Choke Cable Rebuild

[exit64]

My choke cables were too short after years of being cut by previous owners. I was going to buy a new assembly but decided to see if mine could be repaired first. I'm glad I did as changing the cable and housings cost me a whopping $9.50 and two hours of time. Here's how I did it.
1. Remove choke assembly form the radio console. Watch for the spacer that falls off when you pull the assembly out of the back of the console. About 1/8th in thick and tends to roll to a hard to reach spot.
2. Remove the end of the assembly where the two cables exit. I did this by putting the choke assembly in a vise and gently working the end off with channel locks. It is swedged to the housing but can be slid off with very little effort. Once off, the choke slide can be pulled out the end of the housing. Don't pull it all the way out until you take a digital pic of make a drawing of how it all goes back together.. Don't ask me how I know. Once you do that, pull the slide out the end of the assembly and push the square plate that holds cable out of the slide assembly.
3. Cut the cable and remove from the housing.
4. Go to the local bicycle shop and get a brake cable for a tandem bike. It is plenty long so if you fray the cable you can cut it shorter again and still have plenty to work with. Get new housing also. The cable should be the bigger size. 1.5 mm and I like the Shimano housing. A little bit more money but worth it in the long run. I know this from building and riding mountian bikes. Use a Dremel with a cut off wheel to cut the cable. Wrap the cable with masking tape and cut thru the tape and the cable won't fray.
5. Unscrew the old cables from the housing by turning them counter clock wise. Mine came right out but left the old plasic in the hole. I just drilled it out on the drill press. Cut the new housing to the right length and put them into the metal housing. If they are a bit loose that's OK they get glued into the housing. Stand housing on end in a vise with the cablehousing sticking out and then use JB Weld quick set to glue them in place. The JB should go around the out side of the metal housing and around the cable housing about a half inch up. Then put a wrap of masking tape around the uncured JB Weld to hold it in place while it cures. Make for a nice neat look and the tape comes right off once the Weld is cured.
6. Take the new cable and cut the metal ends off and then halve the cable and put each end into sqaure metal plate with the two holes. There is will be a short side and a long side. Once you adjust the length, push the cable down flat to the sqaure plate. Put the plate back in the slide assembly and pull the slide assembly all the way back into the choke assembly. This will leave some play in the cable when you put the end back on the choke assembly.
7. Thread the cable ends into the new housings and push them thru the being careful not to fray the ends. Now slide the end over the choke assembly. DO NOT kink the cable or it will not slide thru its full range once reassembled. Once the end is on and working freely take an punch and swedge the end back onto the choke assembly. Reinstall in the car.
Hope this helps someone save some money and have a smoother choke set up.
Mike

[ppeters914]

Nice write up!

Hey, Steve, I'm thinking this shouldn't end up buried in the forums, but be an article in the Restoration Tips or Engine Tech Info.

[S Allen]

Yep, I will add it along with all of his other great info he keeps posting of late. Keep 'em coming.

Steve

[dbrick]

Just to clarify, was the outer casing too short, the inner wire too short, or both?

[exit64]

Outer casing was cracked and on the verge of being too short. The inner cable was so short that there no way not to have at least 1/4 inch of choke pulled all the time. The cable also looked like used dental floss it was so frayed. I just got back from my first good drive in this car after owning it since April. There's a hole in the exhaust pipe and the rear has a little growl in hard cornering to the right but it still put a grin on my face. So to sum it up, there were 3 problems that has been keeping this one from running well, carbs needed to be tuned up, choke cables were too short, and the distributor was shot. Problems solved and she's a runner now!
Mike
AKA Exit64

[S Allen]

Put it in the wiki. This is for the early choke cable.

http://www.311s.org/pmwiki-311/pmwiki.p ... ChokeCable

Thanks Mike.

Steve

[Jimmers74]

What is the correct length of each housing? I understand it can be cut to fit, but what is the standard dimension?

[spl310]

What is the correct length of each housing? I understand it can be cut to fit, but what is the standard dimension?

If someone has NOS choke cables, the dimensions would be a welcome addition to the Tech Wiki.

[C.Costine]

I have a set of cables from a '68 that hasn't been driven since 1975. The housings measure 31 and 37.25, and the cables are both 2.75" inches longer withy the knob all the way in. The ends have nearly no fraying.

[spl310]

I have a set of cables from a '68 that hasn't been driven since 1975. The housings measure 31 and 37.25, and the cables are both 2.75" inches longer withy the knob all the way in. The ends have nearly no fraying.

1600 or 2000?

[todd lorber]

There was a choke rebuild post in the tech wiki which I found extremely helpful-saved me like $190.00 on one choke cable.
Also, I had one cable that was a bit frayed at the end. I was able to use some flux, solder, a micro torch to stick the strands together-kind of like the end of a shoe lace. It was a bit difficult holding the cable twisted while soldering without a 3rd hand, but it was doable. The cable now goes through the carb easily.

[C.Costine]

I have a set of cables from a '68 that hasn't been driven since 1975. The housings measure 31 and 37.25, and the cables are both 2.75" inches longer withy the knob all the way in. The ends have nearly no fraying.

1600 or 2000?

It is a 1600.

[spl310]

Anyone with a 2000?