‘65 side mirror cable adjust issues?

[DShoes]

I’ve lost the correct tension from the three cables that allow adjustment of the side view mirror. As such, my mirror won’t stay in place while driving. My sense is that the cables have gotten stretched a bit too long. You can see one strand has even broken. 
 

I’m a little nervous about cutting and recapping as this may make them too short. Also not sure what to cap them with that will still fit / anchor appropriately in the joystick housing. Thoughts / suggestions?

[Seafoam65]

The big problem with these mirrors is that the cables corrode and seize up on the other end

where they connect to the mirror.......remove the screw on the mirror head and lubricate the cables with penetrating oil

and see what that does for your problem. when I bought my car the mirror was completely frozen and wouldn't move at all till

I did this........now it works great.

Edited September 13, 2022 by Seafoam65 (see edit history)

[DShoes]

Thanks Seafoam. Will give that a try. 

[RodA67Riv]

If you end up having to recap... I would suggest cutting the caps off with a dremmel cutting wheel. Slice down the length of the cap to create a spreadable gap while leaving the cable intact so that the cable length is unaffected. Use a screwdriver to spread the gap until the cap is free from the cable. Or... if you have the caps, replace the wire cables altogether remembering to insert the cables into the spring sleeve before capping them on both ends. 🤪

Edited September 14, 2022 by RodA67Riv
clarification (see edit history)

[DShoes]

Good thought Rod, especially on using the Dremmel to not lose length. Tricky part is that I think I need to reduce the length of the cables a fraction so that they are pulling evenly and at the right tension. At least your method gives me more cable to work down. 
 

Now where to find those end caps….?

[RodA67Riv]

1 hour ago, DShoes said:

Good thought Rod, especially on using the Dremmel to not lose length. Tricky part is that I think I need to reduce the length of the cables a fraction so that they are pulling evenly and at the right tension. At least your method gives me more cable to work down. 
 

Now where to find those end caps….?

Good luck. Maybe try working with these and form them into shape. Seems like you'll need a decent crimping tool as well. Maybe something like this.

[RodA67Riv]

One other thought... going back to the original problem which is that the mirror doesn't stay in position when you're driving. Does the adjustment knob also move around semi-freely? From your picture, it looks like there's a spring washer in the assembly which presumably would keep tension on the knob. Maybe the issue is with the knob's free play and not the cables? If so, check the spring washer. Maybe try flipping it over if it's not pushing on the knob correctly.

 

And... last thought... Does this screw do anything to tighten the tension on the mirror itself?

Edited September 14, 2022 by RodA67Riv (see edit history)

[gungeey]

If the cables were corroded I would think the mirror would be stuck in place, not flopping around. I find them with the cables in the wrong slots of the know but that makes them tense up, too. They were originally color coded to prevent a mix up. Your cables look quite a bit more banged up than average. I wouldn't want to play with them too much. I'd end up scratching the inside or the outside of the car. 

My thought wouild be to get a badly pitted mirror (CHEAP) and gut it out to use on my good chrome bezel. 

 

[telriv]

Follow gungeey advice & get a replacement.

 

Tom T.

[RIVNIK]

Im stuck inside at the moment or I would check, but you might be able to use bicycle type cable caps on those ends

[RivNut]

I found an older post in which the guy took his broken mirror to a dental technician who was good at working with wires (braces) and soldering.

[Hans3]

JB Weld to act as makeshift cable cap shims?  

[rodneybeauchamp]

On 9/14/2022 at 12:06 AM, DShoes said:

I’ve lost the correct tension from the three cables that allow adjustment of the side view mirror. As such, my mirror won’t stay in place while driving. My sense is that the cables have gotten stretched a bit too long. You can see one strand has even broken. 
 

I’m a little nervous about cutting and recapping as this may make them too short. Also not sure what to cap them with that will still fit / anchor appropriately in the joystick housing. Thoughts / suggestions?

I just did a similar thing on a ‘63 remote mirror with great success. I had one brass retainer ferrule thingame missing on one wire so removed it from another mirror I had. Drilled out the wire with a small number drill and soldered it back on. Found I had to cut each wire back to the same length to get it to adjust correctly but that is normal on a Buick to do things twice 😀😀😀😀

 

You should have enough length in the cable to lose an inch or two (25.4mm or 50.8mm) and still function correctly but just check before you cut it. As a previous responder has mentioned, check that the right colours are in the right slots. They are often faded so repainting them helps both on the wires and the control knob. 

 

Failing that you might be best to find another mirror with good internals that you can swap out! 
 

Just my two bobs worth

Rodney 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃

[RivNut]

Look on Google images for bicycle cable ferrules. Some interesting looking possibilities.

[DShoes]

Ed / Rodney, I think you're on to something! Currently investigating these bike cable ferrules from Amazon and will report back.