8 replies to this topic

[Joe250]

I purchased a new speedo drive cable and tried to install it into the pinion gear on gearbox. It refused to go in. I removed the pinion gear and compared it to the end of the drive cable. The female opening on the pinion is too small compared to the end of the drive cable.

 

I ordered another cable from MiniSpares. Same result. The pinion gear does not appear to be damaged. Both cable ends are tapered and smooth. I realize the two should be a tight fit, but this seems wrong.

 

Any ideas?

 

Thanks,

Joe

[Northernpower]

They do fit its just a little time consuming. The original inner was square, the replacement is flat and fits diagonally across the square hole in the drive.
Fit the outer and then thread the inner from the speedo end through it until you feel resistance. Carefully grip the end of the inner with some round nose pliers and gently turn it until it engages in the drive.
Once it engages push it home with the pliers. You'll know it's engaged because you won't be able to turn it.

[Joe250]

Except the replacements I have are both square. Exactly square.

 

I put a mic on both the cable and pinion drive and there is a difference around 0.1-0.2mm between them. Is this normal?

[Spider]

I've had a few cables that have been too big and I've also had some new pinions that were too small!

 

In both cases, all I've been able to do is to grind the ends of the cable to make the square a little smaller. If you are going to do this, you need to be very careful that you offer up the cable to the wheel the right way so it doesn't try and unwinds the strands. You also need to use a very fine wheel and use very low pressure.

[Joe250]

I was afraid of that. I'll give it a shot and report back.

[Northernpower]

Except the replacements I have are both square. Exactly square.
 
I put a mic on both the cable and pinion drive and there is a difference around 0.1-0.2mm between them. Is this normal?

Sorry, I must have mis-read your post. Good luck with the grinding and take your time.

[nicklouse]

you sure there is nothing stuck in there?

 

I remember the ones I have fitted had diamond cross section on the gearbox end.

[Guess-Works.com]

There are two sizes to the hole in the end of the speedo pinion, early ones are smaller ( or rather the metal is thicker ) the later ones are a little bigger on the aperture.  The ovaloid shaped ones should fit both.

[Joe250]

I ground down the end of the new cable enough to fit. I'm not convinced it will hold up for a long period of time, but I'm hoping that I'm wrong. I'm going to test it out and see what happens.

 

Thanks to everyone who responded.