Group Buy on cables: Thoughts?
 

Hi,

I'm thinking of laying in a modest supply of shift & brake cables for my own wrenching, perhaps 25 of each, so that I no longer have to wince every time a cable needs to be replaced. I'm looking at mid-range cables, something along a die-drawn stainless variety in standard lengths. Since it simply isn't reasonable for me to do this at the typical single unit cost, I was considering buying a filebox of each, keeping what I need, and selling off the remainder at cost.

My thought was to go for some brand name -- Jagwire, SRAM, Shimano, Clarks -- in the hope that the brand would assure some basic level of quality, and help me get rid of the excess.

Clearly I'm not the first one to wander down this road, yet I've not stumbled across any opportunities to participate in some group buy. Am I missing something obvious? Why aren't a lot of folks doing this? For example, are the no-name Chinese cables on eBay reliable enough that they serve as a good source for others in my situation? Is there some venue on the interwebs where I can find an opportunity like this?

In short, am I crazy to think of doing this? Any thoughts or advice would be welcome.

TIA.

Bike Shops get them in a Box wound around a reel Think there are 50 per .
ask the Bike shop they should give you a good price if you buy the whole Box.

Die drawn gear cables are a must for indexed shifting.

The distributors will only sell to you if you have an account which usually means you have a Business Licence.

and a Tax ID. & a storefront .

I've used the generic unbranded gear cables for a long time and never had a problem with them breaking at a higher rate than either Shimano or Clarks cables which I also tried. Last at least several thousand miles. They are small and light enough that I carry a spare in my tool pouch but can't remember replacing one on the road. I use bar end shifters so you feel the end of the cable when it begins to fray. The last time I bought them it was a package of either 10 or 12 for around $10 postpaid by a US seller. You could experiment by buying one or two from the ebay sellers in the Philippines Durable 2M Steel Shift Shifter Gear Speed Cable Line for MTB Bike Bicycle | eBay Two would cost you $1.50 postpaid with a delivery time of about 2 weeks.

The only thing to remember is that these are 1.2 mm diameter cables. A few SRAM twist grip shifters use a 1.1 mm cable so this will not fit inside the housing. Every other shifter I ever came across and most twist grip shifters use the larger diameter cable. I bought 25 feet of gear cable housing for the rare times when I need to replace the housing as well as the inner cable. $15 for 25 feet of gear cable housing from Niagara Cycle.