Help! External Cable Box Problem

[Joe B]

Hi Everyone,

I'm having some difficulty installing new cables into an external cable box.

As per instructions I have trimmed each cable to exactly 200mm after first ensuring that each one is pulled tight before trimming. However I am unable to wrap both cables round the pulley, only the top, fully extended cable has enough length.

The thing that boggles me is that in the YouTube Rohloff video, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_ha9__3VLg) when the second cable is pulled tight just before being trimmed the cable that has already been cut is not pulled back through its outer at the same time. Surly as one cable it pulled way from the shifter the other should taken up by the shifter.

The instructions on the video seem clear enough, am I missing something incredibly obvious?

Any help is greatfully received.

Joe

[Danneaux]

Hi Joe!

This video should help: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3up1eZT3Pg

I think you went wrong starting at the 10:28mark.

If you cut *both* cables to 200mm in one stroke, one will be short. What you have to do is pull the *second* cable out after cutting the first so *each* cable is 200mm. In other words, you have to pull each cable to its bed-stop before cutting. See the 11:00 and 11:41 time markers in the video.

EDIT: Reading again, I see you have pulled each cable tight before cutting. I suspect the shifter may not have rotated fully in one direction or the other.  Not meaning to offend by pointing out the obvious, but by any chance, are the adjustable cable stops both turned in properly *and* fully bedded in the EX box? Helpful tips on cable insertion and pulley placement at the 15:00 mark. Also, check to make sure the hub is indexed properly to the lever or things can appear short as well. It is also possible the cables are reversed at the pulley.

Hope this helps.

Best,

Dan.

[JimK]

Maybe something got a bit unseated up at the shifter? How far off are you? If it is just like 4 mm or something... sometimes e.g. a cable housing ferrule will come unseated and that eats up some space. I've only replaced shifter cables once and that's the only trouble I can recall.

[Joe B]

Ah, that Co-Motion video clarifies thing a bit. Cheers Dan.

[Tigerbiten]

Being disabled, I find it's a lot easier after you have cut the cables to the right length to then take the shifter apart and disconnect the cables from it.
This gives you a lot more spare cable to play with when you put the external box back together.
Once the external box is correct, put the cables back in the shifter and rebuild.
It may take a little bit longer due to taking the shifter apart twice, but it is a lot less of a hassle getting the cables to sit correctly in the external box.