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Has anyone used Autozone parking brake cables? UPDATE Raybestos are terrible

thegreatjustino

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Red Head Grease Monkey
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Jan 23, 2002
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15,715
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Stockton, CA
This weekend's project was to finally get to the leaky rear wheel cylinders. My parking brake has never worked well and I know the passenger side rear cable is frayed. Tearing the brakes apart today it's obvious that both need to be replaced.

Autozone has replacement cables and I've got a gift card to use. In the pictures on their website, the cables seem much less heavy duty than the OEM ones. The fingers that hold them in the backing plates seem particularly weak.

Anyone ever used local autopart store cables? Any opinions?
 
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sykanr0ng

Bronco Guru
Joined
Aug 11, 2014
Messages
5,363
They will be made in China.

The Chinese are working very hard at driving the last US brake cable maker out of business by dumping their product on the US market at below cost.
Of course after they have a monopoly they will not need to have low prices.
 

Apogee

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Bronco Guru
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Nov 26, 2005
Messages
6,037
Control Cables in Sante Fe Springs, CA can make custom cables to whatever specifications you want. You pay custom prices, but they're still cheaper and better IMO than Lokar universal cut-to-fit cables.
 

KyddsPly

Sr. Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2012
Messages
941
I think I have a set of cables in my garage. I can check if you like.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

Seventee

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Dec 7, 2012
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In the sticks of MT
I tried a set of parts store cables, don't remember which brand but I think Oreilly. They were so bad I didn't bother to install and ended up returning them. I found a decent used set instead.
 
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thegreatjustino

thegreatjustino

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Stockton, CA
So I bought a set of Raybestos cables from CJ Pony parts and boy do they suck. The fittings that press into the backing plates are 3/32 too small so the cable just wiggles around in the hole. Does the manufacturer not realize a press fit item should press in tightly and securely?

Has anyone ever found aftermarket parking brake cables that work well?
 

bronconut73

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Aug 7, 2012
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9,916
BC's seemed fine/great but we were hooking them up to BC's rear Caddy calipers if that matters....

And yes they were available separately.
 
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thegreatjustino

thegreatjustino

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Thanks. I know the caddy calipers would use different cables than stock rear drums, but I'll check to see if BC has stock cables.
 

Skiddy

Bronco Guru
Joined
Oct 8, 2003
Messages
11,557
This weekend's project was to finally get to the leaky rear wheel cylinders. My parking brake has never worked well and I know the passenger side rear cable is frayed. Tearing the brakes apart today it's obvious that both need to be replaced.

Autozone has replacement cables and I've got a gift card to use. In the pictures on their website, the cables seem much less heavy duty than the OEM ones. The fingers that hold them in the backing plates seem particularly weak.

Anyone ever used local autopart store cables? Any opinions?
I may try and do that one weekend too, I think my park pawl will thank me%) of course it will be a little while. keep us posted on the cables
 

stevew

Bronco Guru
Joined
Jun 21, 2001
Messages
2,101
Loc.
Elliston Montana
I have replaced alot of park cables over the years , stock & extended . Always bought from JBG & never any problems . The style has changed over the years from really close to OEM to now black sheathed cables but still tight fit & such .
But the way aftermarket parts are going , in reality you never know what you're actually going to receive . :p
 
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thegreatjustino

thegreatjustino

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Jan 23, 2002
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Stockton, CA
Every single picture I see from Autozone to Napa to Bruin all look like the crap I got from Raybestos. The portion that clips into the backing plate is so light duty compared to OEM. You'd think in 50 years, the parts would improve vs. what Ford engineered in the '60s.

Looks like I'm making some calls tomorrow.

Thanks for all the suggestions.
 

CopperRanger

Bronco Guru
Joined
Sep 26, 2007
Messages
1,795
I have replaced alot of park cables over the years , stock & extended . Always bought from JBG & never any problems . The style has changed over the years from really close to OEM to now black sheathed cables but still tight fit & such .
But the way aftermarket parts are going , in reality you never know what you're actually going to receive . :p

X2 on this. I used extended from Jeff's, install went fine, seems like a quality cable, no problems yet.
 

bronkenn

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Bronco Guy
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Apr 27, 2017
Messages
2,663
Loc.
Southeast Ohio
I just got my Raybestos cables and they do suck! Doing a complete resto and they build crap that I wouldn't put on the truck. The right hand one has hose clamps on it to adjust the sheathing to fit. They must have hired Mickey Mouse. Just going to clean up the old ones and use.
 

jdbronco

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Oct 2, 2010
Messages
289
Loc.
Panama City Beach
I remember when I replaced mine, I got cables from one vendor (can't remember who anymore) and the passenger cable had a crappy rubber sleeve in the middle so you could adjust the length. It would just buckle and you could never get enough tension for it to be functional. Went to another vendor and they had a nice solid sheathed cable. Wish I could remember now who was who, but at least it points to the fact that they don't all sell the same crap...
 

SeanT4x4

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Joined
Oct 2, 2013
Messages
185
Are the ones from Toms and WH just as bad? Ive been meaning to do this myself
 
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