Sora, shift gear cable stuck (wrongly installed)

[NiklasLuetty]

Hey, all hope you're having a great day,

I wanted to change the shift cable on my Shimano sora lever (road groupset).
But, I was in a hurry and installed the cable incorrectly, aka after the point where the head of the cable should be. Now the cable is stuck between the mechanism and casing and I cannot get it out. I tried poking, shimming, etc.

My next step would be drilling out the head of the cable, but I'd really rather not...
I'm very grateful for any tips you might have.

Cheers,
Niklas

[enkei]

Bummer, dude! I think we've all been there before (well, if we do much maintenance ourselves).

Can you not grab it with needle-nose pliers and pull it out? Might have to jiggle/fiddle with the brifter mechanism while trying to pull it out.

Failing that, I reckon I'd be removing the lever from the bike. Next step: dismantle the lever (potential headache city).

[Banjolian]

Did you ever find a way to get it out? I did the same thing and have the same problem ). I've tried just about every poking, prodding, hooking tool I could think of.

[ReapThaWhirlwind]

Did you try a high powered magnet? I could just help retention to get the item out.

Maybe a dentistry tool could help? A plaque pick or something.

Last ditch for me, I would cut the housing so I can get to the cable from the other side of the shifter and try to force the cable out of the shifter through the other end. Easy to replace the housing, but not the entire unit. Sadly, if this happened, it would likely be that the holding mold had become deformed and won't retain the cable anymore at all. Replacing the shifter may be the only option.

[enkei]

(08-03-2023, 03:08 PM)Banjolian Wrote:  Did you ever find a way to get it out? I did the same thing and have the same problem ). I've tried just about every poking, prodding, hooking tool I could think of.

I'm pretty sure I had to deal with this once before and I did get it out, so it is possible. Not sure how much it depends on the brifter design, however...

[Banjolian]

For others that may have the same issue, I was able to finally get it out. What did it for me was this:

• Hit it with a little WD-40
• Up-shift as much as I could while still being able to get a tool past the piece where the cable head is supposed to be seated
• I created a little hook tool by bending the end of a thick sewing needle into a hook shape with some piers
• Insert the hook tool so that it hooks around the back of the stuck cable head (the side w/ the cable coming out)
• Grip the end hook tool with pliers, or whatever will allow you to pull pretty hard
• Pull on the cable head with the hook tool while down-shifting so that the shifter barrel will help rotate the head out towards the opening
  

This would all depend on how exactly it's stuck but it worked for me. Good luck!

[enkei]

(08-07-2023, 10:03 AM)Banjolian Wrote:  For others that may have the same issue, I was able to finally get it out.

Awesome! Congratulations, and thanks for sharing what worked for you.

[Ben L]

(08-07-2023, 10:03 AM)Banjolian Wrote:  For others that may have the same issue, I was able to finally get it out. What did it for me was this:

• Hit it with a little WD-40
• Up-shift as much as I could while still being able to get a tool past the piece where the cable head is supposed to be seated
• I created a little hook tool by bending the end of a thick sewing needle into a hook shape with some piers
• Insert the hook tool so that it hooks around the back of the stuck cable head (the side w/ the cable coming out)
• Grip the end hook tool with pliers, or whatever will allow you to pull pretty hard
• Pull on the cable head with the hook tool while down-shifting so that the shifter barrel will help rotate the head out towards the opening
  

This would all depend on how exactly it's stuck but it worked for me. Good luck!

Can confirm this worked for me after a little fiddling around - key was getting just the right hook shape with the sewing needle. Glad I didn't try and take it apart as that would have been a real faff.

Thanks!