Originally Posted by
raverson
I bought a Trek 1220 a while back that had a RSX shifter with a stuck cable head. I'm not sure how, but the previous owner had managed to wrap the cable head counter clockwise in the mechanism halfway past the cable entry porthole. I had to use the dremel to get it out and the result wasn't pretty, but it saved an otherwise functional shifter.
you realise that you could have just pulled it apart right?
The front cap comes off with a hex key, there's a spring and a little rubber ring under this, spring makes the lever return properly, rubber ring (I'm guessing) is to keep the dirt out.
Pushing the brake/shift lever out as far as it goes, and the smaller shift only lever to halfway or so exposes a screw at the back. This screw is a pain to get at but it takes the brake lever and casing off the brifter, letting you get at the insides.
It's a pain in the arse to get back together though, the spring on the face is especially difficult.
As for the OP, looks like they've done away with the hex nut on the front for the 105 levers, so you're probably out of luck unless you can pull the cable out the hole.