Got the gauge cluster ready for the dash for my '51 Shoebox. First time I took it out the speedometer spun freely. That was a couple years ago. Now getting it all ready and the Speedo won't turn. Tore it apart from the rest of the gauges, sprayed it with some spray silicone lube, and now it turns great. My only question is will that be enough? Should I spray something else in there? One last question is about the play in the speedo. Before I first tore into it, I drove it a couple times; no more than 30 mph. But when I did the needle was swaying back and forth from about 20 - 60. Would that be a bad cable, bad, speedo, or just normal? Appreciate any help Thanks fellas -Andrew
My '41 ford speedo kept breaking cables. After multiple attemps to lub it I removed the speedo and discovered a small hole where the cable attaches. I dribbled in some silicone oil, as I turned the speedo drive. After a while it smoothed out and operates fine. It's been years since I relubed. Maybe a '51 speedo is similar as Ford carried over a lot of parts from the '40's
Check the cable ends, make sure they are straight.. Folks tend to bend them when pulling the ends out of the drives..
I wouldn't rely on silicone lube because that stuff tends to evaporate. You should be able to find a little br*** cap on the back of the speedo where the cable screws on. Remove the cap and spray some WD40 in there to loosen up the old gummy grease. Finish by putting a few drops of 3-N-1 oil in there and replace the cap.
I used the graphite on my cable a while back as well, a few miles of driving and the needle quit bouncing Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Both the cable and the speedo head need to be lubed occasionally. Mike51Merc mentioned a br*** cap on the back of the speedo head where the speedo can be lubed. Mopar of the era is basically the same way, a little plug with a cotton wick on the back of the head that needs to be oiled every so often. I discovered it the hard way. The needle started bouncing on the way back from the HAMB Drags this year, and I thought it was the cable causing the problem. About halfway back there was a nasty noise from behind the dash, and the needle dropped to ZERO. The speedo head input shaft had seized up, which in turn caused the cable to twist off. I was able to dissolve the old gunk and get it working smoothly again, and it's now on my list of irregularly scheduled maintenance.
The Jalopy Journal
