Clarkes Clim8 high end gear cables - update.

Some while ago, I posted about a set of these cables I'd bought, and how upon installation, the
performance was _fantastic_. Gear changes were the smoothest and sharpest I'd experienced. I also
said, that I'd report back how they faired after some dirt, use, and abuse.

I reported back that after a while (2 or 3 weeks), whenever I used them in wet conditions, they
would after a day or less, stop performing, and I'd have to put up with the dreaded double click
then one click back to change gears wither the rear mech, and sometimes it would stick between, and
skip/crunch alarmingly. To solve this, all I had to do (!) was release cable tension, slide out the
2 rear most sections of outer, wipe the inners down with a rag, light lube, and reassemble.

I tried to contact Clarkes (a well know bike cable manufacturer) via there web feedback form, but it
was permanently 'broken'. I called a number on their site, and spoke to a guy in their automotive
department. He kindly gave me a direct E-mail for one of the cycle dept. guys, who I subsequently
(and politely) E-mailed with details of my problems, and a request for advice. I heard nothing.

The cables have not deteriorated at all since then (several months ago), but I still have this same
problem every day or few days.

A friend of mine went into the LBS I got them from the other week, and, forgetting what I told him
of my experiences, asked about them. The LBS guy said he'd sell them him half price, he took and
fitted them the same night. His jammed up solid first ride. He couldn't even wind the gears up with
more than reasonable thumb pressure. he took the outers off, did as I did, and they worked again
very, very well, for a short while, then back to square one.

Well, I just thought I'd post here that these cables _FUCKING SUCK_! And also, that I'm thoroughly
disappointed with the companies lack of after sales care - they (Clarks), have been supplying the
industry, both retail and OEM, for a long, long time. Seems they've forgotten some important things
along the way.

Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their 'technical' claims are laughable in
the face of my friends and my own experiences.

Rant over.

Shaun aRe

 

Shaun Rimmer wrote:

> Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their 'technical' claims are laughable
> in the face of my friends and my own experiences.

I just fitted Avid Flak Jackets brake cabling that came with my new Arch Rivals. They jammed up
pretty good on the snowy ride last weekend, to the point that I had to keep pushing the brake levers
out. I'm going to whack some grease on the cables to see if that improves matters, otherwise I'll
just go back to normal cables.

--
a.m-b FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/ambfaq.htm

b.bmx FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/bmx_faq.htm

 

bomba <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Shaun Rimmer wrote:
>
> > Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their
'technical'
> > claims are laughable in the face of my friends and my own experiences.
>
> I just fitted Avid Flak Jackets brake cabling that came with my new Arch Rivals. They jammed up
> pretty good on the snowy ride last weekend, to the point that I had to keep pushing the brake
> levers out. I'm going to whack some grease on the cables to see if that improves matters,
> otherwise I'll just go back to normal cables.

Yeah - been quite a few negatives here about those cables - good luck!

These one I've got are stainless braiding over the usual linear stranded stainless, with a low
friction tube inside, inners are teflon summatorother coated, 'sealesd' ends etc. I couldn't get any
feedback on them from anyone who'd used them, so I bit the bullet, figured they couldn't be worse
than ShitManNo! cables, heh...'high end' my skinny hairy arse.

Might just get some cheep, wide guage outers and try the coted inners in those, see how I go.

Shaun aRe

 

Shaun Rimmer wrote:
>
> These one I've got are stainless braiding over the usual linear stranded stainless, with a low
> friction tube inside, inners are teflon summatorother coated, 'sealesd' ends etc. I couldn't get
> any feedback on them from anyone who'd used them, so I bit the bullet, figured they couldn't be
> worse than ShitManNo! cables, heh...'high end' my skinny hairy arse.
>
> Might just get some cheep, wide guage outers and try the coted inners in those, see how I go.
>

I've been using ride on goretex gear cables for about a year and as far as I can tell are still
functioning as new with no maintence which is more than can be said for the rest of the drivetrain.

They are expensive but may be worth it if you have trouble with standard cables.

--
D_D

 

"Shaun Rimmer" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
|
|
<snip>
| Well, I just thought I'd post here that these cables _FUCKING SUCK_! And also, that I'm thoroughly
| disappointed with the companies lack of after sales care - they (Clarks), have been supplying the
| industry, both retail and OEM, for a long, long time. Seems they've forgotten some important
| things along the way.
|
| Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their
'technical'
| claims are laughable in the face of my friends and my own experiences.
|
| Rant over.
|
| Shaun aRe

I tried the clarkes gear cable too. Only because it came free with a bike magazine and I was
desperate. It jammed and gave same results as you have noted. Since it was relatively free I had not
bothered to complain.

Simon..........air shifters anyone?

 

> I just fitted Avid Flak Jackets brake cabling that came with my new Arch Rivals. They jammed up
> pretty good on the snowy ride last weekend, to the point that I had to keep pushing the brake
> levers out. I'm going to whack some grease on the cables to see if that improves matters,
> otherwise I'll just go back to normal cables.

