Bicycle Mechanics - Correct name for cable end caps?

I went into my LBS asking for a bunch of ferrules and "cable end caps," because I wasn't sure what the latter are called. The first employee I asked said "Oh yeah, those things, I don't know what those are called." He then turned to another employee who said "We call them mouse condoms."

We all had a good laugh as employee #1 looked up the price of "mouse condoms" in the computer, with no success. Ultimately, they gave up, charged me five cents each, and sent me home still without any idea of what these things are called.

Is there a specific name for these? Or should I just stick with "cable end caps" or "mouse condoms" when making future purchases?

If you're referring to the small crimp-on pieces that keep the tip of the inner wires from fraying, most people just call them crimps or cable crimps.

jagwire, who make the things, call them "cable tips". I call them aglets. Everyone else seems to call them "those things you crimp on the end of the cable."

end caps.

We have a consensus!

I just call them crimps. most places will give them to you for free if you just need enough for one bike.

charged me five cents each :eek:

Quick! Find another LBS! That's a rip-off! OMG!!!!! ;)

I'm surprised I'm the first to mention this...but I've never been charged for ferrules or mouse condoms. Usually, I'm buying cables or housings but occassionally I've walked in and asked for them and they just dump a dozen in my hand (sometimes into a small baggie if they're feeling generous) no charge.

:eek:

Quick! Find another LBS! That's a rip-off! OMG!!!!! ;)

I'm surprised I'm the first to mention this...but I've never been charged for ferrules or mouse condoms. Usually, I'm buying cables or housings but occassionally I've walked in and asked for them and they just dump a dozen in my hand (sometimes into a small baggie if they're feeling generous) no charge.

+1 You should talk to the mechanic, not a sales guy if you want the 'straight poop' on something like this. Personally, I don't call them anything--I just put them on and forget about them!

:eek:

Quick! Find another LBS! That's a rip-off! OMG!!!!! ;)

I'm surprised I'm the first to mention this...but I've never been charged for ferrules or mouse condoms. Usually, I'm buying cables or housings but occassionally I've walked in and asked for them and they just dump a dozen in my hand (sometimes into a small baggie if they're feeling generous) no charge.

What a cheap skate! It's 20 cents, how can that be a rip off? How much employee time did the whole process take?

On the other hand I've never charged for them but that's because I figure the time it takes to ring up such a small sale costs more than the product.

Aglets

Aglets are the shoestring ends. I guess its could be applied in this instance, but not really the same thing. The manufacturers call them cable tips, so thats the route I'm going.

What a cheap skate! It's 20 cents, how can that be a rip off? How much employee time did the whole process take?

On the other hand I've never charged for them but that's because I figure the time it takes to ring up such a small sale costs more than the product.

dang, I bought a 500 pieces for $15

I call em crimps, everyone knows what i'm talking about, some ppl "correct" me by saying they're called tips or "ends". In the end, it's nothing to lose sleep over, HOWEVER....

Most shops give ya those things for free. That's pretty standard, especially if they've seen you before, and you're not annoying. (Annoying ppl can have em for $1/each.) Those guys arguably shouldn't have charged you, but they only charged 20cents! I can see how some of y'all might be surprised, but this is NOT a reason to ditch a shop. Likely, these were some rookie dudes who, entrusted with the shop, didn't want to get ish from the owner for giving stuff out for free. For all they knew, the OP was friends with the boss, and they'd have gotten a lecture about "nothing's free". The $.05 charge was probably some CYA in action.

I ditched the bike shop i used to work at when the owner reduced our employee discount to levels that couldn't compete with online shopping. I ditched all the other bike shops long before that, because 99% of bike shops will sell you a cassette that sells for $65 all day online for $99. Even when you go in, explain that you'd like to support the local merchant/local economy, and ask them to match the price b/c, hey, they can get $15 in profit for the thing, or they can get zero, but they aren't going to get $50 from me just to order the thing. $15 seems like a good deal for the 30 seconds it takes to add a cassette to the next qbp order, but NO, these guys cling to the msrp, which is why they're suffering so. Even if you *do* bite the bullet and pay too much for your cassette, you'd better hope the thing's in stock. Otherwise, you'll need to wait 2 weeks for a thing that'd come in the post in 5 days, had you ordered it online for $35 less.

