Window Cable Clamps.

[nodbe]

My window cable seems to have given up and I remember someone had some special
pinch clamps for the cable ends.
Anyone know if these are still available or any advice how to clamp the cables without breaking the glass please?

[69S4]

That would be Alex Black. As a recipient of Alex's expertise and generosity I can say that the bolts work very well and have now been clamping my cables for a couple of years without any sign of things loosening off. They work by using a grub screw machined into the end of the bolt to take over cable clamping duties so the nut only has to hold the bolt in place in the glass - something that takes much less tightening and therefore less chance of breaking the window.

In the event that Alex isn't in a position to help at present I have seen (many years ago) an alternative method which uses the standard bolt. Usually (in the windows that I've seen anyway) the bolt is a sloppy fit through the hole in the glass. A thin steel collar (cut from a tube in the case I saw) is put into the hole in the glass and the bolt goes through this. The collar should be just longer (by about ten thou or so) than the glass is thick so that when you put the bolt through it and tighten it up with the cables pulled tight it's the collar that takes the pressure not the glass. Using fibre washers helps as the collar bites into them rather than spreading under bolt compression. The hard bit is sizing the collar. The ones I saw were finished on a lathe but if you can do that then Alex's method is better.

[jcocking]

Alex is no longer supplying these parts.

[billwill]

Jeff has posted a separate message about Alex Black's status see:
viewtopic.php?f=50&t=48581

~~~~~~

Alex's design for the window clamp actually has two grubscrews down the centre (of the bolt that goes through the glass) The tips of the grubscrews meet at the sideways hole through which the ends of the cable are threaded. So the grubscrews hold the cable while the nut & fibre washers hold the bolt (lightly) to the glass.

I guess Alex found it easier to mount the bolt in the lathe chuck (or collet) with the head outside and then drill and thread-tap all the way through. That's easier than mounting the bolt inside out.

[Bud English]

This is fairly easy to accomplish with just a drill press and drill press vise. I made some door switches with the correct thread using this method. Place a drill rod that's the same diameter as your bolt in the drill chuck. Lower the quill and clamp the drill rod in the vise using the vertical v-guide in the vise. Clamp the vise to the drill press table. Loosen the drill chuck and vise. Replace the drill rod in the chuck with the correct drill bit for the tap you want to use. Clamp the bolt into the vise and drill through the length of the bolt using cutting fluid/oil. Tap the hole and your good to go.

Sure wish I had a lathe and mill.

[prezoom]

Those are two tools I use constantly. I think I would die without them. Thou, I just recently clawed my way into the 20th century, adding three axis DRO to the mill along with a digital gauge, similar to a digital caliper, to measure quill movement.

[Craven]

viewtopic.php?t=17367&p=90573

viewtopic.php?t=23541&p=149035