# Best Shifter Cables



## mfdemicco (Nov 8, 2002)

What's the best shifter cables out there in terms of shifting performance and lack of maintenance?


----------



## hatebreed (Jun 25, 2014)

Shimano or whatever your LBS might have at the time...


----------



## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

As with everything else in life, it depends.

I can speak only towards Shimano road groups. SRAM, Campy, and anybody's MTB groups may be different. Even within the same brand, Shimano's newer under-the-bartape levers have different requirements from their older flying shift cable models.

IME, cable housing makes a bigger difference than the cable wires do. Shimano's SP-41 housing is what I use on older levers. 

The SP-52 housing makes all the difference with the newer ones. It'll work on anything, but it's probably overkill everywhere else, and the thicker 5mm diameter doesn't always fit in cable stops on older bikes deisgned with 4mm shift housing in mind, even with the step-down ferrules.

As for cable wires, Jagwire's black teflon-coated ones are very nice, and pretty cheap. Shimano's PTFE cables work just fine everywhere. I'm not completely sold on their newest polymer coated cables, mainly because the price difference is astounding.

If you prefer to buy kits, Shimano's CABGR9 set is SP-41 housing with stainless cables, CABGR6 is SP-41 housing with PTFE cables. I haven't yet found kits with SP-52 housing at my usual haunts.

EDIT: It should be noted SP-41 and SP-52 housing are pre-lubed with a silicone grease. Coated cables (whether Teflon/PTFE or polymer) are slick in their own right. So when using these newer cable and housing systems, install them "dry", meaning without additional oils or greases. IME this seems to keep them from attracting dirt and gunking things up as well.


----------



## bikerector (Oct 31, 2012)

I use jagwire because it's cheap to buy the full cable kit and it works. For road I don't really care but for CX I like something with the teflon coating because I think it resists corrosion a little better at housing ends.


----------



## tlg (May 11, 2011)

For lack of maintenance..

Road Elite Sealed Shift | Jagwire
The Elite Sealed Kit uses a continuous liner with seals to completely protect your system against dirt, mud and debris


----------



## JSWhaler (Nov 25, 2009)

I've become partial to Yokozuna reaction cables. The outer cable housing is pretty stiff, but the cables have no stretch which makes them nice to run. Exterior housing is only available in a smoke or white coloring.


----------



## Manning (Jul 8, 2010)

The DA 9000 cable sets are spectacularly good. I tried a set on one bike, then immediately put them on another.


----------



## ogre (Dec 16, 2005)

For shifting performance and lack of maintenance I recommend di2. Dirt and stretching are never a problem!


----------



## Lombard (May 8, 2014)

What I do know is that some cheaper cables aren't even stainless steel. Those will eventually corrode causing friction inside the housings. This becomes an even bigger problem with the newer STI shifters that have the housings routed underneath the bar tape - more bends and curves = more opportunities to get hung up and cause shifting problems.



brucew said:


> EDIT: It should be noted SP-41 and SP-52 housing are pre-lubed with a silicone grease. Coated cables (whether Teflon/PTFE or polymer) are slick in their own right. So when using these newer cable and housing systems, install them "dry", meaning without additional oils or greases. IME this seems to keep them from attracting dirt and gunking things up as well.


Hmmm. I've been doing it all wrong then? I install my PTFE cables with Rock n Roll cable lube. Haven't had a problem but maybe it's just extra "insurance" that's unnecessary?


----------



## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

Lombard said:


> Hmmm. I've been doing it all wrong then? I install my PTFE cables with Rock n Roll cable lube. Haven't had a problem but maybe it's just extra "insurance" that's unnecessary?


It's more of a housing thing than a cable thing. Which housing are you using?


----------



## Gomad (Aug 16, 2006)

I've been using the Yokozuna Reaction Cables like JSWhaler. I have no complaints, but I think I'll use regular Campagnolo in the future. The seem to perform about the same to me.


----------



## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

Nokon are the best IMO and are very flexible. The Yokozuna is too stiff for me.

Jagwire has a linked set similar to Nokon but I have not seen any reviews of it.


----------



## Lombard (May 8, 2014)

brucew said:


> It's more of a housing thing than a cable thing. Which housing are you using?


The housings that come with the Shimano PTFE cables. Haven't had any problems.


----------



## TJay74 (Sep 9, 2012)

DA 9000 is the way ot go if you can use them, the Jagwire kits are junk and that is after I bought one and used it. Shifted like crap, once I put the Shimano cables back on the shifting performance was stellar.


----------



## Diopena1 (Jul 21, 2011)

OP, as you can see you're going to get a myriad of options....
So, it is really down to personal preference.....
I run nokon housing, with Jagwire's Nokon lining kit, this allows me to use regular cables in the nokon housing. It's pricey, but to me well worth it, both braking, and shifting are smooth, and feel direct. On that note, I am also using Jagwire cables in the housing. I went a totally different route as you can see. Any cable housing will do the job. I chose Nokon because it provided me with a liner that covers the cable end to end. No dust+no corrosion+ jagwire's lube in the liner= precise shifting and braking all day long.


----------



## mannymerc (Nov 19, 2013)

I had best results with shimano dura ace cables on sram products or shimano products, campagnolo cables for campagnolo.

Just the other day I thought I try some jagwire for my ultegra 6800 equiped bike, they did work but it wasn't smooth like shimano, so it bother me, after I replace the cables with shimano, works great.


----------



## turbomatic73 (Jan 22, 2004)

Campy cables IME are the most durable and stretch resistant--the individual cable strands just seem more dense...especially the brake cables--they last forever.

For Shimano I like Dura Ace cables/housing best. Yes, you can get away with just about anything (e.g., generic/bulk stuff from the back of the shop), but the DA stuff tends to be the smoothest, most accurate and most resistant to long-term wear, especially if you're using 10/11 speed. For 8/9 speed, just use the cheap stuff.

I have also tried the Jagwire "Racer" cable sets. These I like as well. The brake housing on these sets I actually like better than DA because it is compressionless and really firms up the braking. The Jaqwire derailleur cable/housing however is not quite as smooth as DA, but still great.


----------



## mfdemicco (Nov 8, 2002)

One problem these open cables have is with the bottom bracket cable guide that gets flunked up with dirt and sticky sports drink; shifting then suffers and you need to keep this area clean.


----------



## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

turbomatic73 said:


> Campy cables IME are the most durable and stretch resistant--the individual cable strands just seem more dense...especially the brake cables--they last forever.


Cables don't 'stretch'...other things happen that get you to the same result, but the cables themselves don't get any longer through use.


----------



## giosblue (Aug 2, 2009)

Can you use DA 9000 cables with any Shimano STI set up?


----------



## TJay74 (Sep 9, 2012)

Yes you can.


----------

