Originally Posted by BostonFixed
Dude, that's a stand.
I use wire cutters my self for cutting cables. They're "linesman's pliers", and they cut just as good as any cable cutter. The ends do not get frayed or crushed. Besides, you clamp the extra bit of cable in a little dealie , so it doesn't really matter if the end is crushed...
If the lineman's pliers are the kind that encircle a cable before they cut it they probably are just as good as a cable cutter. But if you use what most people have in their tool kits for wire cutting, i.e. diagonal cutters, those will crush the cable. I almost always finish off my cables with solder to keep them from fraying. If the cable is frayed or flattened, you can't refeed it through the housing if you do work on the bike's brakes or derailuers. And diagonal cutters make a real mess of cable housing, especially derailuer housing!
I'm not saying you have to use cable cutters just that it makes life easier.