I am looking at cleaning up my speedometer while my car is apart. Does anyone have any info on taking it apart to freshen everything up? I have found new lenses and face plates on line but no info on tearing it down to replace these parts.

 

It may be helpful to know what vehicle you are working on.

 

My Bad, 1970 Cutlass Supreme

 

I recently did this for my 70 Cutlass, I should have took pictures. First take the circuit board off the back so you don’t damage any pins. Then remove the outer bezel and lens from the front by bending a couple of tabs. There are also some dimples crimped into the housing that have to be bent slightly to remove the inner bezel. Once those are out remove the two screws in the back that hold the assembly to the housing. Everything will come out, be careful for the inner parts with the colored lenses for the turn signals and high beam light. They are just sandwiched between the gauge housing and the Speedo face so they will probably fall out too. There is a gasket between the housing and the assembly that was falling apart on mine so I had to remake it out gasket material. I also reset my odometer while I had it out. If you want to do that there is a clip on one side that has to come off before you can wiggle the odometer out. Be aware there is a plastic retainer that keeps all the digits lined up. It will probably break when you take it out so have a new one ready for reassembly.

Plastic retainer
https://www.ebay.com/itm/351123965946?hash=item51c09e87fa:g:c6kAAOSwQupXUdA u&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA0H1jIJhKPXClQufgJJIPCcipx7g Slvyb%2FYaS3mzThM6d1NYYodytviU4dZBUYlbHTjeP5bAk9LR wrHtf%2FbblFbs2CNJI4uPRJ%2BOEREIHTukpRti1h7Y0cuZZ% 2FBUZB08rHXbARz8JEuFRnYR1Jcj8kYfIk0F7d7zgvrTf8x6eW t3nmBifYC9%2BBPJ1RTSJu2ifcCKM2eD4csslHN5Hu1%2FVhWT uA4k2Fsssen4LbXN5Aw52F6tlhzYJlIGhlwZPXsCtXhIG6JqKh 0CcjY%2Bp440LW4%2BQ%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR7ylmKCiYg

 

Good info but is there a trick to taking the arm off of the speedo to clean/replace the face? Does it just pull off? and is it indexed to get it back in the correct place?

 

The face can be cleaned after removing the lens. I didn’t need to change the face on mine so I did not remove the needle, hopefully somebody else will chime in with that info.

 

Hello, sent mine to Redline Gauge and clock repair. Very reasonable and fast return.Contact Information:



phone: 731-571-0766



email: redline_c@yahoo.com?subject=Question%20from%20Webs ite

shipping: Redline Gauge & Clock Repair

John & Tammy Dvorski

3427 W. Cedar Lake Rd.

Greenbush, MI 48738

 

Redline does fantastic work! My Rallye Pak gages were done by John a few years ago. I am really impressed with the quality and care of workmanship. Great email communication, as well. I did not have a need to speak with them, but I've heard others say their telephone comms were good, also.

 

My ‘66 big cars have what I call a sandwich design - meaning multiple layers - each of which need slightly different treatment.

From Back to front (circuit board to plastic lens)
1) Don’t break any pins when you remove the wiring connections. They’re hard to repair with good longevity. Possible, but hard. When the bulbs are out, that’s a good time to make sure the gauge backlights are consistent wattage, also a good time to make sure the idiot lights are consistent wattage. Make sure the brass bulb pins are bent to make solid contact with the circuit board when rotated in and that the bulbs work (i.e., not burnt out/broken/bad tungsten).
2) Clean the inside of the gauge cluster. If the inside is white-painted, use Isopropyl Alcohol to get old dust/dirt/grit removed without damaging the interior paint.
3) Be very careful to not bend or upset any brass counterbalancing springs, resistors or other tender_impossible_to_replace parts.
4) Consider repainting orange clock arms, speedo needle and so on. I believe the color is “international orange”. But make your own choice. Don’t paint by hand like I did, use spray paint over the old color. Hand painting leaves brush marks which don’t belong there.
5) For the plastic lenses, use plastic scratch remover polish first (I get mine from TAP plastics) then a plastic wax. If you happen to remove the white painted numbers on the back of the lens, repaint with with Testors model paint or maybe whiteout. Tape off the parts you don’t want paint to get into with really wide BlueTape. If you make a mistake, use the polish to get the paint off of parts of the lens where it shouldn’t be.
5) Use your Knippex Cobra pliers (highly recommended) or dykes or wire cutters to recrimp the gauge edges when you have it as you like it.

Hoping some of these tips help you.
Chris