I know THAT's gonna get some ppl angry, but it really is simple math.

-rob

AEO said "dang, I bought a 500 pieces for $15 "

That is 3 cents each. Add a markup of 66% and you get 5 cents.
Sounds like davizdum paid a fair price.

I just bought a shimano chain pin for $5.00
Now that's a rip-off.

Aglets are the shoestring ends. I guess its could be applied in this instance, but not really the same thing. The manufacturers call them cable tips, so thats the route I'm going.

Wow...sounds like your Aspergers is acting up.

I ditched the bike shop i used to work at when the owner reduced our employee discount to levels that couldn't compete with online shopping. I ditched all the other bike shops long before that, because 99% of bike shops will sell you a cassette that sells for $65 all day online for $99. Even when you go in, explain that you'd like to support the local merchant/local economy, and ask them to match the price b/c, hey, they can get $15 in profit for the thing, or they can get zero, but they aren't going to get $50 from me just to order the thing. $15 seems like a good deal for the 30 seconds it takes to add a cassette to the next qbp order, but NO, these guys cling to the msrp, which is why they're suffering so. Even if you *do* bite the bullet and pay too much for your cassette, you'd better hope the thing's in stock. Otherwise, you'll need to wait 2 weeks for a thing that'd come in the post in 5 days, had you ordered it online for $35 less.

I know THAT's gonna get some ppl angry, but it really is simple math.

-rob

There's more to it than simple math.

Simple math is what sent all our jobs offshore. Think about it.

Cable ends. Or Cable end crimp thingies.

QBP lists them under the heading Cable End Crimp

http://harriscyclery.net/quality-bicycle-products-special-order-catalog-qc49/cable-end-crimps-t450.htm

Quick! Find another LBS! That's a rip-off! OMG!!!!! ;)


What a cheap skate! It's 20 cents, how can that be a rip off? How much employee time did the whole process take?


You ARE a Grouch aren't you! The winky emoticon is an indication that I was feigning shock and indignation at the prospect of being charged for these items.

But yes...I am a cheap skate...if they want to give them to me, I'm not going to insist on paying for them...but I will come back in the future to buy other parts from them.

I ditched the bike shop i used to work at when the owner reduced our employee discount to levels that couldn't compete with online shopping.

I ditched all the other bike shops long before that, because 99% of bike shops will sell you a cassette that sells for $65 all day online for $99. Even when you go in, explain that you'd like to support the local merchant/local economy, and ask them to match the price b/c, hey, they can get $15 in profit for the thing, or they can get zero, but they aren't going to get $50 from me just to order the thing. $15 seems like a good deal for the 30 seconds it takes to add a cassette to the next qbp order, but NO, these guys cling to the msrp, which is why they're suffering so. Even if you *do* bite the bullet and pay too much for your cassette, you'd better hope the thing's in stock. Otherwise, you'll need to wait 2 weeks for a thing that'd come in the post in 5 days, had you ordered it online for $35 less.

I know THAT's gonna get some ppl angry, but it really is simple math.

-rob

You apparently have never run a business. Although I cannot see the rationale behind not giving employees lower prices than online (we actually paid wholesale + 10%) there are plenty of reasons a shop cannot afford to match online prices. The online businesses can order hundreds of cassettes on any one size at a time at a significant discount, and can hire mostly unskilled employees (possibly offshore) to take orders from mostly knowledgeable cyclists or an automated system processes web orders and produces pick lists for a warehouse, again staffed with less skilled employees. The LBS can order a few of each cassette size and has to employ at least somewhat skilled employees, manually order items, charge sales tax, etc, etc. So you left out some of the math!

I would say that I do find it hard to believe that a shop would, as you seem to imply, charge $99 for a cassette that they purchased for $50. That would be an unusually high markup at that price point, in my experience.

And we always called them cable end caps. Any of the common terms above should work with a fairly knowledgeable employee. I'm not sure I believe that anyone would actually look up "mouse condoms" in a catalog!

Simple math is what sent all our jobs offshore. Think about it.

Simple math is to go to the chains stores (Performance, REI, etc) where the prices are reasonable and the people are friendly.

