Lube clutch cable?

LIke many before me, I broke the clutch cable on my '08 Hammer, while on a ride. Luckily I knew the clutch cable was prone to breaking and had a Suv-U-Ride taped in the side cover. I was back in business in 10 mintues. I replaced the clutch cable at the end of last season. I put a dab of grease on the end of the clutch cable when I put it on. Is that enough? Is it good to lube the entire clutch cable? I have seen those lube tools that allows you to fill the cable housing with lube. Doesn't that get all gummed up? Should I be doing that? Thanks!

 

IF, read IF, they are like the clutch cables on a XCT, don't lube the entire cable. The silicone lining or what ever it is will react with the lube and make the cable difficult or impossible to operate.
The ends should be greased with every oil change on mine (5000 mile) per service manual, with the short oil change interval on the 08 it might be every other change. There is a AZ Victory video on here to show how this should be done, but if you have already changed one that may not be of benefit.

Cheers

 

Beg to differ. I use cable life lube on my own and my customers bikes with every service. The cables pull beautifully, and we very rarely see failures with my customers. Victory's cable lube is the worst stuff ever. http://www.protectall.com/cablelflong.aspx

 

Thanks KevinX. I always thought we weren't supposed to lube the cable as well.

Do those tools that hold the cable while you lube it make a difference, or is it just conveinence?

 

Those tools rock. A couple 3 second blasts through one of those, and the cable is lubed; top to bottom

 

Thanks for the replies. I did a little more research. It seems like you are not supposed to lube a teflon lined cable. Does anyone know if the Vic cables are teflon lined?

 

The one on my '12 XCT that broke was and it Pulled hard at the end of its 20k life as the Teflon was all gunked up inside the sheath. The replacement is smooth and easy to pull again but we will see how it is at the end if the season with 25k on it. I only ever lubed the end barrels, not sure what the dealer did if anything.

 

Vic says to not lube them. My expieriance says they last much, much, much, much longer; if you use cable life cable lube. I'll stick with happy customers, and long lasting cables

 

I have 08 KP which I lube every year and have never had a problem with I will no doubt do same with my 13 CCT, gumming up is caused by type of lube used IMO
Regards

 

If KevinX who makes his living says to lube with cable life why question it. The only thing I'll add is make sure the barrel on the end is smooth as well as the bore in the lever. I take a little fine emery and polish them then lube with lubriplate. Cross my fingers I've never broken 1 after doing this. If you notice they always break at the barrel if it doesn't rotate in the bore the cable is bending all the time.

 

I will give the lube a try and smooth the barrel. My original cable broke after 8k miles. It broke right at the barrel, so what catwrench59 said makes sense. Hopefully I will get some more miles out of this cable, but I will keep the Sav-U-Ride in the side cover, just in case.

 

I just had a very pleasant email discussion with a couple of Protect All VP's. Their stance is that the manufacturer says don't lube it's not necessary, replace the cable if it wears.

But they also see no reason their Cable Life product would degrade the PTFE coating... I had hoped for a bit more but also understand why they have to hedge. I also perceive that possibly someone from a manufacturer has warned them off of stating openly it's ok to use it on their cables but that's just conjecture on my part.

So, I've tried it Victory's way - now I'll try it KevinX's way. If the silly thing goes bad or breaks again and they won't warranty it due to the use of the lube I'll make a Save-Ur-Ride cable a somewhat permanent improvement or shell out for the WD's hydraulic upgrade.

 

The only negative I've heard of, but never seen, is having lube leak through the stainless steel braid and into the casing and discoloring the cable.

 

Oh well. I lubed my cable before I saw this. I'll just wait and see the result.