtr housing. I feel the teflon dipped stainless cables tend to peel off the teflon coating...thats a waste of money, however teflon grease can be re applied..so come on guys am I being clear now? go down to your LBS and have a look at the xtr cable in an xtr cable set.....not teflon dipped as some other brands are....dry permanent teflon coat and teflon grease are two different things.
As mentioned already, depends on usage, just play it by ear, if your shifting starts messing up or gets harder and harder change. or more often if you like. I've seen xtr kits on ebay for like $12 , cheap enough for silky smooth shifting
found this on their web site
The SIS-SP41 is a housing system that was specifically designed to work with Shimano groups. It comes fully lined with silicone grease and has been designed to reduce friction by 10%. This will keep your group shifting smoother and more accurately.
so no additional grease is needed
the teflon is a coating on stainless steel cables so other than being slicker they are both stainless
an informed opinion...excellent, and exactly what I was trying to explain in regards to difference between dipped teflon coating and teflon grease applied to cable...thank you.
after 2 years, assuming you've been riding regularly, I believe you could benefit from new cables and housings. Even if you don't notice a problem, chances are there is dirt and other crap in your housings, and your shifting isn't what it once was. If you do a good job cutting and grinding the ends of the new housing and use high quality ferrules, inexpensive housing and cables seem (to me) to work pretty well.
I don't like teflon coated cables, the teflon always seems to flake off and gum up the housing resulting in more friction in the long run. I get stainless (spring for it over galvanized), buy them in bulk when I see a sale, and change them frequently.
For the front derailleur, I cannot recall the last time I needed to change or service the cable or housing (I also use the pre-cut XTR kit).
For the rear, as long as the RD shifts up and down crisply, leave it alone. A common symptom of high cable friction is hesitant shifting, especially when releasing cable - shifting to a smaller rear cog with a "traditional" derailleur. High cable friction is usually due to worn and/or dirty cables, assuming the cable routing is correct (a different issue). There's certainly nothing wrong with preventive maintenance, but if the shifting is fine, leave it alone.
In my experience, it's easy to detect when the cables need attention.
an informed opinion...excellent, and exactly what I was trying to explain in regards to difference between dipped teflon coating and teflon grease applied to cable...thank you.
OK, I am wrong I am going to slit my wrist now however the XTR cable set does not have a teflon coated cable, the housing has teflon grease, never knew shimano had a xtr cable coated with teflon.....live and learn
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Mountain Bike Reviews Forum
15.4M posts
515.2K members
Since 1990
A forum community dedicated to Mountain Bike owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about bike parts, components, deals, performance, modifications, classifieds, trails, troubleshooting, maintenance, and more!