Cable barrel differences.

[Milzy]

I was sorting out what cables I have left and found two MTB brake cables I bought for my retro Marin. I found 10 similar cables but with a slightly small barrel end. They won’t sit in the recess snug like the fatter ones. What on Earth are they supposed to be for?

 

[Milzy]

They must be gear cables.

 

[FishFright]

I've seen similar sized things on old , cheap bikes back when I was at the shop. Had to trim the standards ones back a bit to fit .

 

[Milzy]

I've seen similar sized things on old , cheap bikes back when I was at the shop. Had to trim the standards ones back a bit to fit .

I’ve found 10 of them. Might be going in the bin.

 

[Ajax Bay]

They must be gear cables.

Gear cables themselves are a smaller diameter (1.2 or 1.1mm) v a brake cable's 1.5mm. The image shows the two cables you're comparing as the same.
Lots of pictures here:
https://bike.bikegremlin.com/8548/cable-housing-standards/

 

[Milzy]

Good info but the one on the right is slightly smaller. The left is more of a traditional barrel shape too.

 

[Big John]

We had a similar thing at the bike charity where I work. To make them fit properly we ground them down on the grinder. We never throw anything away if we can help it 😉

 

[Milzy]

We had a similar thing at the bike charity where I work. To make them fit properly we ground them down on the grinder. We never throw anything away if we can help it 😉

Problem is they are too slack for MTB recess.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Problem is they are too slack for MTB recess.

Add some solder around and file/grind to shape/size