Inline Tube Clutch Cable Information

I talked to the guys at Inline Tube today about their Clutch Cable for v6 CJs (this would be the 'long' cable - and I believe oem there were 2: one for 3speed and one for 4speed but both were close to 58"). Chuck, the sales manager and one of the tech researchers for various applications, said they would love to get feedback on whether their cable is working and whether is the appropriate length and specs. This is there cable (FTJ01 or SFTJ01 for stainless cable):
1966-72 Jeep CJ-5 Clutch Cable, Stainless

This cable has come highly recommended from members here as a much more quality and durable unit than the commonly found Crown cable available at all the common early jeep retailers. The Crown unit:
Crown Automotive J0992533 Clutch Cable for 66-71 Jeep CJ-5 and CJ-6 with V6 Engine
The Crown unit, which aside from its durability issues, seems to fit oem set-ups perfectly (at least it does on my 70 v6/T90/D18). The Crown unit specs:
OAL is listed as 58.25" (and verified by measurement)
Length of the cable housing (using the mating surfaces on each end): 38.5"

In comparison, the Inline Tube cable seems to be too long for the oem v6/T14/D18 application (not sure about a T86). Both the specs Chuck gave me over the phone, and measurements taken on a recently ordered unit by Fireball, confirm the cable OAL is longer than the Crown unit, but the length of the cable housing is the same. Here are some details:

Inline Tube - they record their cable measurement as 53.125", but that does not include the clevis and threaded rod ends. Using the info from Chuck, and putting it all together:
cable length (53.125") + clevis (2") + rod end (4.75") = 59.9"
OAL measurement of an actual bought unit comes out at 61.5". (Chuck did not have the length of the rod in front of him, but he thought it was 4.75 - some of the pics of that rod suggest it may be longer).
Length of the cable housing measured at 38 5/8"
The extra length would necessarily be a problem if the length of the cable housing was longer by the same amount. But in this case the inner cable is too long relative to the cable housing.

So Chuck was very open to getting feedback from the forum on whether their cable was correct or if it needed the specs changed. As he said, he hasn't gotten a lot of negative feedback on it, but often those in this hobby are often okay with modifying it a bit to make it work. Ideally, they do want it to be correct with no modifications required. The other challenge is that many on here buy this cable when doing a swap to a 4 speed, and thus those fitments feeback may not be useful as they want to recreate OEM set-up specs. (But I do think a few old threads suggest this Inline Tube cable works great for a T18, but unfortunately, that would probably mean its too long for an oem 3speed.)

So, if you have used this Inline Tube Clutch Cable (either SFTJ01 or FTJ01), please give feedback on whether it worked on an OEM set-up with or without modification. If any of you have old parts books and information, please post it up. Chuck will need those details before moving forward with making a proper length cable. And as both he mentioned and we know from experience, its sometimes hard to know whether your jeep has been modified, but a few of us have very original and restored vehicles that would be very helpful....If you post up, please include your vehicle info in the post (like year, engine, transmission etc).

Many thanks!

 

And figured I copy over the measurement Fireball and I took to show some of the concerns from a previous thread:
Crown info:
OAL of the inner cable including the pedal yoke: 58 1/4" as Crown specs state.


Length of the sleeve/cable housing between the mating surfaces - 38.5"


Length of the threaded end for the clutch fork adjuster nut - 3.5"

 

And this is from Fireball's post:
It's the part number they specify for 66-72 Jeep CJ-5:


Dimensions:

Mating surface of casing to mating surface of casing: 38 5/8"


Total inner cable length from tip of threaded end to center of the pivot pin: 61 1/2"


Total length of adjustment threads: 3 1/2"


...and fitting it under the Jeep which is a 1971 V6 with a T14 and factory looking cable brackets on the frame and transfer case, it looks too long.

This is with the housing ends lined up with the brackets and the pedal end of the cable lined up with the existing cable:


Looks like the inner cable needs to be about 4 to 4 1/2 inches shorter. The housing length is very close to the original.

Might be perfect when I put in the T-98 later, but it's definitely not a bolt-in to the Jeep as is.

 

yes - I corrected both typos from 35.5 to 38.5 and 35 5/8 to 38 5/8. THANKS!

 

you are exactly correct...If the cable really was 53.125", the total length would be 58.25" which is exactly what its supposed to be....Guess i should order one and see whether it comes with the reported 53" cable or the 56" cable you got....

and why do they use that incorrect clevis?

 

Not at all - i appreciate getting real measurements....it'll be interesting to see which cable I get as maybe they have some error in their production....or you at least know what you got isn't correct and can hopefully get it fixed (or keep it for the T18 swap)....I also found it odd they reported the cable length the way they did - not OAL but just cable length. In the end, all these clutch cables (and brake cables) like to report OAL, but it doesn't really mean anything without the length of the sleeve either....I always feel like there isn't enough information on these for sale parts and its hard to get. I do appreciate Inline Tube answered the phone and got me actual lengths etc - so gonna give them a shot and see what we get.

 

I received the inline tube clutch cable and thought I'd post up final measurements here and confirm that it comes as they report:
I ordered SFT-J01 (SS) - the SS is the stainless steel version.
OAL of the cable is 58 1/4"
Length of just the cable is 53" (which is how Inline tube reports the length of the product)
Length of the cable housing (mating surfaces) is 39 5/8"


I haven't installed it yet, but it does match up exactly with the Crown version - so it looks exactly right. Just as everyone mentioned and can see from the pics, the pedal clevis will need some bending/opened up a bit.

 

I'd check in with them and see what they would do...not sure how long its been as that could be an issue, but they do show an interest to make sure their stuff is right and to be helpful. They seem to want to earn good business.