Gotte

Where do the cables go? Is it through the centre, and do you have to drill the bars? or do they go under the tape? What's the done thing when combining them with moustache bars?

dbakl

On drop bars, they go underneath the drops, wrapped under the tape, and exit below the brake levers each turning inwards towards the centerline of the frame to meet the cable stop mounted about where the downtube shifters would be mounted. The idea is to keep the housing curves gentle and graceful. Don't forget to grease the cables. Of course, modern frames may have other braze on doohickies to help. I don't know what you'd do on moustache bars, something similar?

top506

This can o'worms was just opened and stirred on the mechanics forum.
Some folks route the cables like dbakl. Some route them to the brakes. And some route them all the way under the tape and exit at the stem. I use the last method, myself, with no problems.
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TimJ

Go to Rivendell's website and check out the photos they have of completed bikes. There's a customer gallery, I think. Most of their bikes us bar-end shifters and you'll see lots of examples.

I personally like the look of the cables coming out from under the tape right before the bend on drops. Makes a couple U's of cable back to the stops.

Mariner Fan

Everyone is different and I don't think there is a wrong way to do it as long as you don't have any sharp bends.

cyclotoine

I think mariner fans way is theoretically better as less housing means less friction and to route it all the way would mean more sharp bends... i think also that old suntour sets only came with enough SS housing to route it this way.

grolby

I would recommend against greasing the cables, if you're using halfway decent lined housing and slick cables. In this case, grease may actually increase cable friction. That's no fun! Other than that, that's how I route my cables, works great.

dbakl

Well, as far as grease, I'm usually using the old time cables and housing, or the Campagnolo stainless. Here's my Legnano on the CR site, I guess I try and get the cables to exit the bars in line with the downtube.

But I never really liked bar ends that much, I use em for fun now and then!

Mariner Fan

I really like bar end shifters! They are as easy for me to use as STI's and much cheaper.

John E

I love the SunTour barcons I put on my UO-8. I bring the cables out just beyond the flat portion of the drop bars and loop them gracefully up and back over my properly retro cylindrical Bellwether bag.

https://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...0&d=1161131253

Gotte

Thanks for that. Much appreciated.

HillRider

You've been given several good cable routing ideas but I want to make one comment. DO NOT drill the bars to route them. Otherwise, do what pleases you but keep the bends smooth.

SteakKnifeSally

I have to give a +1 to Top506. (Lead the Way!) I have owned bikes with the cables running under the wrap all the way to the stem, and they shifted fine. They also have the advantage of being less snaggable if you are running them as a pseudo-cyclocross off-road shifter (along with aero brake levers of course.)

Gotte

I always thought it would be a bad idea, but I've never seen a bar end shifter, let alone studied one, and always assumed the cable actually went through the centre of the plug. That was why I wondered about drilling the bars. I would only have done it if that was the recognized way of doing things.