Steering Cable for 66 Mustang

Hi Guys,

I have a 1966 Mustang and my steering cable has always been tough to move back and forth.
Now after sitting for the winter her in Minnesota it has frozen up completly. I removed the cable and it looks original with
a for bolt white pivot that mounts to a ball on the stringer and a spring loaded clip that
mounts it the the ball on the rudder arm. I can't seem to find any numbers or lettering on either the cable or the steering unit behind the wheel. Does anyone know who made the cable, part #'s and where to get a new one? I would appreciate any help!!!

Thanks,

Pat

I think I got mine from SkiDim also. I can get the part number later today. I think it was the 17ft. one, not positive. I believe I had the original in our 68, too. It was a faded blue/hospital green color. I ran into three issues. First, you need to order the clevis kit (not really a problem). Second, the tube on the cable that gets clamped into the clamp block is not removeable. Therefore, you need to also buy a tube. Third, once I had the tube installed, it was not quite as long as the original and I did not have enough throw to make an even swing between left and right steering. I did not feel the cable would throw out enough to make turning left what it once was. Because I was under the floor fixing everything my solution was to move the clamp block rearward about 2.5 inches. This gave me what I wanted for the port swing on the rudder, and gave me a little room to adjust it back if necessary.

Are you able to access the back of your stringer to get at the bolthead?

Measure and mark your entire pivot range on the rudder port. I did not do so, which may have led to my thinking. Just did not look like it sent far enough to me.

Pat,
Here's the spacer and long bolt trick used to remove the shaft coupling:



The coupling to the shaft should be a interference fit so they can be difficult at times to remove. If your's comes off easy and there's a black "smut" at the bore of the coupling and on the shaft then the coupling has fretted due to bad shaft to engine alignment. Hopefully you'll be ok. Get out the micrometer and measure. The bore should be .0005 to .001 under the shaft. Now, since it a shrink fit, to get the coupling back on, you'll need to heat the coupling in your oven at about 450 degrees for several hours. This will allow you to slip the coupling on the shaft before it cools.

Before you go to put the coupling back on, you should check the face to make sure you haven't warped it when removing it. A flat file accross the face is the easiest but chucking it up in the lath and using a dial indicator is best. If it is warped, then it needs to be pressed on the shaft and a facing cut taken to true it up.

OK I got the shaft off thanks to Peter's handy trick with the spacer and two bolts.
The couler is about a little less than 0.001 smaller than the shaft so I should be ok there, but now you have me worried that I might have warped the face. What is the best way to check it if I don't have a lathe to chuck it up in? Also any advice on old style shaft packing vs. the new style seals that SkiDim offers.

Thanks,

Pat