How to fit a new Breakaway cable

[MisterC]

I need to replace mine. I've bought one but it is just a plain wire at the handbrake end. The current one has a fairly substantial crimped loop at the brake end. Obviously the new one needs to be made into a loop somehow, but the only thing with it is a small U clamp. I could loop it into the clamp and tighten it, but is this how you do it? Thanks in advance.

Paul

 

[Damian]

Paul, yes you can do what you suggest, in fact that is what the clamp is for

 

[Allyson]

Mister C

Hope this helps

http://www.nationalcaravan.co.uk/downloads/resources/breakawaycable.pdf

 

[WatsonJohnG]

Its the other end that is the problem

If its not got a ring like this

http://www.waudbys.co.uk/products/details/17000.html
Then thread the wire through the brake where the old wire was attached,fold the wire over so that you have 2 parallel wires coming from the attachment point and put the U clamp round and tighten the 2 nuts so that the cable can not slip

Hope that helps

 

[Mikey1]

I think there must be a tool that closes this u crimp as its very difficult with pliers

 

[WatsonJohnG]

Are we talking about a U bolt or a crimp

Crimps are very hard to close

I used a small hand vice as I couldn't get the van up to the bench in the garage!

The cable that Towsure do has a split ring like a keyring on the end

I was going to post a link last night but their website was down

Will add it below if possible

 

[Mikey1]

I think the geniune Alko breakaway cable has a crimp,its like a steel hook that you need close after you have fitted it.

 

[WatsonJohnG]

That's what I had but Mister C talks about a U clamp which some do have.

Either way we've covered both options between us!

Regards

 

[otherclive]

There wasa recent article either in PC or the Caravan Club mag on how to fita new cable. For a crimp the best way to bend it is to use mole grips and progressively close them up in small bites. This way you can have more force and control than using pliers.

Other Clive

 

[Chrisbee]

I've just fitted an Al Ko carabineer type using mole grips to crimp the hook end at the brake. If you use small adjustments of the mole grips it's easy enough to do.

Chrisbee

 

[Mikey1]

Hi Chrisbee

How do you secure your carabineer type to the car?Do you go around the towball or do you clip it on?

 

[Chrisbee]

Hi Mikey

As I have a detachable towbar I've fitted a dedicated bracket which the carabineer clips on. Due to the position of the bracket my normal cable wasn't long enough to loop round to clip back on itself, the new cable fits perfectly as no loop is required.

Chrisbee

 

[Mikey1]

Hi Chrisbee

The reason i asked is because i read the below on Al-Ko's website.

AL-KO currently offers two types of breakaway cable:

1) This is the standard cable fitted to most AL-KO overrun devices. It is designed to be looped once around the towball and clipped back on itself to form a noose. Or the hook should be passed through the eyelet on the towing vehicle and again clipped back onto itself. This cable clip should never be clipped directly onto an attachment point.

2) The new style cable from AL-KO is intended only for those users who have detachable towbars and have been advised by the towbar manufacturer not to the loop the cable around the towball. This cable has a new design of clip, which can be clipped directly onto an attachment point, provided that the attachment point allows the cable to function as described above.

 

[MisterC]

Thanks for all the info everyone. As I suspected there's a lot of ambiguity surrounding this. Mine is a carabiner type at one end and plain wire (no crimp) at the other, with a separately supplied small U clamp secured by two nuts. I think I can take it from here.

Regards

Paul