Nissen Korea | NISSEN Bicycle Cables

The feel of your brakes
begins with a strand
you never see.

NISSEN (日泉ケーブル) is a bicycle cable maker in Kishiwada, Osaka, Japan. It opened in 1948 making springs for weaving looms, later began making bicycle brake wire, and took its current name, Nissen Cable, in 1973. For many years it has made OEM cables for bicycle makers, brake makers and wholesalers.

Nissen processes and sells bicycle brake outer casing and inner wire in Japan: stainless cables, vintage cables reissued from 1950s to 1970s Europe, and cables in special lengths for bikes such as tandems. A brand that has spent decades refining what you feel at your fingertips when you pull a lever.

31 strands, not 19,
smooth all the way to the lever.

A standard inner cable is twisted from 19 strands. SP31 has 31. Using strands of different thicknesses inside makes it more flexible, and the tight twist leaves fewer gaps between strands. That makes it easier to install through tight routing around the bars, and with less stretch there is less re-adjustment after fitting. Breaking strength is also about 10% higher.

The surface is shaved close to a perfect circle with a slick finish, then given a special electrodeposition coating. Friction is lower than with a slick finish alone or a PTFE (Teflon) coating, and the coating resists peeling, so the light pull lasts. It is also pre-stretched to reduce initial stretch.

A coil that won't rust,
the final line
that completes your bike.

Nissen replaces the steel coil normally used in outer casing with stainless steel. It resists rust, and the metal coil shows through a clear colour coating. A polyethylene liner inside lightens the brake lever pull. One outer lets you enjoy dressing up and upgrading at the same time.

The brake outer has a 5 mm outer diameter for 1.5 or 1.6 mm inner cable; the shift outer is 4 mm for 1.2 mm inner. Sold in 2 m lengths, enough for one road bike, in 27 colours from Clear and Clear Black to traditional Japanese colours.

Making the cables of the 1950s
again, today.

A reissue of the steel round-wire outer casing made in Europe from about 1950 to 1970. With a liner that the originals never had, the lever pulls lightly. Vintage in looks, modern in performance.

The colours were matched again and again to come as close as possible to the outers of the time: Black, White, Silver, Red, Blue, Yellow, French Blue, Celeste, British Green, Legnano Green, Sakura, Wakakusa and Indigo Blue, 13 in all. For brakes, sold in 2 m lengths.

Choosing the right cable
for your bike.

Brake and shift cables differ in diameter and construction, and the basic rule is to choose an outer that matches your inner. Nissen itself recommends consulting a mechanic who can see your actual bike about installation and compatibility. At Rubi Workshop we choose the right combination for your bike and install it for you.

From loom springs
to bicycle cables:
the Nissen story.

In 1948 a small factory in Kishiwada, Osaka was making springs for weaving looms. When it began making bicycle brake wire, it became Nissen Cable in 1973. For years it made cables behind the names of bicycle and brake makers; today it presents SP31, its colour outers and its vintage outers under the Nissen name.