Building custom cable assemblies for pulling and other uses

I use a custom shop-built pulling rig for removing and installing some of my more difficult hoses that must be winched out and into place unless I pull the track frames off of my tracked machine. After breaking the pulling rig, again, after the last install, I broke down and purchased a hydraulic crimper with multiple dies for building a wide variety of cable sizes and building them correctly. This also works well for crimping custom welding cables or battery cables. It's something that I should have invested in many years ago but I never really thought about it. The rebuilt hose-pulling cable assembly above was my first test of this new tool. I am satisfied that this one won't break easily. I purchase this 20 ton hydraulic unit with 11 different die sets from 16mm-400mm for about $110 from Ebay. It's a cheap Chinese tool but it is working great. It's a small investment for the amount of time it can save me. Lots of times I could use cable assemblies for different projects so this will be a matter of convenience and time savings. I got onto Amazon and found a selection of cable end crimps, thimbles and other associated hardware to go with the crimper. I figured for those who might need but never have thought much about such a tool, a post about it could be helpful.

That IS a great idea! What is on the cable end under the threaded side?

MarcusZ1967 said: That IS a great idea! What is on the cable end under the threaded side? Click to expand... This particular hose (4 of them on the one machine) has an ORFS straight female coupler at the hydraulic motor connection end of the hose. See the pic on post #49 here: https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/mulching-the-daily-grind.107550/page-3#post-1258684 The cone shaped leader is bored straight through and can slide/rotate as needed on the cable. It is nothing more than a leader to push away any debris and forge a path through the corners for the plug/connector to follow. The 3/16 coated cable is inserted into the ORFS plug that has been bored straight through at the cable sheath outer diameter with a slight counterbore for the compressed wire rope stop sleeve at the threaded side. In the pic above (post #1), the cap is on the plug in order to keep it clean. These pullers that I make work well but I did not have a proper way to crimp & install the stops properly enough to handle heavy winching loads. Now I do. I use cargo strap winches and heavy MuleTape when I work these lines. The MuleTape is rated for at least 6k lbs and slides easily without getting cut or worn easily. The cargo straps are too wide to pull through easily, hence the MuleTape. I always keep both on my service truck. I tie a thin MuleTape to the end of the hose prior to winching it out so that I have a pre-laid puller for the heavier MuleTape needed to install the new line.

Here's your pic. Some of this stuff might be better than tape, and it's good stuff to have on hand. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9PRMII?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

treemuncher said: slight counterbore for the compressed wire rope stop sleeve Click to expand... That's what I was wondering. Saw the "holes" in the plug and wondered on setscrews.....

MarcusZ1967 said: That's what I was wondering. Saw the "holes" in the plug and wondered on setscrews..... Click to expand... That was my former connection method with a pressed & formed stainless filler rod to make a swivel connection. Worked fine until I had to crank down hard on the winch. After 2 strikes with that method, I looked into cable compression tools to build it the right way.

Joe H said: Some of this stuff might be better than tape, and it's good stuff to have on hand. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9PRMII?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1 Click to expand... That looks to be pretty much the same as the Mule Tape that I always use. Normally, I use a 6k lb tape for pulling with the cargo strap winches as the power head. It's slick, won't cut easy and it is easy to de-knot. It's one of my favorite tools on the service truck and around the shop. If you need to score some cheaply (or free), find someone in the underground utilities work or the phone company. Mule Tape is used to pull wires through underground conduit. Some companies will only use it once and then scrap it. I have a friend who works for BellSouth and he has rescued a couple of reels out of the dumpster and given them to me. 800 lb, 1600 lb and 6000 lb tapes are what I have used so far and all of them have exceeded my expectations. Found another puller that I had used, built with crushed nuts to bind the cable while in the field on a job. Cut the nutted ends off and made it right for the next needed use. I'm really liking this tool!

I use one of those chinese finger trap pipe pullers with a swivel. Let's me pull the protection sleeve as well using a zip tie.

Mule tape is the Amazon link, not heard it called that. It's like duct tape, good for 1000 uses. Joe H

Zewnten said: I use one of those chinese finger trap pipe pullers with a swivel. Let's me pull the protection sleeve as well using a zip tie. Click to expand... Last time I need one of those really bad, the local electrical shops did not carry them. I've seen them at the Ditch Witch dealer but did not have time to burn for a 5 hour round trip. I've been willing to try one but not sure that it could pull as hard or spread the debris as well as what I build. Some of my lines get packed in with debris tightly, even though I keep thing washed out better than most. Lots of times, I can build something faster than I can chase after it so I build custom tooling for some repairs. Time is money. My tools make life easier and save me time. Once built, I've got it for the next go around.

I never had the specific mule tape but we always had similar webbing used for tying parts down on pallets so I always used that and electrical tape to cover the knots and slick it up. Always worked great especially if I had somebody to help push pull and twist the hose while I tugged on it. Used it the most on telehandlers. Most people hated telehandler work but I really enjoyed it when I figured out the tricks to removing and installing the booms, chains, and lines and adjusting everything right