Cable Tangle

[Stubborn66]

Need to put another cable on my rollback, I got another kink in the cable.  This is the third one on a year. 

 

I use 3/8 steel now but the the first one was fiber core and that one got a kink as well.

 

I am starting to think I am doing something wrong but don't know what.  I know a cable has a twist in it, either right hand or left hand, but I don't see how that would affect the way it winds on the drum.  The tensioners were replaced after the first cable kinked.  They are tight against the cable even when the cable is slack.

 

When I install the cable, I attach it to a car and pull the car up a slight grade to keep tension on it as I wind it on the drum.  Even pulling straight on to the drum the cable seems to have trouble "walking" back and forth on the drum.  I have to help it a bit with a 2x4 so it doesn't over wrap itself.  Once I get it on, it put tension on it with the bridle on the back of the bed so it gets some memory.

 

Once I start using it, if I free spool it out, when I stop pulling the drum will keep unwinding a bit and the cable will start to unwind on the drum.  Then I have to take time to get it wound straight again before I start putting pressure on it.  Of course I missed it once again on this cable and got another kink so I want to replace it before it fails.

 

Cable is here but I was wondering if anyone else has had this issue and what they did?  Restrung the wrecker with 7/16 and that works fine?????????

 

Thanks

 

 

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I use the heavier rated, steel core wire rope on my truck and they can be a pain to keep wound at times. A few things I have done to minimize those issues are 

1= wind it on tight ( like you stated you do)

2= keep your wire rope oiled well. I use PB brand chain and cable lube. I pull my line out, re-spool it and oil each layer on the drum at least every other week.

3-= try running your winch a just a bit slower. You get the same pulling power even at "half throttle" so to speak. This was a big one for me. I have a pretty fast winch and it would wind up so fast the line would skip all over itself at full blast.

4= Try not to pull your line off too fast. Just yanking it off makes it slack off just a bit behind the tensioner because the drum is again, spinning too fast. When I am pulling line, I hold it against my hip and simply walk back from the truck so it pays out at my walking speed. Most will grab it with one hand, and rip on it one arm length at a time while walking back. ( keeping it well oiled and wrapped properly makes it pay out like butter )

5= try to only pull the length you need. winding back 20' of line with no load causes it to wind up loosely which then allows the line with weight on it to get pulled in between the looser wraps. Next thing you know, bird nests and kinks a plenty..

I know most of this sounds like common sense, but if you really pay attention to how your using your line, you will notice that these are the things that are causing you grief. Believe me, I did.. 

Hope some of this helps.

[Chuckud]

I have used "super swedged" 3/8 to avoid this problem, but it is super stiff as well. It seems to be better against kinks or crushing but it can be difficult to keep straight on winch drum.

[Stubborn66]

Thanks Guys,

I think the biggest thing is that I have not lubricated the cable any where near what Grumps is doing.  I would spray the lube on with the initial wind and then not do it again for months........when I felt guilty about not doing it.

I also tend to bring out more than necessary at times, I do generally wind in slowly when starting out but would run fast once I got everything in line.

 

Gonna re-spool this afternoon

[GRUMPS The Towman]

4 hours ago, Chuckud said:

I have used "super swedged" 3/8 to avoid this problem, but it is super stiff as well. It seems to be better against kinks or crushing but it can be difficult to keep straight on winch drum.

Super Swedge... Thats it!!! Thats the one I use too. for the life of me, I couldnt remember what it was called last night when I wrote the first post. lol. 

It is a great wire rope, Strong as hell, definitely kink and crush resistant, but very very stiff and can be a pain in the A$$ sometimes.

The super swedge line is a 7/16" line that is re-swedged into a 3/8" line. Its a lil pricey, but worth it in my opinion.

[Stubborn66]

I did not get the Super Swedged, didn't figure I needed the extra capacity on the roll back but I didn't know it was better for kink and crush.  Will see how this one holds up, and try in on the next one if I need to.

 

Re-spooled it yesterday, lots of lube, plenty of pressure.  .... We shall see

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I use and equipped my roll back for recovery work which is why I ended up trying it out. I run with 100" on the drum too which I think may have also added to the wind up issues I was having considering the truck came equipped with only 50'. It comes in shorter lengths too I believe so that may offset the cost a bit if you dont want 100' on your roll back. 

[Stubborn66]

I had 75 feet of cable on it when I bought the truck, I forgot and ordered a 100' cable this time, it fills the drum, that's for sure.  I like the extra length but we will see how this works.  I had to get lube and ended up getting a wd-40 chain and cable lube.  Not sure that I like that, it seems too thin.  I am going to look for something that sticks a little better

[TowZone]

We have a Lube Sponsor in the Works, I'll post more info soon. With the increased traffic along with active topics look for more sponsors and active reps as well. Watch for it, actually it's better then WD40 however there is a paint on graphite lube that is the best. I still have a can of it as I bought it on a two for one several years back. Not sure the name.

[GRUMPS The Towman]

Thats great news Tow Zone. I much rather prefer to buy and use products from this sites sponsors as opposed to certain other suppliers... 

As long as their products are quality of course.. 😁

[Orcas Tow]

For the last 20 years I have used nothing but the Super Swaged 3/8 wire rope on my 8 TON Chevron wreckers (150') & Century series 12 rollback (100'). I lube weekly with WD-40 as from my experience anything heavier is gummier & collects sand/dirt/gravel if it hits the ground. It has a smooth exterior compared to the standard non swaged wire rope so it spools, lays better & will not crush as it is more dense. It is stiffer but I have never had a failure & would not use any other wire rope on my equipment.

With that said I did make a modification to my 2015 Century series 12 winch, the winch guide side rollers were not spaced far enough apart & would not let the wire rope reach the edges of the winch drum causing repeated spooling issues for me early on. I bought a wider winch guide & modified it to fit so the side rollers allow the wire rope to reach the outer edges of the winch drum when spooling. It took some modification but works well. I dont know why miller did not address this as it is a poor design.

Edited January 25, 2021 by Orcas Tow

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I too swear by the Super Swedged line. I wont use any other line anymore on any of my rigs.

Although, I will admit I have been contemplating trying out one of the new synthetic lines to see how they hold up.

 

[Stubborn66]

I dont have the super swedge at this point, I did see it but didn't think I needed the extra rating capacity.  Next time around I will go that route.

 

For now, this cable is laying better and I have used the PB blaster chain and cable lube and it is definitely working better.  I am also winding much slower than I used to based on Grumps suggestion and that seems to be helping.  I was going to get more of a chain lube but based on Orcas comment I will stick with the PB or WD40.  I will definitely keep this one lubed much better.

 

I also pulled out both cables on the wrecker (7/16) and lubed the hell out of that one and respooled it as well.  I had not been having issues with that one but I was not lubing the cables enough

 

 

Thanks

Stay Safe