You can alter the way you make the cut (in brake cable I presume) to prevent the need for filing/grinding. The problem is the helical wrap of the flat stock that makes the compressionless outer structure; if the jaws of the cutter are at perfect perpendicular alignment, both jaws will try to bite into an angled portion of the helix, one jaw will ultimately anchor and the other deflect the coil out of place until it reaches the other and cuts. Your left with an end of the coil right across what should be the opening and liner. When you imagine trying to make a perfect 90° cut across the product of a helical stack, the resulting end is going to be an impossibly thinning edge that a cutter will not produce before deforming. It is also really not necessary for the end of the housing to work perfectly when installed.
Aline one cutter jaw along the line between two subsequent coils of housing's coil, almost ignoring what the other side is doing, and slowly squeeze them together. This lets one jaw slide easily between the coiled metal helix and approach the other which is not lined up with the coil and make a cut on one place on that helix. You might have to cut and remove some of the vinyl outer skin with a utility knife to see this the first time or two. This lets the tool cut that helical coil once. A flat file on the end of the cut helix usually cleans things up nicely and an awl will reopen and shape the liner. WIll not be a 90° flush cut, but parallel to the coil of that helix; more than adequate to produce firm transfer of force through the ferrule to a housing stop. I quit trying to produce perfectly mitered ends on housings because they devalue in reality when you appreciate how a nice aftermarket end ferrule, like the brass ones from Wheels Manufacturing, stabilize the housing at the stops. Some press-formed ferrules lacking a perfectly flat inside bottom at the cable hole will deform one of those perfectly mitered housing helixes' final tapering coil with their concavity, producing the same intrusion on the cableway as a sloppy chop. Housing end cuts just need to be descent ones for the ferrules do their part. My obsessive/compulsive electrician was impressed that I grasped this concept when helping him with BX cable installation: http://images.meredith.com/diy/images/2009/03/p_SCW_160_07.jpg . (BX is cut with a very improbable-looking tool using the same idea of cutting the helix once, let the bushing put the final dress on it: http://www.seatekco.com/images/RS-101A-4C2.jpg) X-acto makes a micro-toothed back saw if images of imperfect cuts hiding in the ferrules dance in your mind when trying to fall asleep at night: http://www.xacto.com/products/cutting-solutions/tools-accessories/tools-accessories/Precision-Razor-Saw-Set.aspx Andy Cheatham Pittsburgh On Friday, November 8, 2013 3:06:51 PM UTC-5, Pudge wrote: > > I bought one new, but find that I have to do a lot of dressing of the > housing ends after I make the cut. Is there some trick to getting a clean > cut? I’ve never used mine for anything but housing. > > > > *From:* rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com <javascript:> [mailto: > rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com <javascript:>] *On Behalf Of *Tim Gavin > *Sent:* Friday, November 08, 2013 3:04 PM > *To:* rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com <javascript:> > *Subject:* Re: [RBW] WTB: Park CN-10 cable & housing cutter > > > > I bit the bullet and bought one new at my LBS. I've used it a bunch since > then. It's a good cutter for zip ties too. > > > > Tip: don't use the housing cutter for other stuff like fender stays. It > doesn't do the job well and it dulls the cutter. Bolt cutters work for > fender stays. > > > > On Fri, Nov 8, 2013 at 1:56 PM, dougP <doug...@cox.net <javascript:>> > wrote: > > Anyone got one of these they want to part with? Since I'll use it a few > times a year, it's tough to justify buying new. But a real tool beats all > the fussing around needed to properly cut modern cable housings. > > dougP > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com <javascript:>. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-own...@googlegroups.com<javascript:> > . > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com <javascript:>. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-own...@googlegroups.com<javascript:> > . > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > **************************************************** > > To ensure compliance with Treasury Department regulations, we advise you > that, unless otherwise expressly indicated, any federal tax advice > contained in this message was not intended or written to be used, and > cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under > the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state or local tax law provisions > or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any > tax-related matters addressed herein. > **************************************************** > **************************************************** > > This email (and any attachments thereto) is intended only for use by the > addressee(s) named herein and may contain legally privileged and/or > confidential information. 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