Regarding " ...when did colored housings become available..." here are some time points for cable housing colors:
1) 1955 Ron Kitching's "Everything Cycling" catalogue (available from Chuck Schmidt via his Velo Retro website): silver, red, bordeaux, light blue, petrol blue, green, yellow, white, orange, violet
2) 1952 Brown Brothers catalogue: silver, red, blue, green, yellow, black, white
3) 1952 Holdsworth Aids to Happy Cycling catalogue: silver, red, blue, green, yellow, black, white
4) 1949 Holdsworth Aids to Happy Cycling catalogue: silver, red, blue, green
5) 1939 Brown Brothers catalogue: black, silver
Peter
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Peter Brueggeman
La Jolla California USA
pbrueggeman(AT)ucsd.edu