[TR] Speedo and Tach Cable Problems, Part 2

[Randall]

> I realized that the inner cable was
> compressed and simply ground off the length to make it work. The result
> was
> an unraveled cable at the ground-off end.

FWIW, most auto parts stores sell a 'universal' inner cable that is designed
to be cut to length.  To avoid unraveling, it comes with a solid metal
terminator that crimps over the cut end, and has the square drive for the
speedo/tach head.

>  I made a 0.125" square
> cross-section pig and inserted it into the dizzy (I was addressing the
> tach
> problem at the time) and found that it inserted an inch or so, more than
> enough to accommodate the entire pressed end of the cable. 

Worth pointing out, perhaps, that the dizzy/gearbox end is not normally what
sets how far the other end of the cable protrudes.  As I mentioned before,
there is a sleeve inside the cable at the speedo/tach end that should
control how much the end protrudes into the gauge.  Otherwise, the inner
cable can slide down into all that excess clearance, and miss the head
mechanism entirely.  And the excess clearance is needed, because the length
of the outer cable changes depending on how it is bent (more than the inner
cable does).

Also, there are also at least two different 'standard' sizes for the square
ends.  The Volvo J-type OD I bought has a gear with a smaller internal
square than the original Triumph gears do.  None of my cables or angle
drives will mate with the Volvo gear, even though they work fine with
Triumph gears.

Randall