I appreciate everyones effort to help; different points of view are always welcome. The thought of WD-40 ruining the rubber compounds never came to mind, so thanks Burton

Liquified, I will try your suggested idea about removing the cable and applying tension. I already had mine off, and I will be replacing the cables anyway regardless if they work or not. I decided to go with barends, but if I can get them to work they are going on my wife's bike.

Thanks everyone!