New Boardman Build - Cable routing question

[perplex]

Hi all,

I just finished my new Boardman 9.8 SLR and it's my first road bike that I built. I have built a few mtb's before, but not since the late 2000's

Looking at the cable routing around the head tube, I chose to route the cable around the head tube as I have done on my mtbs and not route them so the cables entered the frame at the same side as they exited the handlebars. I did so mainly for aesthetics as I find it looks nice that the cables cross in front of the stem front plate.

I have made sure that the cables are not too short and leave marks on the frame.

Afterwards I noticed that a lot of bikes don't route the cables around the frame.

Is there a right/wrong way of routing the cable - or just some considerations you need to make?

[Stoo]

Personally, I always route the cabling to the opposite side of the frame that the cable leaves the shifters.

Ie front mech cabling to the right side of the frame and rear mech to the left.

[NiFTY]

Does it shift properly? It really depends on the frame but yes most frames have one correct way to route, which is left shifter -> left cable entry, right shifter -> right cable entry. The cables need to make it to their derailleur in the smoothest path possible - likely in your frame if the cables are going through the correct groove in the cable channel under the BB they are crossed over inside the frame in very close proximity to each other and may even rub on each other depending on which gear combo you are in, and whether you are running full length liners or not. Some bike have a cable guide under the BB which allows the cables to crossover at that point or not if required.

All said and done, if it is shifting okay who cares.

[upside]

Nice Job

[NiFTY]

ie. Normal BB guide (not meant for cables crossing paths)
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=bb+g ... B958%3B840

[NiFTY]

Just found this re: boardmans, not sure if your bike has this but it looks like its designed to crossover cables under the BB.
http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-c ... ike-06.jpg

[perplex]

Just found this re: boardmans, not sure if your bike has this but it looks like its designed to crossover cables under the BB.
http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-c ... ike-06.jpg

Hi Nifty,

Yeah - the Boardman I have has the same BB guide as the photo.

As you can see from photo example, the cable crosses inside my frame, so maybe its worth changing the cable routing at the front end so the cable enters the frame is the same side as it exits..

[mattyNor]

When I build customers bikes I always do left side left entry, right side right entry unless specifically asked otherwise. On my bikes aslong as there is no cable rub I do the cross over steup you have going. There is one less sharp bend so in theory the shifting is marginally better.

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[kode54]

i like the tidy routing of the cables. i crossover my cables as well on all my bikes and it makes for a smoother flowing housing. good job.

[Calnago]

Either way works. Like @MattyNor above mentioned, the less sharp bends the better. Especially on small bikes, you can often achieve a better rounder "cable line" by doing as you have. All depends on the particular build. Kind of depends on what gets in the way as well. For instance a C59 has a vertical piece of carbon running lengthwise through the middle of the downtube. I keep meaning to check whether this would get in the way for a crossover of cables but haven't done so yet. It doesn't matter at all if cables touch while crossing but you do want to make sure they are not wrapped around each other at all inside the tube.


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[Dammit]

On that frame I'd cable it as you have.

[perplex]

Hi all,

Thanks for all your input.

I'll keep the routing as it is for now and then maybe upgrade the housing to some sort of link type whenever I find the right moment.

I still have a lot of finishing touches to do: New lighter components, painting/sanding of parts etc.