Hobie Mirage Drive Idler Cable

After a quick trip to Trinidad yesterday I became concerned about what I've now learned is the idler cable on my hobie mirage drive.  I've had the drive for about 3 years now.  I PM'd a well respected local friend who recommended checking with Pacific Outfitters in Eureka for the part. 

They didn't have the cable but they helped me tweak it back onto the idler pulley and put the correct tension on it.

I've got the new part ordered and can pick it up when I return home (LA).  This temporary fix should hopefully be good for my stay here in Humboldt. The drive functioned, even with the cable off the pulley, but I feel better about this for now. And the new part should be waiting for me when I get back to L.A.   

Here are pix of BEFORE temp fix -- and temp fix …

Thanks for the reminder. 

I had an idler cable come off the drive when I was in the middle of Lake Tahoe last week.  The Mirage drive leash found its way under the cable and wedged it off the drive.  Luckily nothing snapped.  I just loosened the cable, put things back together.  I then tightened the other cables as well.  They were a bit loose as well.

I can only imagine that headache that would have been if I had to do it in ocean swells.  Good reminder to do the preventative maintenance checks on the drive. 

Has anyone put together a Mirage Drive checklist?  or Maintenance checklist?

Might be nice to make one if one does not exist.

After a quick trip to Trinidad yesterday I became concerned about what I've now learned is the idler cable on my hobie mirage drive.  I've had the drive for about 3 years now.  I PM'd a well respected local friend who recommended checking with Pacific Outfitters in Eureka for the part. 

They didn't have the cable but they helped me tweak it back onto the idler pulley and put the correct tension on it.

I've got the new part ordered and can pick it up when I return home (LA).  This temporary fix should hopefully be good for my stay here in Humboldt. The drive functioned, even with the cable off the pulley, but I feel better about this for now. And the new part should be waiting for me when I get back to L.A.   

Here are pix of BEFORE temp fix -- and temp fix …
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You stated that you've had the drive for about three years.  Was it new or used when you acquired it?  I've never seen the coating on the cables crack like your photo shows.  But thanks for the alert; just checked my four drives, including several vintage 2005 or 2006 models, with no damage like you experienced.  I'm thinking heat damage on yours. 

The drive was new-- came with my new kayak when I bought it.     

I doubt it was heat, but who knows.  The drive does not live in my closed car and it does not get that hot where I live - close to the harbor in L.A.

I have encountered some "foreign obstacles" in LA Harbor from time to time (ropes, cables, other underwater junk).  Some of that may have damaged the drive but I do not really know for sure.

I have put quite a few hours on this drive, not as much as some people I know, but still, I use it often.

I am still interested in some form of checklist -- something owners do to "tune up" their drives … things to check.

This is what I do when someone brings their drive in to be serviced. I advise everyone to do this at least once a year, more if in the salt and sand. We hate to see people ruin a vacation because they don't have the parts to get on the water. I also keep a few drives around the shop just in case. I've pulled parts from spare drives for people and rebuilt their drives on the spot. After you do this a few times it goes by pretty quick. I can do one in about 30min.

Remove the 3 nuts from one side
Remove the drum and clean it out really well
Check the SS shaft for deep scratches or signs of ware.
Grease up the shaft and drum and slide it back on
Throw away the nuts as once they are removed they are useless, the slotted cable ends chew up the inserts and they won't stay tight.
Install new nuts and thread them on till a few threads are showing through the nylock.
When I remove the nuts and cables off the other side I also do the sprockets and the long shaft that runs the length of the spine.
I pull the shaft and sprockets off then clean and regrease.
Once this is done I move on to the idler pulley.
Remove the set screw and pull the idler shaft out and remove the pully.
Clean the housing then regrease and reinstall the idler.
At this point I check that the chains are in the correct time and start to tighten them up. It's all by feel for the correct tension, they all are a little different.
If you have a V1 drive do your self a favor and upgrade to V2 drums and cables. The cables are actually cheaper and the drums add a bit more torque and reduse stress on the crimps
The cable coverings crack and dry out over time.
The pedal arms can be a problem too. They screw in to plastic on the inside, best thing is to tighten them only, not remove them. (V1 had nuts on the inside) There is no real reason to unless they break. If they have oblongd the adjustment holes you'll need new drums to fix it right.
I'm sure some one can add more or there's a part I'm forgetting.

Not a bad idea to carry a spare idler cable and a few small expendable tools on the boat in case of a breakdown. Hobie drives are pretty dependable but they do have parts that can break over time. I keep a cable and a cheap open end wrench and allen wrenchs, along with a couple nuts and split rings for the fin masts in a bag kept in the side pocket for an emergency.

