Phil C Posted April 1, 2022 Report Share Posted April 1, 2022 Evening All, Just had a frustrating hour or so trying to fit the rear handbrake cable to my Vitesse. I just can't see how to thread the cable through the two rear guides. The threaded ends seem too long to allow the cable to negotiate the bend. Obviously it does and I am being a numpty but I admit failure 🤓 Please put me out of my misery. The cable is new and the car had no cable fitted when I bought it so I have nothing to go by. Many Thanks Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonMember Posted April 1, 2022 Report Share Posted April 1, 2022 It is, far too long. There's no way it negotiates that bend. Instead, you feed it straight through, feed plenty of cable behind it, then feed the end through the other hole with a loop of cable poking out. Feed that through then un-loop it into position. Much easier done before fitting the body to the chassis (or the diff or drive shafts, if you've not had the body off). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted April 1, 2022 Report Share Posted April 1, 2022 Thread it through the guides like this: Straight through, pull through enough cable to form a loop so that you can thread the second end straight. Pull through. so that the cable lies on the guide. It's easy when you find out how! John 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted April 1, 2022 Report Share Posted April 1, 2022 Been there but cheated! I cut the thread off leaving around 3/4in on the cable end then threaded the cable thro and used a female threaded bar barrel joiner to reattach the threaded bar I’d cut off with 1/2 nut locknuts. Where there’s a will there’s a way, looks tidy and works, but if you can do it as John says it’s original and obviously better. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil C Posted April 2, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2022 Thanks all, I will give it a go later today. Its got bleeding knuckles written all over it 🤨 15 hours ago, NonMember said: Much easier done before fitting the body to the chassis Thought I had this covered as last year when I was advised this (on this very Forum) and the body was off the chassis. I therefore fitted everything apart from this cable!! Just didn't see the problem at the time and thought it would simply thread through from the sides 🤓 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted April 2, 2022 Report Share Posted April 2, 2022 Ha we have all been clever afterwards its easy if you do as described a make a hook/loop feed it over the slides and stop trying to feed the threaded end through as you found is impossible so big baggy loop and up and over should solve your sticky plaster resolve Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil C Posted April 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 What a job! Following the advice given I eventually fitted the cable to the guides but my joy was short lived as the cable did not appear to be long enough. With all three ends adjusted to permit the maximum length and tensioning it as best I can it was still about 1" too short. I note the 1600 cable is listed separately from the 2 litre. Do they differ in length and could I have been supplied the wrong one? Or is there something else I need to know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 14 minutes ago, Phil C said: What a job! Following the advice given I eventually fitted the cable to the guides but my joy was short lived as the cable did not appear to be long enough. With all three ends adjusted to permit the maximum length and tensioning it as best I can it was still about 1" too short. I note the 1600 cable is listed separately from the 2 litre. Do they differ in length and could I have been supplied the wrong one? Or is there something else I need to know? You have got a rotoflex handbrake cable? But there may be a problem with some of the cables being incorrect anyway: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonMember Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 15 minutes ago, Phil C said: I note the 1600 cable is listed separately from the 2 litre. That sounds wrong. However... Your photo is of a Mk2 with Rotoflex (CV converted), and the cable guides on the body tub. Mk1 and 1600 had the cable guides on the chassis. It's quite likely that a Mk1 cable is a different length to a Mk2. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daverclasper Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 2 hours ago, NonMember said: It's quite likely that a Mk1 cable is a different length to a Mk2. I'm pretty sure I have read this before, either on here or CT forum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 1600 and mk1 cables are different length to Mkll rotoflex a good while back cables were being supplied to the incorrect length mkll is 151227 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil C Posted April 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 Clive, thanks for the link, very useful information. (Its strange but I spent a while searching the forum before posting and never found that one) I will try and measure my cable (which also came from Paddocks🤔) but could be difficult to be accurate now its installed and I'm loathed to remove it given the epic struggle to fit it today! I did use a donor herald tub to which I welded guides taken from my scrap Mk2 tub. Although I did measure carefully it is possible this might be the cause if slightly out? 1 hour ago, Pete Lewis said: mkll is 151227 Checked the invoice and it is a 151227 listed. However the cable was loose with no part reference on it when it arrived. I am beginning to think I might just extend the threaded end to make it fit. Least hassle solution! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 I think that’s also why I used the threaded bar joiner threaded barrel nut to get the extra length of threaded end reqd. I did also locknut the threaded barrel nut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteH Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 104749 Fork End. I fabricated my own, it was not particularly onerous task. Is there any reason why they could not be made longer to compensate for the short cable? Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted April 4, 2022 Report Share Posted April 4, 2022 2 hours ago, Phil C said: Clive, thanks for the link, very useful information. (Its strange but I spent a while searching the forum before posting and never found that one) I will try and measure my cable (which also came from Paddocks🤔) but could be difficult to be accurate now its installed and I'm loathed to remove it given the epic struggle to fit it today! I did use a donor herald tub to which I welded guides taken from my scrap Mk2 tub. Although I did measure carefully it is possible this might be the cause if slightly out? Checked the invoice and it is a 151227 listed. However the cable was loose with no part reference on it when it arrived. I am beginning to think I might just extend the threaded end to make it fit. Least hassle solution! You can make longer forks for the clevis pin, or extend the fork. Possibly just one side.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted April 5, 2022 Report Share Posted April 5, 2022 im sure there is a posting with the lengths on but i cant find it Pete a barrel nut or long fork sounds a a simple solution Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted April 5, 2022 Report Share Posted April 5, 2022 Just measured my spare handbrake cable from Canleys 171cms long . Threaded section 5.5cms Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil C Posted April 5, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2022 All installed now and working fine. I did try and measure the cable length but this proved too difficult with it on the car. Anyway I'd decided it wasn't coming off whatever length it was and I would simply extend it as necessary to fit. In the end I welded in a 2" section on one side rather than source a barrel nut. Hopefully my weld has penetrated adequately 😳. 8 hours ago, Pete Lewis said: im sure there is a posting with the lengths on but i cant find it According to Chic Doig (see Clive's posting above) the length should be 69.5" or 177mm. Thanks all for your help with this. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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