My Flak Jacket cables have never felt as smooth as they should...I am also in the "grease them and
wait" phase, to be followed by the "bitch directly to Avid" portion of our show.

Hopefully Avid will have better care than Clarke apparently does...

Chris

 

"Shaun Rimmer" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
>
> Some while ago, I posted about a set of these cables I'd bought, and how upon installation, the
> performance was _fantastic_. Gear changes were the smoothest and sharpest I'd experienced. I also
> said, that I'd report back how they faired after some dirt, use, and abuse.
>
> I reported back that after a while (2 or 3 weeks), whenever I used them in wet conditions, they
> would after a day or less, stop performing, and I'd have to put up with the dreaded double click
> then one click back to change gears wither the rear mech, and sometimes it would stick between,
> and skip/crunch alarmingly. To solve this, all I had to do (!) was release
cable
> tension, slide out the 2 rear most sections of outer, wipe the inners down with a rag, light lube,
> and reassemble.
>
> I tried to contact Clarkes (a well know bike cable manufacturer) via there web feedback form, but
> it was permanently 'broken'. I called a number on their site, and spoke to a guy in their
> automotive department. He kindly gave me a direct E-mail for one of the cycle dept. guys, who I
subsequently
> (and politely) E-mailed with details of my problems, and a request for advice. I heard nothing.
>
> The cables have not deteriorated at all since then (several months ago),
but
> I still have this same problem every day or few days.
>
> A friend of mine went into the LBS I got them from the other week, and, forgetting what I told him
> of my experiences, asked about them. The LBS
guy
> said he'd sell them him half price, he took and fitted them the same
night.
> His jammed up solid first ride. He couldn't even wind the gears up with
more
> than reasonable thumb pressure. he took the outers off, did as I did, and they worked again very,
> very well, for a short while, then back to square one.
>
> Well, I just thought I'd post here that these cables _FUCKING SUCK_! And also, that I'm thoroughly
> disappointed with the companies lack of after sales care - they (Clarks), have been supplying the
> industry, both retail and OEM, for a long, long time. Seems they've forgotten some important
> things along the way.
>
> Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their
'technical'
> claims are laughable in the face of my friends and my own experiences.
>
> Rant over.
>
> Shaun aRe

If you want a great cable system, go Gore. I don't care about some of the problems I see on this
group and elsewhere. If you make the cables correctly, sharp cuts... i.e. cable cutters, a sealed
connection at exposed cable areas, you will have a nice set-up.

The Gore system, when made correctly, is superior to all systems. Screw the length of the cable
housing as was original. Make your own lengths as required by your intelligence. Figure out where
the original builder was fucked up. Correct any length problems and proceed accordingly. Be careful
and make shit right K?

That is the key to Gore. If you are an idiot, or completely physically uninclined? Don't even
bother. Don't buy them and have a shop install them. Gore is something that needs to be personnel to
last like you want it to.

If those of you out there, that indeed had a complete Gore system installed by a mechanic, and had
it work great for years..... more power to ya.

If you need any info on a particular, finite point about installing the system... afterall, you
want it right in the finite, then let me know. I can lead you perfect, but only after you stop
in patience.

darsh

>
>
>
>
>
>
>

 

Darsh wrote:

> If you want a great cable system, go Gore. I don't care about some of the problems I see on this
> group and elsewhere. If you make the cables correctly, sharp cuts... i.e. cable cutters, a sealed
> connection at exposed cable areas, you will have a nice set-up.

What sort of conditions do you normally ride in Darsh?

--
a.m-b FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/ambfaq.htm

b.bmx FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/bmx_faq.htm

 

Simon <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Shaun Rimmer" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> |
> |
> <snip>
> | Well, I just thought I'd post here that these cables _FUCKING SUCK_! And also, that I'm
> | thoroughly disappointed with the companies lack of after sales care - they (Clarks), have been
> | supplying the industry, both
retail
> | and OEM, for a long, long time. Seems they've forgotten some important things along the way.
> |
> | Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their
> 'technical'
> | claims are laughable in the face of my friends and my own experiences.
> |
> | Rant over.
> |
> | Shaun aRe
>
> I tried the clarkes gear cable too.

Was it the Clim8 type? Plastic coated grey/silver stel braided outer, aluminium ferules (with Clim8
on them), pinkish coated inners?

> Only because it came free with a bike magazine and I was desperate. It jammed and gave same
> results as you have noted. Since it was relatively free I had not bothered to complain.
>
> Simon..........air shifters anyone?

Hydro - I wanna see viable hydro shifters at a reasonable price on the market. Bombard Hope with
petitions anyone???

