What kind of wire cutters for brake cables?
02-14-12, 03:41 PM
#26
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FYI, these type of cutters are best suited for soft metals like aluminum and copper, plus they are very good on nylon and rubber tubing. Their cutting edge is too thin for cutting steel wire without causing damage to the jaw blades.
Felco C-7 is my recommendation to the OP.
Felco C-7 is my recommendation to the OP.
02-15-12, 09:24 AM
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spathfinder34089
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02-15-12, 10:07 AM
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Never had any trouble using the park tool cable cutters
https://www.parktool.com/product/prof...g-cutter-cn-10
It works every time. Plus it has a nice crimper for your end caps as well.
https://www.parktool.com/product/prof...g-cutter-cn-10
It works every time. Plus it has a nice crimper for your end caps as well.
02-15-12, 10:33 AM
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True, but they're tin snips. Mine are Wiss. I like them for cuttings housings. I use them for cables when I can't find my cable cutters.
Last edited by Grand Bois; 02-15-12 at 12:33 PM.
02-15-12, 01:12 PM
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A Dremel has to be used slowly and the housing kept cool or the cutting heat will damage the plastic outer coating. That plus the simplicity and speed of a decent cable cutter make the Dremel overkill. Even if you have to file the cut housing end flat, the Dremel still takes longer. I tried the Dremel a couple of times and decided it wasn't worth the hassle.
I cut housing twice a year at most. I already have a Dremel. I don't want (or need) to buy yet another set of specialized cutters dedicated to one task.
I think I spent all of 2 minutes making a half-dozen cuts with my Dremel, and there were no issues with heating up or damaging the outer casing either.
Call me cheap, but this works great for me and I don't need to waste space or money on a tool that gets used two times a year.
02-15-12, 01:20 PM
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I never bothered with try alternative solutions and just grabbed Park CN-10.
02-15-12, 07:33 PM
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I have never noticed the outside cable housing get damaged by using a Dremel, however I usually need to kind of rout out the end with a large nail because the inner coating seems to melt a bit.
02-16-12, 02:18 PM
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I agree these are fine for cutting spiral wound brake housing if you are careful to work the jaws between two adjacent coils. Plan on filing the ends flat and smooth after making the cut. I disagree they are good at cutting either derailleur housing or any inner wire. For those, a real cable cutter does a much better job.
02-16-12, 11:37 PM
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02-17-12, 12:59 PM
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Why do some have issues with the cable cutters for brake cable? Is is due to the diameter of the housing or what? It sounds like most wire rope cutters work great on the cable and shift cable, but not so much on brake cable.
Tom
Tom
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