what speedo cable for KMP #174

[FatBoy]

Originally Posted by mickmate

Yep you're missing something. The cable has a spiral to it. If you hold a spiral at one end and twist it one way it tries to open or unravel. If you reverse the twist it tries to get smaller but in the case of a speedo cable it just bottoms on itself and doesn't get any smaller. The manufacturers recommend using the reverser at the speedo end but doing what you did reverses the cable rotation direction.

What do you take me for Nick?

That bit I'm fully aware of.

The point I was making is that depending on which end of the cable the "reverser" is located will dictate whether you need a standard or reverse wound cable. If the reverser is on the gearbox, then the cable will spin in reverse rotation, as was the case with my Contemporary. If, on the other hand, the reverser is at the speedo end of the cable, the cable will spin in the conventional direction and a standard wound cable will be required.

Paul

[steve meltzer]

My reverser is attatched to the speedo head, NOT the gearbox. So, I'll need a conventionally wound cable, right? However, if I used a reverse wound cable, won't I be able to ditch the reverser, which, as I recall, puts an unwanted kink the speedo cable. thanx. s

[FatBoy]

Originally Posted by steve meltzer

My reverser is attatched to the speedo head, NOT the gearbox. So, I'll need a conventionally wound cable, right? However, if I used a reverse wound cable, won't I be able to ditch the reverser, which, as I recall, puts an unwanted kink the speedo cable. thanx. s

That would be a very useful cable that somehow changes the direction of rotation somewhere along its length.

The "reverse wind" on the cable is simply the direction of the twist in the individual wires that make up the cable core. The cable needs to be driven in a direction that tightens the twist rather than attempts to unwind it. Therefore, if you have a reverser on the gearbox end, the cable will be driven in the opposite direction, so you need a cable core that is twisted in the opposite direction to prevent it being unwound in use.

Make sense?

Paul