STI cable routing advice

[Pharley]

Hello,

My first time cabling up some STI shifters. They're 600 Ultegra so the gear cable is visible. Looking for advice, tips, opinions on cable routing. Options I have seen are:

Double crossover in front of the head tube (both cables cross the centre line and go back again to their respective sides.
Shorter, tighter bend so the the cables don't cross and just stay on their respective sides.
Single cross in front of the head tube and cross just the inners under the down tube.

I think the last may not be a valid option as the cable guides under the bottom bracket are steel rather than a screw on plastic piece. I'll be running with the RH lever as the front brake. I expect theres a lot of personal preference in this and it's dependent on the specifics of the frame and bars but just wanted to get some backround.

Thanks

 

[kingbling]

I always go for the middle option and don't cross them not had a problem with shifting as long as the cable bends are not too tight

 

[Stick Legs]

Single cross outers and cross under the down tube is best if your cable cuides in the frame will allow it without touching the frame.

Routing so tight that they do not cross at all will hamper shift performance.
A very slight double cross infron of the bars is best.

Try using the new Shimano shift inners and outers designed for Ultegra 6800 or Dura Ace 9000 with the 'hairy' inner cables as these are designed for under tape routing so will be super slick on older systems and will more than compensate for any extra housing length.

Also get some of that clear plastic pipe that is used for carbon frames internal guiding and put it over the inners where they rub over the BB shell to protect the paint and help reduce drag there.

Shimano outer cable though, nothing else works as well.

 

[kingbling]

If your using the original cable stops for the 6400 sti's then you can't cross them as they only fit on their respective sides

 

[kingbling]

Like so

 

[Pharley]

Many thanks for the input, it's very useful. I have a shimano ptfe pack already. I'll have a go tonight and hopefully post some pics.

 

[Pharley]

How about the brake cable?

 

[Pharley]

Re:

Thanks for the comments. Took a bit of time but happy with the results. Ended up with a slight cross but I think they'll be tight if I go any shorter and looks OK like this I think.

 

[kingbling]

Re:

Looking good there