',;~}

Shaun aRe

 

Darsh <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> "Shaun Rimmer" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> >
> > Some while ago, I posted about a set of these cables I'd bought, and how upon installation, the
> > performance was _fantastic_. Gear changes were
the
> > smoothest and sharpest I'd experienced. I also said, that I'd report
back
> > how they faired after some dirt, use, and abuse.
> >
> > I reported back that after a while (2 or 3 weeks), whenever I used them
in
> > wet conditions, they would after a day or less, stop performing, and I'd have to put up with the
> > dreaded double click then one click back to
change
> > gears wither the rear mech, and sometimes it would stick between, and skip/crunch alarmingly. To
> > solve this, all I had to do (!) was release
> cable
> > tension, slide out the 2 rear most sections of outer, wipe the inners
down
> > with a rag, light lube, and reassemble.
> >
> > I tried to contact Clarkes (a well know bike cable manufacturer) via
there
> > web feedback form, but it was permanently 'broken'. I called a number on their site, and spoke
> > to a guy in their automotive department. He kindly gave me a direct E-mail for one of the cycle
> > dept. guys, who I
> subsequently
> > (and politely) E-mailed with details of my problems, and a request for advice. I heard nothing.
> >
> > The cables have not deteriorated at all since then (several months ago),
> but
> > I still have this same problem every day or few days.
> >
> > A friend of mine went into the LBS I got them from the other week, and, forgetting what I told
> > him of my experiences, asked about them. The LBS
> guy
> > said he'd sell them him half price, he took and fitted them the same
> night.
> > His jammed up solid first ride. He couldn't even wind the gears up with
> more
> > than reasonable thumb pressure. he took the outers off, did as I did,
and
> > they worked again very, very well, for a short while, then back to
square
> > one.
> >
> > Well, I just thought I'd post here that these cables _FUCKING SUCK_! And also, that I'm
> > thoroughly disappointed with the companies lack of after sales care - they (Clarks), have been
> > supplying the industry, both
retail
> > and OEM, for a long, long time. Seems they've forgotten some important things along the way.
> >
> > Take a look at their web-site and look at the Clim8 page - their
> 'technical'
> > claims are laughable in the face of my friends and my own experiences.
> >
> > Rant over.
> >
> > Shaun aRe
>
> If you want a great cable system, go Gore. I don't care about some of the problems I see on this
> group and elsewhere. If you make the cables correctly, sharp cuts... i.e. cable cutters, a sealed
> connection at
exposed
> cable areas, you will have a nice set-up.
>
> The Gore system, when made correctly, is superior to all systems. Screw
the
> length of the cable housing as was original. Make your own lengths as required by your
> intelligence. Figure out where the original builder was fucked up. Correct any length problems and
> proceed accordingly. Be
careful
> and make shit right K?
>
> That is the key to Gore. If you are an idiot, or completely physically uninclined? Don't even
> bother. Don't buy them and have a shop install them. Gore is something that needs to be personnel
> to last like you want
it
> to.
>
> If those of you out there, that indeed had a complete Gore system
installed
> by a mechanic, and had it work great for years..... more power to ya.
>
> If you need any info on a particular, finite point about installing the system... afterall, you
> want it right in the finite, then let me know. I can lead you perfect, but only after you stop in
> patience.
>
> darsh

Thanks for the recommendation and tips Darsh - I measure, cut and fit all my own cables to optimum
length and positioning - I did build the bike frame up. I take care with things like this (usually!
- Brain-fart moments excluded....).

The conditions I tend to ride in, are mostly year round wetness (yes - even the majority of high
summer is wet...). Even the roads get wet and gritty, with mud too - it is demanding on drive train
componentry generally, but the rear mech cable suffers the most.

Shaun aRe

 

D_D <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Shaun Rimmer wrote:
> >
> > These one I've got are stainless braiding over the usual linear stranded stainless, with a low
> > friction tube inside, inners are teflon summatorother coated, 'sealesd' ends etc. I couldn't get
> > any feedback on them from anyone who'd used them, so I bit the bullet, figured they couldn't be
> > worse than ShitManNo! cables, heh...'high end' my skinny
hairy
> > arse.
> >
> > Might just get some cheep, wide guage outers and try the coted inners in those, see how I go.
> >
>
> I've been using ride on goretex gear cables for about a year and as far as
I
> can tell are still functioning as new with no maintence which is more than can be said for the
> rest of the drivetrain.
>
> They are expensive but may be worth it if you have trouble with standard cables.
>
> --
> D_D

Cheers D_D - I will eventually get round to fitting new cables.

Shaun aRe

 

"bomba" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Darsh wrote:
>
> > If you want a great cable system, go Gore. I don't care about some of
the
> > problems I see on this group and elsewhere. If you make the cables correctly, sharp cuts... i.e.
> > cable cutters, a sealed connection at
exposed
> > cable areas, you will have a nice set-up.
>
> What sort of conditions do you normally ride in Darsh?

I ride at over 8000'. My main ride has about 6 large water crossings. Sometimes the trail has snow
on or near it year round.

Mud. Lots of mud. Ride in the rain, the sun, the snow. You never know up here. Sometimes dry and
dusty a bit down valley.

It is not uncommon for my bike, as it was more than once last year, to be completely submerged in
water while trying to forge large water crossings, like rivers.

darsh

>
> --
> a.m-b FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/ambfaq.htm
>
> a.bmx FAQ: http://www.t-online.de/~jharris/bmx_faq.htm