adxm

So my shift cable broke off very far in the right shifter (6600 Ultegra 10). With a flashlight you can see the frayed ends of the cable in the cable groove. The bead (right word for the little round metal end of the cable?) must still be lodged in there somehow. needless to say, I can't shift it up so I can get at the end of the cable, or stick a new one in. I've unscrewed some of the screws around that area, but nothing seems to want to come off to let me in there (there's two loose plastic inserts on the left and right side, but I don't want to mess with those too much)..and I don't even know if I would be able to put it back together if I did get in there. What would be the best way to try and extricate this pesky piece of cable?

Al1943

Do not attempt to disassemble the shifter. Loosen the opposite end of the cable and see if pushing the cable into the shifter helps. If you cannot recover all of the cable remove the shifter from the bike and send it to Shimano via your LBS.

Al

edmcnierney

Do NOT attempt to disassemble the shifter. (Been there (recently), done that, have a broken shifter).

It sounds like I had a similar problem. It is not immediately obvious that when you installed the cable you had to first downshift the shifter (with the large lever, that is) all the way down to the lowest gear (even though there's no "gear" attached). You need to do this again, downshifting all the way. This will expose the head of the cable. Once you've done that, if you can't push the cable from the other end so the head comes out, use something with a sticky end like a chopstick with superglue on it to "grab" the head and pull it out.

I realize that it may be hard to downshift if the cable's hung up, but keep trying. Use a long pin or something similar from the right-hand (as if the shifter were mounted) side to poke stray cable fibers into line.

Do NOT attempt to disassemble the shifter. You cannot open up that portion of the shifter without doing irreparable harm.

Do NOT attempt to disassemble the shifter.

adxm

Thanks for the help so far. I guess I won't attempt to dissassemble the shifter . there must be hardly any cable in there at all...it doesn't shift any more to get the cable closer to the opening, the small piece in there must be jammed. Chopstick with glue on it sounds like a good idea.

As for sending it to Shimano, I crashed on them earlier this year and I doubt if they'll help me out.

OneTinSloth

a sharpened spoke can be used to sort of help unwind the shifter track as you click the paddle. once you can get it around to it's starting position, use the spoke from the side the cable would normally exit and try to push it out that way. you could always take it to the LBS and have them do it if you're not confident.

shimano might still warranty it, as the problem you're having now most likely isn't related to the crash.

adxm

well the problem is it doesn't even go close to its starting position. In fact it seems like it's most of the way on the other side, on the side where the cable comes out, out of sight. The most it will do is shift one way in either direction. I can see all the strands down in there, but nothing will come out.

OneTinSloth

use the sharpened spoke to push it back to it's starting position as you click the paddle. disconnect the brake cable so you can squeeze the brake lever all the way down to the handlebar, and use a toestrap to hold it there. take it to a shop if you're not confident in your abilities to fix it. they might be able to get shimano to warranty it.

adxm

from the place the cable would exit, I can't get the spoke to go around the opposite direction, only straight across to the other side, but the only part the cable is in is the bottom of the track...not sure how you use the spoke?

NoRacer

+1

I had a couple cables do this, until I made sure that I lubed that area more frequently. It can be a b*tch to get that little stub of frayed cable and cable end out, but it can be done with some persistence and patience.