suddenlycalm
Been Around the Block
So i have searched and searched for answers on how to properly do this cheap while still being safe. I think that i have finally figured it out.
The general consensus seems to be that you need a solder pot. Well i have done countless electronics projects and jobs and other odds and ends and never found a use for a solder pot other than this. So i never wanted to drop the money on one. What i then came up with is a cheap idea that works.
Let me go through my process.
First, get your length. Remove the end from the controls. I remove this end because generally its easier to measure and the fittings are fairly standard. Take out the slack in the cable and hold it till it seems like it fits better. Before marking hold cable to controls and turn the handlebars full left and full right to make sure that there is NO binding. I've cut them short and its no fun. Then i like to mark the housing with tape and an arrow as to which side of the tape to cut on. After marking remove from bike.
Remove all rubber boots, covers sleeves from the cable. This allows for a precise measurement.
At the control housing end, pull all slack from the cable and measure the exposed cable from the housing to the end of the fitting. Write this measurement down, trust me, just write it down.
Cut cable towards the fitting. I use a dremel, i don't like using pliers or snips, they just don't cut well enough. Pull the cable out of the housing and save. Now cut the housing at the mark you made before. I also used the dremel for this. I remove the cap from the housing that we just cut off with just a touch of heat from a torch. Then i enlarge this with an appropriately sized drill bit. Not the sharp end but the shank. Slip this back over the cleaned up end that we just cut and i hit the sleeve with a center punch to lock it in.
After your housing is back together, run the cable back through. Measure, mark and cut the cable matching what you wrote down earlier.
Add back and elbows, fittings, rubber sleeves, cover and the like.
This is where i'll add some pictures. Everyone said that you HAVE to buy a solder pot. They are expensive and i didn't want to buy one. I made on using a 1/2 inch copper pipe cap, metal work solder and torch. There is conversation about all kinds of different solder for cable ends. I used bernzomatic metal work. It's in an orange package. Also i picked up some Harvey's Soldering Paste from Home Depot. This is also essential.
I just stuck the pipe cap in the vise and stuck a torch underneath. When it heated up i added solder and this is what it looks like.
Before we go and get all crazy with the cheese whiz here. We need to get the barrels on the end. I could go into another long winded post about these but i won't. I used these because they were in stock in town, their downfall is they have a sleeve that extends up the cable. This sleeve doesn't like to fit in the lever recesses.
After you slide the fitting on, make sure to splay the wires out. This is absolutely necessary. The ends have no strength without this step.
This is what it should look like.
After we have the fitting installed its time to dip the end. Heat the solder pot up and leave the torch underneath. Use a pair of vise grips or pliers to hold the cable and fitting, this allows you to manipulate the fitting and acts as a heat sink so that the cable wont wick up any extra solder. Dip the fitting in the pool of molten solder and don't submerge more than 1/8 above the fitting, again to avoid wicking solder up the cable and making it stiff and prone to break. I hold it for around 5-10 seconds depending on the size of the barrel. Remove and let cool.
It should look like this when finished.
I like to test the bejesus out of the cables when I'm done. I cut a slot in some steel and slipped it over the fitting and stuck the other end in the vise, then pull like hell. This one didn't budge.
The general consensus seems to be that you need a solder pot. Well i have done countless electronics projects and jobs and other odds and ends and never found a use for a solder pot other than this. So i never wanted to drop the money on one. What i then came up with is a cheap idea that works.
Let me go through my process.
First, get your length. Remove the end from the controls. I remove this end because generally its easier to measure and the fittings are fairly standard. Take out the slack in the cable and hold it till it seems like it fits better. Before marking hold cable to controls and turn the handlebars full left and full right to make sure that there is NO binding. I've cut them short and its no fun. Then i like to mark the housing with tape and an arrow as to which side of the tape to cut on. After marking remove from bike.
Remove all rubber boots, covers sleeves from the cable. This allows for a precise measurement.
At the control housing end, pull all slack from the cable and measure the exposed cable from the housing to the end of the fitting. Write this measurement down, trust me, just write it down.
Cut cable towards the fitting. I use a dremel, i don't like using pliers or snips, they just don't cut well enough. Pull the cable out of the housing and save. Now cut the housing at the mark you made before. I also used the dremel for this. I remove the cap from the housing that we just cut off with just a touch of heat from a torch. Then i enlarge this with an appropriately sized drill bit. Not the sharp end but the shank. Slip this back over the cleaned up end that we just cut and i hit the sleeve with a center punch to lock it in.
After your housing is back together, run the cable back through. Measure, mark and cut the cable matching what you wrote down earlier.
Add back and elbows, fittings, rubber sleeves, cover and the like.
This is where i'll add some pictures. Everyone said that you HAVE to buy a solder pot. They are expensive and i didn't want to buy one. I made on using a 1/2 inch copper pipe cap, metal work solder and torch. There is conversation about all kinds of different solder for cable ends. I used bernzomatic metal work. It's in an orange package. Also i picked up some Harvey's Soldering Paste from Home Depot. This is also essential.
I just stuck the pipe cap in the vise and stuck a torch underneath. When it heated up i added solder and this is what it looks like.
Before we go and get all crazy with the cheese whiz here. We need to get the barrels on the end. I could go into another long winded post about these but i won't. I used these because they were in stock in town, their downfall is they have a sleeve that extends up the cable. This sleeve doesn't like to fit in the lever recesses.
After you slide the fitting on, make sure to splay the wires out. This is absolutely necessary. The ends have no strength without this step.
This is what it should look like.
After we have the fitting installed its time to dip the end. Heat the solder pot up and leave the torch underneath. Use a pair of vise grips or pliers to hold the cable and fitting, this allows you to manipulate the fitting and acts as a heat sink so that the cable wont wick up any extra solder. Dip the fitting in the pool of molten solder and don't submerge more than 1/8 above the fitting, again to avoid wicking solder up the cable and making it stiff and prone to break. I hold it for around 5-10 seconds depending on the size of the barrel. Remove and let cool.
It should look like this when finished.
I like to test the bejesus out of the cables when I'm done. I cut a slot in some steel and slipped it over the fitting and stuck the other end in the vise, then pull like hell. This one didn't budge.
