Cutch Cable Install Issue

I made this video last night. Easier than trying to type out an explanation. Any suggestions? I was thinking perhaps Ill just purchase the cable shortening kit and install the threaded end onto the cable after running it through the clutch tube. Did some research on this site only to discover I would be changing the cable every 500 miles or so with the shortening kit.
Two concerns here, Obviously the first is how I get a clutch cable into the car. The second is, WHEN the cable fails and I am on the road, how do I replace the cable. Tom was kind enough to send me to replacement cables, one spare, but if I cant run them neither do me much good.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Paul

Only thing I can think is that when the pan was shortened they didn't do that tube properly, as you can see in the pics in this link. Not sure how I would go about fixing this. The tube surely needs straightened out a bit somehow. Maybe Alan has an idea.

http://www.shoptalkforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=117282

Hi Paul,
I have an old Pan base car, you have a tube frame but
Your problem was the same as mine. I could not get the threaded end all the way into the tube. About the same length too. I came to the conclusion that there is a blockage in the tube that will not allow the threaded portion of the clutch cable to pass through. However when I cut the threaded end off the cable it went through easily. Then reconnect the wire/threaded end with 1/8" U-clamps (any Ace Hardware will have them, use at least 3 or 4)
THE FIX:
I just cut the wire near the threaded end like you did with your temp fix. I then overlapped the cut clutch cable and threaded end and clamped them together with 1/8" U-clamps close to the clutch arm. It works perfectly and I have had no problems with the U-clamps.

Great Video. I left my seats in. Get the U-clamps and get ready to drive.

Cheers
Dave

Dave,

Great advice, I think it is my only option. I do not have a torch, not to mention the fuel and break line are right there. Also would be afraid to collapse the clutch tube all together as opposed to shifting it's position. The wire clamp worked great for me up at the pedals hook... Ill try it in the back at the transmission arm. By splicing the cable the assembly will remain adjustable as the cable stretches. THe only thing I do not like is if the cable were to go, I then have to jack the car up (no jack in the car) and limb under to undue the wire clamps as opposed to simply taking off the 'wing nut' in order to pull the cable through.
Bill, This car is not built around a shortened pan, only the rear suspension components are used from the VW up to about 4 inches in front of the shift rod coupler access. The clutch and throttle cable are new and fabricated/welded in by the builder. Great link, Thank you.

P

You shouldn't have to cut the threaded end off.....what is probably happening is the straight end is coming against a radius in the clutch tube. ~Alan

Alan,

I agree, you shouldn't have to cut the threaded end off. You are exactly right, the radius of the bend in the clutch tube is too tight. The threaded piece can not get by at this point. Any suggestions as to a fix. Would love to be able to keep the clutch cable in one piece.

Bill - an enriching bonding experience lies in your future.

Mine just went (i think) about an hour ago. Walked home in the dark and now what?
Had to start thr car in third and drive around in a circle till I could merge onto Hwy again, oh the madness!

Ha ha...

Paul, maybe cut an inch off the threaded end so it can make the curve. Just a thought.

Or Send some wire (stiff) from rear to front wrop it around the threaded end (maybe shrink wrap it to) and try pulling it back through.
Crab the bull by the horns instead of the tail!

I'm off to go inspect my car and see if I can get it back home before the rains come...

I agree with Bill. My approach would be to cut an inch off the threaded end to help shorten the effective bend radius pf the cable. Maybe you can try this with the cable you already have that is broke.

Other option would be to have a custom cable sent to you without the end crimped and buy the crimping dies. Try California Push and Pull over here on the west coast. They have never let me down.

Good news, when my clutch cable was adjusted it twisted the cable tight and finall unsprung itself while driving. A little WD40 on the treads and it is now adjusted (tightend) properly.

Paul, how you making out?

You could try spinning or twisting the cable instead of trying to ram it through. Almost like treading it through the bend.

One tip I learned from a friend of mine in the air-cooled VW bid'ness is to use a rubber band when hooking the cable to the clutch pedal. The rubber band should be wrapped around so as to hold the cable on until you have enough tension at the adjuster to keep it in place. No more expletives due to a cable that cames off at one end just as you get it on at the other. This helped a bunch when I replaced my pedal cluster recently.

I cut 1/4" off the threaded end, then another 1/4" prior to even posting this thread. I do not want to lose adjustability. I have also tried spinning the cable. No good. For now the fix is to go back with the wire clamp and stainless eye at the clutch pedal, run the cable from back to front. The only true solution is to get into the tunnel, heat the tube and correct the issue. If/when I sell this car I do not want to hand over instructions, measurements, kit of parts information for someone to replace the clutch cable. Just not going to compromise, clutch cables break, and never when you want them to. Its an easy fix on the side of the road when things are "as they should be".
I appreciate all of the advise, and have certainly thought all options over.

Kelly (the rocket scientist) went to a boat shop south of Annapolis and had an exact-length, thread-matched cable made by a guy who works on sailboats. The cable diameter is greater than the VW original, and I think it makes it possible for a straight shot to the pedals without that infernal "S" tube.
Kelly's a genius. He'll remember the shop he went to; I THINK it was a WestMarine.
It's also important to remember that the cable needs to pass through a nylon bushing in a flange on the tranny case before bending upward to the clutch fork. If you don't have the bushings, the cable will fray over time.
I've lost a couple to that particular malaise. I figured it out and bought a few of the bushings; they're white, and cost about nothing.
I asked Carey to mail me one of his cables, with the wing nut on the end. It works great, too. Kelly had a different length of cable run for his JPS, so Carey's solution wouldn't have worked for him.
Food for thought.

To elaborate a bit more, although there is an old post of mine that covers the whole thing I did w/ pictures, stored on this Forum somewhere. I cut a regulation length VW cable to the right length and got the threaded part from the marine rigger dude. The threaded end needs to have a hole drilled in it to accept the bare wire cable end. The threaded part was stainless and is what they use to make rigging parts, turnbuckles, etc. Note: The VW cable was cut by the rigger, so that the total finished length of the assembly would match my requirement. The cable went in the threaded rod and was crimped into place using the correct die and a big machine, which is what they have at the sail-makers shop. Still, when done, there is the rigid straight piece attached that will not go through a tube with too sharp a radius. If that is the nature of the problem here, then no way around that aside from straightening the troublesome tube, or fixing the business end at the cluth AFTER the bare wire is threaded through. The clamps used have never gotten a good review by those who have used them, as I hear it. I'd fix the tube, if it were me. And plastic gromets to ease the cable wear at the hard tube ends is a fine idea. I guess the Borden tube between chassis and clutch arm at the back serves this purpose.

Good luck. And I'd just bend/beat on that tube to straighten it, and forego the use of a torch -- that would scare me.