I carry my 4 wheeler in the bed of the truck quite a lot and because I have a short bed with a cross over tool box, there is a lot of weight on the tailgate.

I am starting to get concerned about the stock tailgate cables breaking over time. Is there an after market replacement that is stronger/better/more reliable, something like a hinge?

Thanks,
~Rob

 

that 4 wheeler won't hurt you tailgate cables. i have had 3k on a dodge tailgate before and it held, i was kind of amazed it held myself.

 

Here's a testimonial on how strong the cables are.
I took my 3k empty 28' gooseneck flatbed in for new tires, left it with the truck. Came back to pick it up later that day and drove off. Little did I know they had disconnected the trailer and failed to insert the safety pin and hook up the chain. A couple miles down the road the trailer came off bending the tailgate into an L. The cables held and I was able to pull the trailer a few hundred feet off the highway by the cables only, landing gear dragging to begin cussing.

 

I had my cables snap when I let my tailgate drop once This also happened to my buddy so I know first hand CHECK YOUR CABLES.... Both sets rusted out in the middle, it seems with the TG closed the water can run down the inside of the plastic jacket and there it sits rusting the cable inside ( SS would be nice) DC price $75 cdn for the pair However if your cables are good and theres no shock load to them they will probably hold more than the TG can.

 

my bables snapped also when i let the tailgate drop, but the tailgate just don't flop down it just drops a couple inches

 

Mine snapped and put a nice crease in my tailgate. As soon as I can find or make a set of hinges for it, I will.

 

That's what I am concerned about. Rusting of the cables. I know a few people with Chevy's that this happened to (one was putting his quad in the back of his truck when the cable snapped, luckily he escaped unscathed, truck not so lucky). I believe Chevy had a recall for certain years to fix this.

~Rob

 

Chevy's do have a recall on the tailgate cables, however they haven't found a stainless cable supplier for their stuff yet so the recall doesn't really help. You may be able to adopt the 1" metal folding straps. I remember those on my grandpa's '76 chevy heavy half. I've had 2500lbs of chicken feed on my tailgate when the forklift operator wasn't paying any attention.

brandon.

 

If you watch the cables you should be okay. If you see them bulging in the middle of the cable the rust is expanding and they should be replaced. I have one brake and I replaced both of them. BTW, I think you can get them at O'Rileys alot cheaper.

How about a little silicone on the ends to seal them?

 

I just pickup a pair of tailgate cables for US $13.95 plus shipping on ebay. I will let you know how they work out, one of the factory cable snap on my 2001, rust thru. a break in the plastic casing.

 

I need to replace one cable on my truck also. I was backing my 4 wheeler off and heard the cable breaking/stretching. Fortunately I pulled the 4 wheeler back into the truck before the cable completely broke. Same story. Cable rusted out. A few flexes and I had two halves.

I just looked at the ones on the "HELP" rack at the auto parts store, but they look prettly lame. "Made in China".

Curious to hear how the ones are that are being sold on E-bay.

 

just do the pre-emptive strike and buy a brand new pair and put 'em on... if you wanna go super overkill, smear some RTV at the ends to prevent water from being able to get in. oughta be another decade or so before you start to wonder/worry again.

Forrest

 

Doesn't ANYONE fab a metal strap for these trucks? I want to haul my 1000 lb golf cart in my shortbed. Between the cart and me (another 300 +) I am VERY afraid the cables will not hold up upon loading. Does ANYONE have any suggestions?

 

RTV on the cable ends with some electrical heat shrink over top of the RTV.