important: Nuts and bolts on your bike should always be tightened to the manufacturer's specifications.

How to Replace an Inner Brake Cable

Remove the old inner brake wire and install a new one.

Brake cable inner wires wear out over time. Other than obvious fraying, rust or visual wear, you can tell your cables are worn when your braking starts to feel sluggish. If lubricating the housings or brake levers doesn’t help, they’ll likely need replacing.

Tools

For this job, you’ll need a replacement brake cable inner wire. Most brake cables have a barrel end that looks like this, unless you have a road bike with drop handlebars, in which case it’ll have a cylindrical mushroom head like this. Often new brake cables will come with each type on both ends. I recommend stainless steel cables if you’re riding regularly in a wet climate, as they won’t rust. You’ll need a good set of wire cutters, some bicycle specific cable cutters if you’ll be replacing the outer cable housing, and some triflow or light lubricant. You’ll need either a 9 or 10mm metric open end wrench or a 5 or 6mm hex key for the brake’s cable pinch bolt. You’ll also need to know how to adjust your brakes and levers, as explained in previous tutorials depending on your type of brake system.

Brake Cable Removal

The first step is to carefully observe how your cable is presently routed from the lever to your brake. A misrouted cable can cause many problems. It may help to photograph each section of the cable from the lever to the brake so you can use it for reference. Your brake may not look like the one pictured here, but the concepts will be the same.

Now disconnect the cable by loosening the brake’s pinch bolt. Notice how the cable is flattened where it was pinched. I like to cut the cable just before this part so it is easier to remove by sliding through the outer cable housings. I recommend replacing the outer cable housings at the same time. See the tutorial titled “How to Replace Cable Housings”.

Brake Cable Installation

Once you have nothing but the brake lever and the cable left, line up the slots in the lever’s barrel adjuster and then pull the cable through and remove the head from the lever. Install the new cable into the lever the same way the old one came out.

Now turn your barrel adjuster clockwise almost all the way, so the barrel slots lock the new cable in place. Drop some light oil into your cable housings and make sure the outer housing’s cable ferrules are firmly in place before carefully sliding the new cable through the housing. Then route your cable the same way it was before and thread the inner cable under the pinch bolt’s washer. Pull the cable tight and tighten the pinch bolt. The cable will flatten when tightened. Always tighten bolts to the manufacturer’s torque specifications. Adjust the brake as needed. Search the other tutorials for your specific type of brakes.

Once installed and adjusted, cut the wire about 2 inches further along the cable. Your new cable should have come with a cable end that can be gently crimped on using wire cutters or pliers. This will prevent fraying. Then give the cable a slight bend and tuck it out of the way behind the brake arm.

By Alex Ramon

A bicycle geek since early childhood, spent his twenties as a mechanic in bike shops. His passions include flatland BMX, unicycles, cycle touring, mountain biking and road riding.

Recommended Tools

Discuss this topic in the Bicycle Repairs and Mechanics Forum

Removing and refitting rear wheel on belt drive bike?

Best way to thoroughly clean a chain?

What jockey wheel Red 10 Speed

Latest post 1 month ago

Can anyone advise what type of replacement jockey wheel I need for a 10 speed Red rear mech (it's got 11 teeth)? Bonus points if it's a link to a cheap (ish) one! Thanks...

Operation of Santa Monica Ebike

Latest post 1 month ago

Hello - new owner with an How to Operate the bike question. Hopefully, this is easily answered I Bought this bike a few weeks ago - Tested many bikes and finally landed on this particular Santa Monica. However, got busy with Christmas shopping, Life, and not so great weather days distracted me from riding. I also test drove so many that I forgot how to operate it.... I "thought" I remembered, ...

Grip Shifters

Latest post 1 month ago

Currently renovating a child's bike. It has 24 inch wheels and is a suitable size for a 7-10 year old. Anyway it has grip shifters. it is a six speed with three chain rings on the front derailleur. On the rear derailleur the shifter does not appear to move the gear cable at all when shifting from 6 to 5 and 5 to 4. I am actually holding the cable with my finger and thumb against the cable cas...

9 speed chain on 8 speed bike

Latest post 1 month ago

All of my bikes are 7 or 8 speed and sometime in the past I bought a 9 speed chain for some unremembered reason. is there any reason not to use it on an 8 speed bike?...

Gears and derailleur misalignment

How often check or change mechanical disc brakes

Shifting is almost impossible

7-speed bicycle with bent rim

Latest post 4 months ago

I recently bought a 7-speed bicycle practically brand new it still has a little rubber nipples on the tires apparently it got backed into in the garage and it bent the rear rim sideways my question is can I go out and buy another just like single speed 20 inch bicycle and put the 7-speed cassette onto that rim?...

Trek domane tyre

Latest post 4 months ago

Hi I have a trek domane 2.3, and I have changed the rear tyre to 28 (it was 25 originally) The tyre rubs with the brake arm (v brake), I fear it doesn’t seem to be compatible Is there any way to adjust the position of the brake arm? I just need it to ne around 2mm higher Thanks...

Schwinn meridian rear drive axle

Latest post 4 months ago

Recently bought a slightly used 26" meridian trike. While replacing wider tires on the rear, I noticed an issue with the rear drive side wheel hub. The wheel is held on with a nut and single washer. The hub is not held firmly in a location on the axle and is able to slide back and forth on the axle a good half inch even though the nut is tightened all the way down to its bottom threads on the axle...

Bianchi Oltre Pro Garmin Mount

Latest post 4 months ago

I am wondering if anyone can help me with the garmin mount that came with my recently purchased Bianchi Oltre Pro. I was on a ride descending and the mount flew off, landing in the middle of the road with my garmin head unit. Luckily the head unit still works with a few minor scratches and cracks. From the picture you can see that it was not that the screws came loose, it was in fact the part of ...