If it's correct that lined cables shouldn't need lubricating how do you tell if they are?

Have a Giant Cypress DD and Trek Verve 2.

First- most all modern (as in after 1995) OEM casing is lined, brake or gear.
Second- Any casing lined or not benefits from lube.
Third- Lined casing is not the same as lubing.
Fourth- cables are coated, not lined
Andy

Just some food for thought: some local experienced mountain bikers advised me against lubing the cables - they say the lube dries over time and gums up the cables. I haven't experienced those problems. Though I prefer very light (thinned down) oil for the summer and WD40 for the winter use cable lubing.

both the bikes you list are lower end bikes, fancy brand name, or not... neither one would have been built with "lined cables"... cable HOUSINGS, actually... unless someone spent a bunch of money to have either re-cabled with a decent cable/housing type, you need to hit them with a bit of lube, or never get them wet! Considering their sale price, the cables may not even be Stainless steel.... and the brake housings are almost assuredly unlined, spiral steel types... the shift cable housings may be either strand or spiral types...

i've had much better results using PB Blaster... i haven't bought any WD40 in YEARS... it's kerosene in a can, btw... with a very tiny amount of 5 wt. oil added... makes great test fuel for old engines, though.

LINED cable housings should not require lubing, as the PTFE(teflon) liner, and coating on the matching cables, is slick as slick can be. Your MTB buddies are flushing mud out of the cables/housings.

I can't say about your Giant and Trek. The "Bell Brand" cable kits one can buy at department stores are not lined, and I believe use galvanized cables. I assume they are similar to what some department store bikes use.

If you are replacing the cables, you can look at the ends of the housings if the ferrules aren't crimped on, and see if you can see the liner. Or, perhaps feel how the cable goes into the housing. Smooth, or hitting the ribs?

Also look at the cable housing to see brand and model markings.

Coated wires should be easy to identify.

Its obvious when you look at the cut end of the housing..

I have to use a pointed spoke wire to open up the liner, after cutting housing to length.

Yeah except for the part where shimano made a *specific* grease for sp41 housing/cables.

Having said that, i've pretty much use this is only a handful of times in my career. Usually by the time you need to do this, it's a cable housing and cable replacement anyways.

Hilarious, this is so beyond **** it's incomprehensible.

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...I've missed you [MENTION=12715]operator[/MENTION]. The mechanics forum needs you.