Shortening Throttle Cable

skrew37

Member
Local time
9:20 PM
Joined
Feb 22, 2011
Messages
47
Location
Jeannette, PA
I've searched around here for an answer, can't find one, so I'm posting this. I need to shorten my throttle cable, but I want to do it from the throttle end, not the carb. end. My question is this: Can I cut off the barrel, drill it out with success, trim the cable to length, and solder the barrel back on? Or is it easier to make a simple mold (like making sinkers) and make my own end by melting solder, filling the mold, then grinding and shaping to fit? Any ideas?
 
I was reading a thread on the other forum about just using silver solder and a mold to make a new barrel, they claimed it held up very well.
 
That's what I'm gonna try. I just bought some more (and better) solder. I tested the concept with a piece of wire and the mold made of wood. I drilled a 13/64" hole, cut a slot with the dremel and used a random piece of 18GA wire as the guinea pig cable. It worked beautifully. I can't wait to finish this build so I can post pics. I think the only thing original on this bike is the frame. Even the headlight was built from scratch and looks awesome. I'm pretty proud of it. I hope it runs....
 
throttle cable

Its easier to shorten the carb side of the cable and there is a video on how to do it. I did it myself with a butane torch and bit of silver solder. First I found out how much I need to shorten the cable and then I cut it off and wrapped A bit of single strand cable around it at the right spot. I then brazed the silver on to the point were it needed it and then used a Dermil tool to shape it so it would fit in the carburetor assembly. Its worked grate ever since.

P.S. after I cut the cable I took it out and greased the cable while I had a chance.

mike
 
Last edited:
You should post a link to the video retro!

Greasing the cable is pretty necessary. If I could find a solid enough way of keeping it sealed, I'd love to do a graphite powder packing.
 
I've heard it might be easier, but I hate to go through all the trouble of messing with the carb. Now I'm not sure how I want to go about this... I'd like to see the video on it though. What I've done so far is route the cable in such a way that there's minimal slack. It works for now until I'm ready to take on this task. Oh yeah, other than that, I think I might be ready to post some pics... where would be the best place to post them?
 
I finally shortened my throttle cable. It worked. I didn't use the "wire wrap, solder and cut" method though. After cutting the black cable housing and marking where I wanted to solder the new end, I simply de-soldered the old end, slid it up the cable to where I marked the new length with a sharpie, and soldered it in to place. I cut the extra cable off and grinded it to shape with a dremel. Fits, holds, and looks perfect. Thanks for everyone's help!
 
Back
Top