You ARE a Grouch aren't you!

Yup. And a non-repentant grouch at that.

i also feel the pain of not buying local though very much wanting to. in the town we used to live in i wanted to buy a frame that was available online for about $600. That frame was a standard QBP purchase, *and* i was willing to wait for an LBS to order it for me (because i really did want to support local). The online retailer was a bigger operation, but still small compared to places like REI, Jenson, etc.

The first LBS i went to simply never replied for my inquiry for a price. I actually asked them twice over a one week period. They lost the sale for, apparently, not wanting the sale at all.

The second LBS' sales guy looked up the price on their computer (the QPB site), called QBP up to verify it (i was standing there), and then offered me the frame for $650. I would have bought it, just because it was local. However, the owner came by and looked over the transaction in progress and then changed their offer to $900. I explained to him exactly what was happening, and asked if he could help me help him buy local. He wouldn't budge. Never mind that the QBP price was already probably $450 or less, so he was giving me his standard 100% markup. I politely declined and somewhat baffled, took my business online.

I think in this case it wasn't that i don't understand business inasmuch as that particular owner didn't understand business. I didn't want a freebie. I just didn't want to be ripped off. So if being patriotic means having a sore ass, i think i'll pass. Of course, i don't think that protecting our jobs and lives should mean this at all. We were a better country, i think, when we weren't so fat and lazy and self-righteously entitled.

You apparently have never run a business. Although I cannot see the rationale behind not giving employees lower prices than online (we actually paid wholesale + 10%) there are plenty of reasons a shop cannot afford to match online prices.

Because a shop can't match online prices, they need to do the little things that will keep customers coming back and spreading good word--like giving up a few cable crimps to a customer free of charge.
I'd love to see the "Shop Rates" board hanging on the wall of this particular LBS.

Basic Tune-up-$50
Derailleur Adjustment-$15
Valve Caps-$0.27
Topping off tire with air-$1.25
Nuggets of Mechanical Advice-$0.12/word
Directions to Local Trailhead-$5.00
Motivation to find a new LBS-Free with purchase of valve cap

When I was volunteering at a community bike shop, there was this one person from Australia who asked me where the condoms are. At first I was really puzzled as to why someone would ask for condoms at a bike shop, but then he pointed to the cable end caps and then I knew what he was talking about. Now I call them condoms too, mostly to see how people react when I say it.

My first concern is what I get for my money......as the Godfather says "It's business, it's not personal". I can get EVERY repair item for my flips, on line, for less money than driving 8 blocks to the LBS; INCLUDING SHIPPING. If the LBS wants my business, they must offer me a better value.

If "doing little things to keep them coming back" means having the BEST price, I'll be back.

I'd love to see the "Shop Rates" board hanging on the wall of this particular LBS.

Basic Tune-up-$50
Derailleur Adjustment-$15
Valve Caps-$0.27
Topping off tire with air-$1.25
Nuggets of Mechanical Advice-$0.12/word
Directions to Local Trailhead-$5.00
Motivation to find a new LBS-Free with purchase of valve cap

I'm not sure what their prices are for most basic services, because I buy online and do almost all of the work myself. I did have them replace a headset and cut and install a fork. I brought them all of the parts. They charged me $25 in labor. It seemed like a fair price because a shop nearby quoted me $50 for the same service.

You ARE a Grouch aren't you! The winky emoticon is an indication that I was feigning shock and indignation at the prospect of being charged for these items.

But yes...I am a cheap skate...if they want to give them to me, I'm not going to insist on paying for them...but I will come back in the future to buy other parts from them.

Lance Armstrong said all men over 30 should not use emoticons. I'll do what Lance says.;)

When I was volunteering at a community bike shop, there was this one person from Australia who asked me where the condoms are. At first I was really puzzled as to why someone would ask for condoms at a bike shop, but then he pointed to the cable end caps and then I knew what he was talking about. Now I call them condoms too, mostly to see how people react when I say it.

Hmmm. I seldom use them on personal bikes because I prefer to solder the cable ends. Now I'm wondering if that might have something to do with the bike population explosion at my house.

:roflmao:
Hmmm. I seldom use them on personal bikes because I prefer to solder the cable ends. Now I'm wondering if that might have something to do with the bike population explosion at my house.


