Cutting housings

Lou D'Amelio said:

Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc. Ultimately it works out but
I want a higher level of craftsmanship on my bike. Can I just cut
housings with a Dremel tool? If so, which types of heads are
recommended? If not, what's a good lifetime tool for cutting housings ?
Thanks........Lou D'Amelio

Well . . . if you believe Jobst Brandt ;-)

http://yarchive.net/bike/cable_housing_cut.html

Neil Brooks said:

Lou D'Amelio said:

Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc. Ultimately it works out but
I want a higher level of craftsmanship on my bike. Can I just cut
housings with a Dremel tool? If so, which types of heads are
recommended? If not, what's a good lifetime tool for cutting housings ?
Thanks........Lou D'Amelio

Well . . . if you believe Jobst Brandt ;-)

http://yarchive.net/bike/cable_housing_cut.html

And Sheldon Brown's take . . .

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cables.html#cutting

"Lou D'Amelio" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1117840824.705740.105540
@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc.

Try putting an old cable inside the housing before cutting. That keeps the
housing from collapsing when you cut. I use a recent model Shimano cable
cutter.

Mark Janeba said:

Neil Brooks said:

Neil Brooks said:

"Lou D'Amelio" <[email hidden]> wrote:

>Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
>does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
>filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc. Ultimately it works out but
>I want a higher level of craftsmanship on my bike. Can I just cut
>housings with a Dremel tool? If so, which types of heads are
>recommended? If not, what's a good lifetime tool for cutting housings ?
>Thanks........Lou D'Amelio

Well . . . if you believe Jobst Brandt ;-)

http://yarchive.net/bike/cable_housing_cut.html

And Sheldon Brown's take . . .

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cables.html#cutting

I'll second Sheldon's recommendation to clean up spiral housing with a
bench grinder (handy tool if you've got one). Just a few seconds and
the end is neat and square, but you will need to re-open the inner
plastic liner with a pointy tool (I use a heavy needle).

And I'll second Ken's recommendation about putting the scrap piece of
cable through the housing before cutting....

Ken said:

"Lou D'Amelio" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1117840824.705740.105540
@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc.

Try putting an old cable inside the housing before cutting. That keeps the
housing from collapsing when you cut. I use a recent model Shimano cable
cutter.

That's a great tip. Thanks!!

Lou D'Amelio said:

Quick and simple question - I have an older Park cable cutter which
does an OK job with cable but butchers housings. I wind up
filing/redilating the plastic sleeve, etc. Ultimately it works out but
I want a higher level of craftsmanship on my bike. Can I just cut
housings with a Dremel tool? If so, which types of heads are
recommended? If not, what's a good lifetime tool for cutting housings ?
Thanks........Lou D'Amelio

A Dremel tool with "cut-off" disc works well.
If you push an old or scrap piece of cable in the new housing that helps both methods.

Use a Dremel tool with a fiber cut-off wheel. The fiber wheels don't
break and trhrow the pieces into your face like the hard ones do.

The cut is clean- no need to file/grind/sand after cutting.

You will want to use a pointy thing like a screw or nail to open up
the lining again after making the cut.

When you cut cables using a drmel tool, tape it securely before
cutting, and then cut through the tape. That will keep the end from
fraying.

Wasatch5k said:

Quoted message said:

tool must be sharp-as new
off the walmart counter is ok-knee how ma!

Gene, your obsessed with Walmart. Are you employed by them?

They killed his father.

On Sat, 04 Jun 2005 15:58:01 GMT, "Leo Lichtman" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

"Steve Knight" wrote: I got this tiny countersink that worked great for
opening the end again (clip) lost it (G)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
A round tapered jeweler's file ought to the job equally well, and they're
easy to find.

true but the countersink would cut the plastic in a single twist nice and clean.
so the ends had a bevel.

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

On Fri, 3 Jun 2005 19:41:56 -0400, "Matt O'Toole" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Those thin Dremel cutting wheels work fine
but are slow. Personally I use a heavy duty diagonal cutter, file the housings
square, then use an end cap if it fits in the stop.

My housing cutter is a Felco C7, frequently labeled 'the best'. It
works fine but still ovalizes some housing making getting tight
ferrules a chore to get on. A reinforced cutoff wheel on a rotary
tool works fine but melts the outside housing, expecially brake
housing, and, again, betting a ferrule on is more difficult that it
should be. Everything is the quality of the housing you start with.

The best derailleur housing, can be cut with the C7 and just opened at
the end with a sharpened, pointy spoke and its ready to go.