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First Impressions: Gore Ultra Lite “Fiber Optic” Shift Cables

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weights
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Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weights

Gore Ride-On’s new Ultra Lite cables seemed to cause a bit of a stir over their “fiber optic” construction. Shortly after our original post, I got a set in to try out.

UPDATE: MSRP will be the same as their regular set, $64.99 USD.

First, I’ll state the obvious. They don’t use light to perform or enhance the shifting in any way. I asked Gore’s rep what exactly was “fiber optic” about them to help clarify and got something about “trade secrets” and them being able to find new uses for technologies, etc. Honestly, it could be made from alien poop and it wouldn’t matter. As long as it’s not radioactive, if it makes my bike lighter and/or perform better, it has a home here. Fortunately, these new cables did both.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX?

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weights

Technically, I didn’t get a production box, just the innards, which is fine. Less packaging I have to haul to the recycling bin. Like the other Gore Ride-On Sealed Systems, you get housing, two cables, two liner sleeves, all the necessary ferrules, caps and grub seals and instructions.

The Ultra Lite system uses their fully sealed design, meaning the inner sleeves run all the way from the shifter to the derailleur. It gets the new lube inside the liner sleeves, which was previously only on the road-oriented Professional system and not the fully sealed system. For comparison, the Professional system starts the liner sleeves after the first section of housing rather then starting at the shifters. I’ve used all of their systems and will compare performance below.

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weight comparison from old system to new

Their standard housing on left came in at 65g. Ultra lite was 38g. Same length, and the rubber band didn’t affect the outcome. Savings = 27g.

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weights

I installed the cables on my Niner Jet 9, size Large, which had their old sealed cable system. Old housing for the front derailleur on the left (33g) versus new (15g). All were cut to the same length for weighing.

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic bicycle shifter cable review and weights

Old rear cable housing (42g) versus new (18g). Total bike weight savings = 18 + 24 = 42g!

DO THEY WORK?

Gore Ultra Lite Fiber Optic lightweight bicycle shifter cable review and weights

I’ve used Gore’s Ride-On Cables for years, since before starting Bikerumor. This latest set was on my Niner for just over a year. They were installed during the initial build, connecting a full SRAM XX group. This was also my first long-term experience with XX. I’d ridden XX before on demo bikes and it seemed to work quite well, but on my bike it always felt a little harder to push. I had just chalked it up to the 1:1 ratio and heavy handed return springs.

But, as I spent more time on other bikes and XX kept shifting easily on every bike but mine, I started to get suspicious. I’ve reviewed Gore’s cables quite positively in the past, but that was on a different bike, so it took a while to realize I was fighting more friction in the cables. I was planning to swap the cables out for regular, non-sealed ones, so the timing on these new cables was perfect.

Gore Ultra Lite fiber optic lightweight bicycle shifter cable review

From an internal friction standpoint, the only difference between these new cables and the old ones is the introduction of lube in the liner sleeves. The difference was immediately noticeable with much, much lighter lever feel and crisp shifting action. This is what XX is supposed to feel like!

Gore hasn’t provided numbers comparing compression of the old cables and the new ones, but compression is really more of a concern on brake cable housing. It bends and flexes easily, making install a snap. It’s worth mentioning that after I weighed the new housing at the same length as the old, I trimmed a bit more off to create slightly shorter, more direct runs, but no more than 3.5″ total. Certainly not enough to change the shifting performance.

So, short term impressions are good. Very good. My bike’s lighter and shifting better than ever. Are they worth switching to? As any good lawyer will tell you, it depends. If you’ve got a fresh set of cables on your bike, no. If you’re ready to put new cables and housing on your bike anyway, then hell yeah. Despite the added friction of the old set, I can tell you this with absolute honesty: Once the initial cable stretch was adjusted out of my system, I didn’t touch my drivetrain for the entire year. Not one. single. adjustment. The sealed system works, and with the addition of factory injected lube, the friction issue seems to have been resolved.

Of course, this is short term. I’ll likely have these cables on my bike for another year and will report back in the future with any wear issues and how well the lube holds up.

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Maple Leafs
Maple Leafs
13 years ago

Do you know how much they will cost?

Topmounter
Topmounter
13 years ago

Trade secret? Wow, is Vince Offer their Senior Executive VP of Marketing?

Rob
Rob
13 years ago

Can you comment on how flexible the new cable housing is compared to the standard housing? I’ve had problems with the standard housing cracking, where it bends from the top tube to my front derailuer, on my full suspension.

dp
dp
13 years ago

Yes, please share the cost…

Robin
Robin
13 years ago

Nice political answer from Gore (re: answering with no answer). The use of the term “fiber optic” is solely a marketing move by Gore. They hope high tech terms regurgitated by journalists and bloggers and seen in print will sell more. Hell, given the lack of clarity and the unwillingness of the press and of bloggers to press the manufacturers for real answers. It probably went something like this:

Gore: “Trade secrets.”

Journo or blogger: “Ooo! Trade secrets! That sounds high tech. I’ll write that in my story. What else should I write?”

When’s the article coming on Deepak Chopra’s quantum healing?

moby211
moby211
13 years ago

Do these work with Campagnolo’s 11 speed derailleurs?

Fred
Fred
13 years ago

Would you please post some pictures and comment on the front and rear derailleurs showing how the cables are sealed with the new red colored grub seals? The original accordion type seals didn’t work very well with SRAM rear derailleurs.

carlmon
carlmon
12 years ago

Am I the only one that knows these aren’t new? These may be a new version, or just a rebirth of the same concept by the same name some 10+ years ago. I’ve had a set on my Litespeed Ultimate since I built it in 2001. They still work perfectly, and I don’t think I’ve adjusted my gear cables except once when I crashed my derailleur, and once when I got new wheels!.
BTW – I used the ‘shift only’ cable for shifters and brakes with no problems… throretically the linear glass fiber ‘optic’ wires aren’t safe enough for high compression forces, but I figured that’s why I have TWO brakes, and now over 10 years has proven it’s just a liability warning required by RideOn’s lawyers.
I was upset to find they were discontinued when I built up a new weight-weanie mountain bike several years ago, and had to settle for Nokon’s. As soon as I can find these for sale those Nokon’s are in the bin!
So, there’s your long-term performance review. Buy them before they’re discontinued again.

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