Galvanic Corrosion of Gear Cables

[CREPELLO]

Just thought I'd share this experience with you all. My Dawes Audax had stopped changing gear when prompted to drop down the cassette. I'd deduced that the friction was coming from the rear and thought a seized XT mech unlikely. So today I proceeded to take the cable out for examination (I also needed to trim the front outer run, which was fouling the on/off switch at the back of the Cyo headlight).

Anyway, I couldn't get the inner cable out of the outer, nor the outer out of the mech's barrel adjuster. Finally after much pulling and applying of Plusgas I got the parts seperated. Immediately I could see a big build up of white powdery stuff, no doubt the product of galvanic corrosion.
Campag, in their wisdom and quest for perfection have used aluminium ferrules on the rear mech outer cable run (or they had supplied said ferrules, which I had decided to use. Can't remember now).
For cycling in the real world, this doesn't seem very clever, due to the proximity of the steel cable casing as well as the steel barrel adjuster, which the alu ferrule sits in. The ferrules were bonded to the casing, so after much bending and eventual crushing of casing a new rear mech outer was fitted, this time with a steel ferrule at the mech and a Shimano sealed rubber boot at the other (to reduce water ingress).

Has anyone else come across this problem with gear cables, Campag or other?

[gilesjuk]

Just because it is Campag it doesn't automatically make it good

Fiats and Alfa Romoes come from Italy too, there's a lot of passion but some diabolical engineering in them.

[tooley92]

The casing ends on my Shimano gear cables are plastic.

[Mick F]

My Camapg Ergo ferrules are all chrome plated - certainly not alu. I've had three set of them, and they've all been chrome.

Just been to check my spare Ergo cables. They are non-magnetic so probably chrome plated brass.

Definitely not alu.

[CREPELLO]

Err, well it seems that I may have put these alu ferrules on the Campag outer myself , as I've just looked at another Campag equipped bike and those ferrules are steel or nickel plated brass.

But they came from somewhere and I think they probably came with some Dura Ace cables.
Sorry Campag! Shimano, what an earth were you thinking, supplying me alu ferrules???

[PBA]

Sorry Campag! Shimano, what an earth were you thinking, supplying me alu ferrules???

...destroying the opposition?