What are the best cables?

Glen75 said:

I'm currently building a bike with Di2, so i only need brake cables. What are the best cables avail atm? I see brands like Gore ride on, Jagwire, Nokon etc. Are they any better than std shimano cables?

Jagwire are great cables and housing. No need to spend a lot of $ for quality brake cables and housing.

Look for two features when buying cables:

a) Die-extruded; a die extruded cable has been pulled through a die which cuts the cable to a (slick) round, circular profile. Otherwise, it has a rough profile almost like an old rope. At any rate, die-extruded cables yield much better shift performance than standard ones.

b) "Stainless"; look for cables marked as "Stainless". They are made of a stainless-steel alloy and significantly cut down on not only rust, but oxidation in general. For example, standard cables have a tendency to rust (FE2O3, commonly orange in color), but they also leave a white and "chalk" residue. Any form of oxidation will prevent the cables from sliding smoothly, and thus, inhibit shifting performance.

bama
baphomet cycles

baphometcycles said:

Look for two features when buying cables:

a) Die-extruded; a die extruded cable has been pulled through a die which cuts the cable to a (slick) round, circular profile. Otherwise, it has a rough profile almost like an old rope. At any rate, die-extruded cables yield much better shift performance than standard ones.

b) "Stainless"; look for cables marked as "Stainless". They are made of a stainless-steel alloy and significantly cut down on not only rust, but oxidation in general. For example, standard cables have a tendency to rust (FE2O3, commonly orange in color), but they also leave a white and "chalk" residue. Any form of oxidation will prevent the cables from sliding smoothly, and thus, inhibit shifting performance.

bama
baphomet cycles

Thank you, so what would you recomend out of the brands listed above?

Doesn't Di2 come with brake cables???
Brake cables don't need to provide accuracy of movement they just need to transmit force from the levers to the calipers. As long as the cables don't break, the choice is not critical. Most of the brands are just as long lasting as the others.

ANY brand whose end matches the fitting in the lever is fine.
There is one thing you know. Shimano cables will definitely fit.
Otherwise Jagwire or Clarks.

Why are we obsessing about brake cables?

I've been wondering that as well. I'm still using the original Shimano brake cables at 25K+ miles, and they don't show any fraying or signs of fatigue. They are SS, well-finished and have performed well without ever being lubed, so I don't see the need to look any further.

OTOH, if someone is building a high-end exotic and wants some "exclusive" cables to go with Di2, nothing wrong with that. People pay a lot for bling all the time, so why stop when it comes to the little bits on the bike. Hey, not my style, but I enjoy looking at fancy bikes as much as anyone 🙂

I guess Go Rider Cables are good. please try out and give me your feed back.

I always thought cables were cables and never bothered to use anything other than the standard cables.

Last year though, I put Yokozuna cables on my training bike. The difference is unbelievable. Ymmv, but I was amazed. Absolutely no complaints outside of the weight (which is similar to standard cables anyway, maybe a bit heavier). They are the cat's meow. Only issue is that you cannot run them in every setup. The housing is stiff enough to be unable to make the bends in some places on certain frames. Barely managed mine. Nothing would prevent you in that case to just use standard housing on that one location.

I then put Alligator iLinks on the other bike. Lighter than standard cables. Obviously also compression-less like Nokon and Yokozuna to a degree. I ran their standard cables, though when I need new cables I plan to try Power Cordz through the iLink housing. Even less weight. Weight really isnt the issue though. You want performance first from cables. So far I have to say the standard Alligator iLinks is superior to standard cables, so I'm happy. Alligator iLinks do not have link corrosion or creaking issues as reported with Nokon by some riders over my full season experience (and counting) with them.

I can honestly recommend both, very highly, and say that I recognize a performance increase in the sharpness of the shifting in both cases. Nothing that will win a race for you - it just feels damn good. Better. I did not find the cost prohibitive in this case either. Both have lasted longer than a season, with the iLinks at least only needing a $9 pair of internals when up for replacement.

Best cables? Cant say on that. That's really subjective. Many (most?) will be perfectly satisfied with standard cables. All I can say is I'm a bit of a convert now towards cable upgrades. At around $60 for Yokuzuna and $80 for iLinks, its not a pricy upgrade and I loved both.