Originally Posted by
Random11
Your experience is certainly at odds with Koyote's earlier comment that an internet search (I didn't do one) would reveal that it's a good idea to replace shifter cables at regular intervals. But it appears, from your experience and others, that breaking shifter cables is unusual, although it's happened to me twice. I've been riding less than five years so you have ten times the experience that I have, and I appreciate your sharing it.
Actually Koyote's mention of the STI cables does make me want to consider replacing them on my bike with them. All of my other bikes through the years have not had STIs and have had friction shifters where it is easy to see if there was a fraying or damaged cable. I think what he described is a classic out of sight out of mind thing that I will look into.
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"It is the unknown around the corner that turns my wheels." -- Heinz Stücke