Have spent the day trying to run the cable routing on a new frame and am at my wits end!

Supposedly the rear derailleur and brake share the same internal route through a hole on the left side of the head tube, exit just in front of the seat tube and run externally down each seat stay.

But there’s no internal tubing, the entry/exit holes are tiny and both the cable and hose share a single grommet.

I’m using an internal routing tool with magnets but still massively frustrated. Not sure if I should route the inner or outer first. I thought I’d got somewhere then realised I hadn’t threaded the grommet on before starting.

The frame included 30cm lengths of foam tubing, I assume to feed the cables through to prevent rattles. But absolutely no way I can contemplate routing things through those too. Arggh!

Help? Tips? Advice? Other than always buy externally routes frames.

Probably help with make / model of frame ?

It’s a Santa Cruz Chameleon.

2 pieces of thread, hoover at the seat tube, suck through. attach one thread each to outer cable and hose and pull through. Repeat for each chain stay. Double or triple the thread over for strength. Attach the thread to the cable via a small backwards facing notch (like a barb) in the plastic outer. Works every time.

Sounds like the perfect excuse to go for an AXS or Di2 upgrade, if that’s an option for you.

Di2 would be equally as hard

I did this last Saturday and was expecting a nightmarish job but was actually quite straight forward.
I used an old cable inner and fed it through to where I wanted it and then used a hook tool to pull it out the exit.
Rear brake and dropper through one inlet and also through one outlet. Gear cable through other side inlet and different outlet. I don’t think it took longer than 10 mins altogether.
I used a head torch so I could see when the cable could be extracted.
Also, electrical tape to attach the old cable inner to the outer I wanted to pull through and gentle feeding of cable outer (rather then trying to pull it through with the inner) and then using old cable inner to guide the cable outer through the exit.
It wasn’t on a SC Chameleon though.

8mm drill should see you sorted 🤪

Why on earth bike manufacturers send stuff out like this is beyond me, it’s not difficult to leave liners/sleeves in situ. I feel your pain as an ex-bike mechanic having had to deal with this.
My fave was for a Venge that the customer insisted on a slammed stem. He took it out for a test ride and decided he wanted 20mm spacers – 4 hours of workshop time, 2 new hydro hoses and a couple of bleeds later that will be £250 please. If he’d asked for spacers at the beginning it would have been £50.

Santa Cruz do some videos / manuals for some of this stuff as well as part numbers for my cack-handed faffing with the bottom bracket access cover/plate thing.

https://www.santacruzbicycles.com/en-US/support/tech

Sensible choice would be to singlespeed it…

2 pieces of thread, hoover at the seat tube, suck through. attach one thread each to outer cable and hose and pull through. Repeat for each chain stay. Double or triple the thread over for strength. Attach the thread to the cable via a small backwards facing notch (like a barb) in the plastic outer. Works every time.

This.

Although a Rolling Hitch will hold inner or outer cable without the need for a barb, even in a single thread of cotton.

https://www.animatedknots.com/rolling-hitch-knot

Pull the forks out, you can then thread from rear of the bike and guide the cables into the holes at the headtube.

Anyway to route the rear brake on the right of the frame? It won’t be such a tight turn for the cable…

Anyway to route the rear brake on the right of the frame? It won’t be such a tight turn for the cable…

if the chameleon is anything like their full susses…

no. Despite a strong UK presence, and the DH team at one point consisting of two brits and a south african, Santa cruz have never worked out that some people like their rear brake on the left.

After a day of swearing I think I’ve finally managed to get the cables routed.

But no chance I could get the foam tubes on as well. Hopefully it doesn’t rattle to death!

But no chance I could get the foam tubes on as well. Hopefully it doesn’t rattle to death!

Drop the forks out and ram a pair of tights down there.

Some useful info on here

I’ve no idea if the chameleon has an open head tube into the top tube, but if that’s the case, then of course with the fork and headset bearings are out of the way…
I’d be getting the cables through from rear to front and out the biggest hole, foam sleeving them, then pulling them back in towards the seat tube and threading them through the cable port, then pulling them through as far as they need then sliding the grommet before making connections..
if there’s no access through the head tube, then I’d be effing and blinding and have a bad back from working upside down thinking it’d be a quick job.