Thanks for the update.  Makes me nervous.  I think I'll throw a spare drive in the vehicle for Albion.

This is what I do when someone brings their drive in to be serviced. I advise everyone to do this at least once a year, more if in the salt and sand. We hate to see people ruin a vacation because they don't have the parts to get on the water. I also keep a few drives around the shop just in case. I've pulled parts from spare drives for people and rebuilt their drives on the spot. After you do this a few times it goes by pretty quick. I can do one in about 30min.

Remove the 3 nuts from one side
Remove the drum and clean it out really well
Check the SS shaft for deep scratches or signs of ware.
Grease up the shaft and drum and slide it back on
Throw away the nuts as once they are removed they are useless, the slotted cable ends chew up the inserts and they won't stay tight.
Install new nuts and thread them on till a few threads are showing through the nylock.
When I remove the nuts and cables off the other side I also do the sprockets and the long shaft that runs the length of the spine.
I pull the shaft and sprockets off then clean and regrease.
Once this is done I move on to the idler pulley.
Remove the set screw and pull the idler shaft out and remove the pully.
Clean the housing then regrease and reinstall the idler.
At this point I check that the chains are in the correct time and start to tighten them up. It's all by feel for the correct tension, they all are a little different.
If you have a V1 drive do your self a favor and upgrade to V2 drums and cables. The cables are actually cheaper and the drums add a bit more torque and reduse stress on the crimps
The cable coverings crack and dry out over time.
The pedal arms can be a problem too. They screw in to plastic on the inside, best thing is to tighten them only, not remove them. (V1 had nuts on the inside) There is no real reason to unless they break. If they have oblongd the adjustment holes you'll need new drums to fix it right.
I'm sure some one can add more or there's a part I'm forgetting.

Jeff, thanks for showing me this when I was in your shop (Headwaters, Redding) a couple weeks ago after I broke one one of the chain drives, didn't realize how loose/dirty everything was until I followed your steps above. I did assemble with one chain off by one link, good advice not to tighten until you check for proper timing.

Also appreciate that you had the parts in stock so I could get right back out on the water. 

YES!  Thanks very much for this list.   

I had not heard of bringing a drive in to be serviced -- but that's really a no-brainer.  It makes good sense.  I do want to learn to take care of my own drive, but I think until I own a 2nd drive I can play with (i.e. screw up)  I'll leave it to an expert -- someone who does it often.   But I can see that eventually my pack-rat nature, and how much I do love the hobie drive, I will end up with spare pieces of mirage drives around.   

BTW I have no 2nd thoughts about the drive at all -- it's been very dependable.  It functioned even with the idler cable off the pulley, for probably quite a few trips. I was not aware of a problem until I looked at it upon clean-up.  It was the condition of the cable that caught my attention.

So thanks again for this list!

dbradfield,       jbaker shamed me into servicing my drive (never done it for the past seven years) just earlier this month.  If I can do it, ANYBODY can!  The hardest part was centering the chain on sprocket.  Actually could feel a difference.  Of course, some of that may have been that I actually adjusted the tension correctly for the first time.

Check the idler pulley wheel. When the cable slips off sometimes the outer edge of the wheel gets damaged.

Maybe at one of these events I'll hold a Hobie mirage drive teardown and rebuild class. It's not hard, but I can see how having someone show you could be a good idea. I asked Hobie if I could attend a mirage drive repair 101 class when I was at the factory a few years back. They appearntly don't offer any 

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I took it out for a test at Trinidad and the cable broke. 

Funny thing is -- I did not see or feel it break. I got on the water and everything seemed fine.  I was pedaling around happy as a clam, fat dumb and happy -- I even caught some fish -- and then, as I was coming in I noticed the cable poking through the transom hole on every stroke -- and knew exactly what happened.    (video to come)

Somehow, oddly, it doesn't seem to "hurt the runnin' of it none."   (the redneck in me)   That is, the pedals still seemed to work just fine.    And I never knew when the cable actually gave way.   I suspect I probably operated it for several trips at least, with the cable off the pulley.   

So -- now my dumb question  -- What are the risks of using it without the idler cable?  (While I call my LA guy tomorrow to ship me one overnight.)    It seems to work fine without it.  There must be some risk, though.  I'm considering pulling off the cable and operating with it -- close in -- no trips way out --

Here's a picture -- I'm going to post some video of my pedal in where I noticed it pedaling in.

Here's some really bad video (turn your head 90 degrees) .. you can see the idler cable poke through the transome hole on each pedal stroke.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-pOtYwyp-I&feature=youtu.be