Choke cable lubrication quick tip

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,989]

Quick tip to fully lubricate your throttle or choke cables.  Remove the cable from the engine side.  Stick a ¼” vacuum hose over the end of the cable.  Using some sort of a syringe which fits on the vacuum line, inject oil or grease into the cable.  I used marine gear oil to help with potential water intrusion. Gently squeeze the oil into the cable until it comes out the other end.  Work the cable back and forth and viola, cable is fully lubricated.

[ri702bill 9,527]

I take a slightly different approach. I remove the cable assembly and place it vertically in the vise with the knob end up and pulled. Drip the MMO down the inner cable, and place a paper towel on the floor under it. Repeat several times until the oil migrates thru and the spot appears on the towel.

[peter lena 9,308]

@nylyon @ri702bill  been using super lube hydraulic oil for years , have also used light  extension springs  , on cable mount point holes , to assist  pull to close function . rectifier  mounting spot  has 2  perfect  light bolts , to attach , a small  piece of   perforated  steel , for spring pull point . think about it , every time you  move throttle / choke  lever , its spring assisted to close , have this on my 3 units . on initial trial , how can I MAKE THIS WORK EASIER ? every time you  move lever  , it has spring assist  slide help  to close they all  consistently  work ,  always tweaking  around , pete

[C-85 768]

Although not very fashionable, I've stripped off all the black plastic outer sheathing on the cable and then soaked the whole cable with oil.  I have long thought  the black plastic sheathings tends to hold moisture within it and can't escape causing it to rust and fail, that's what I do and what it looks like.  Here's a sample.

 

C-85

 

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,989]

How does that hold up in the winter?

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,989]

Going to do the 310’s tomorrow, I’ll take some pictures to show how it works.

 

[Cee245 846]

I've had luck with these.  I've had several over the years.  Usually from losing them, but they hold up well enough.  

 

You put it over the end of the cable amd secure it, wrap with a rag cuz its messy and let it run down cable by gravityof possible. 

I've just used wd40.  I was able to free up the choke cable on 2 tractors I recently picked up.  

[JoeM 8,427]

1 hour ago, C-85 said:

Although not very fashionable, I've stripped off all the black plastic outer sheathing on the cable and then soaked the whole cable with oil.

 

Especially if you make the cable into a loop or two to open the coils a bit. I have started to use 80w-90 on a lot of cables and joints, it has more rust preventive additives than motor oil. 

[ri702bill 9,527]

Ariens SnowThto throttle cable is plastic coated too. And it would freeze us solid in cold weather. I cut a Vee notch away in the outer sheathing at the underside of the 6 o'clock position in the loop to let the moisture out. Gravity caused the problem, let gravity fix it...... Hardly noticable & it works.

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,989]

Easy to do start by removing the cables from the engine side.  On the 10HP Magnum this is 1 screw

 

Add your lubricant of choice to your syringe, I am using a bicycle brake bleeding syringe, but I think a child medicine syringe would work as well. 

Hint: Don’t add more than you are willing to clean up should the host pop off, or you have leak somewhere.

 

On the cable you will be lubricating, slide the ¼” vacuum tube over the end.

 

 

Apply firm pressure to the syringe pushing the oil into the cable while working the control on the dash until you see clean oil coming out.

 

 

Put the cables back on and you’re done.  This tractor took all of 10 minutes for the throttle and choke cables.  I will probably make this an annual maintenance item should keep the cables moving easily and free from rust.

[peter lena 9,308]

@nylyon @ri702bill @JoeM@Cee245@C-85     you are right there , for spring pull assist !# 10 picture !  rectifier  mount  2 bolts  just above that , add a  small piece of  PREFORATED metal to bolt point , have any  light  extension springs  to experiment with ? prorated metal to multi holed cable mounts , outer edge for  leverage advantage . every time you  , move throttle / choke the  spring pulls against it , try spring  swap for more / less drag assist , every time you move the lever  its spring assisted , to close  no more hack saw  dragging noise . thats what  I have . you have the lubrication  assist , now add the spring pull , dare you to try it ! talk to me , pete

[Retired Wrencher 5,836]

On 8/11/2025 at 8:52 AM, nylyon said:

Quick tip to fully lubricate your throttle or choke cables.  Remove the cable from the engine side.  Stick a ¼” vacuum hose over the end of the cable.  Using some sort of a syringe which fits on the vacuum line, inject oil or grease into the cable.  I used marine gear oil to help with potential water intrusion. Gently squeeze the oil into the cable until it comes out the other end.  Work the cable back and forth and viola, cable is fully lubricated.

Nylon I have been using one of these for a very long time. It was originally made for motorcycles, but I’ve been using it on snowmobiles and all my tractors. It works very well. Just my two cents Nylon.

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,989]

Same concept