:lol:

somebody said ferrules already?

You apparently have never run a business. Although I cannot see the rationale behind not giving employees lower prices than online (we actually paid wholesale + 10%) there are plenty of reasons a shop cannot afford to match online prices. The online businesses can order hundreds of cassettes on any one size at a time at a significant discount, and can hire mostly unskilled employees (possibly offshore) to take orders from mostly knowledgeable cyclists or an automated system processes web orders and produces pick lists for a warehouse, again staffed with less skilled employees. The LBS can order a few of each cassette size and has to employ at least somewhat skilled employees, manually order items, charge sales tax, etc, etc. So you left out some of the math!

I would say that I do find it hard to believe that a shop would, as you seem to imply, charge $99 for a cassette that they purchased for $50. That would be an unusually high markup at that price point, in my experience. !

I understand the disadvantages the local shop has in terms of not being able to buy in mass quantity. I also understand the advantages that the local shop has in terms of being able to charge for service and repair. The simple math part, which you're trying to complicate, is this:

If I buy the cassette online for $65, i save $35, the online guy makes $? in markup, and the lbs guy loses.

If i buy it at $99 at the bike shop, i'm out an extra $34 PLUS whatever time i have to spend waiting for it, over what the online retailer takes.

If I buy it at $65 at the bike shop, even $70, the bike shop guy wins $15+that he's *otherwise not going to get*. I don't mind waiting the extra time, b/c i can gloat about being a responsible consumer. The online guy doesn't care, because he deals in volume.

Now, I understand that bike shops, like most capitalist ventures, exist primarily thru parting fools and their money. I don't blame the lbs guy for trying to get his 100% markup, and putting a $99 sticker on that one cassette he has in his meager little shop. That's ambition, and it should be applauded. But, when someone who *knows* about the actual competition come sin and says "hi, you can make $15 off me, but i won't give you $49 to click a mouse one extra time on your next qbp order", the smart businessperson goes for that. It's $15 more than zero, and every penny counts these days, no?

-rob

my vote is for mouse condoms.

somebody said ferrules already?

ferrules are for the end of the housing not the end of the cable.

Aglet is indeed the shoe lace end, as we all know from Phineas;
http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRc6LM89eg922msIQRJkntao_0nvUjA-xJx-haiaxSA5QOSSW8&t=1&usg=__9mJFjmNaqg_DSbUK2H-1ejJi4DU=

I understand the disadvantages the local shop has in terms of not being able to buy in mass quantity. I also understand the advantages that the local shop has in terms of being able to charge for service and repair. The simple math part, which you're trying to complicate, is this:

If I buy the cassette online for $65, i save $35, the online guy makes $? in markup, and the lbs guy loses.

If i buy it at $99 at the bike shop, i'm out an extra $34 PLUS whatever time i have to spend waiting for it, over what the online retailer takes.

If I buy it at $65 at the bike shop, even $70, the bike shop guy wins $15+that he's *otherwise not going to get*. I don't mind waiting the extra time, b/c i can gloat about being a responsible consumer. The online guy doesn't care, because he deals in volume.

Now, I understand that bike shops, like most capitalist ventures, exist primarily thru parting fools and their money. I don't blame the lbs guy for trying to get his 100% markup, and putting a $99 sticker on that one cassette he has in his meager little shop. That's ambition, and it should be applauded. But, when someone who *knows* about the actual competition come sin and says "hi, you can make $15 off me, but i won't give you $49 to click a mouse one extra time on your next qbp order", the smart businessperson goes for that. It's $15 more than zero, and every penny counts these days, no?

-rob

Yes, every penney counts, including the ones that the shop must give to others. The complicated issue, which you are trying to simplify is this:

The shop does not "make" $15 on the exchange you cite. That $15 is merely a part of gross sales. One must subtract not only the variable labor cost of ordering, unpacking and selling the freewheel but also a proportional cost of fixed expenses such as rent, utilities, insurance, etc. etc from their TOTAL sales. If the shop fulfilles not only yours but many other similar requests and total sales go way down the shop will soon go out of business. Again, I feel that 100% markup is out of bounds in my experience.