Jumping speedo and odometer not working

[CADEE]

The speedo needle in my 62 series 62, tends to make a chattering noise around 50 mph and will wander up and down around 70, meaning it goes up to 80 then back to 70 then back up to 80.
Also the odometer quit working...any ideas on a fix for these two items?
Thanks.
Brad

[Scot Minesinger]

Probably replace cable.  Even if cable is OK but original and it turns out it was speedometer, then it is not like the cable replacement was for nothing, as it was 55 years old.

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

The odometer not working is going to be the failure of the internal gearing within the speedo head itself.

There are two shafts that transfer the rotational movement from the speedo drive to the odometer rotating numbers.

These gears do wear out, especially if there is a lack of internal lubricant, causing the shafts to become tight, and your mentioning of the needle jumping, indicates to me that each time the needle jumps, the odometer gear is slipping over the seized shaft.

Sorry I don't have better quality pictures to show, but these were from my '60 CDV which I had to rebuild.   The '62 shouldn't be much different.

Bruce.

[cwbbear]

I had that with my 57, first it was just cooler days and then after cable lub and then cable replacement it still jumped.  As time went on it got worse and worse, jump from one end to the other anytime I went over 10mph.   sent it to Bob Speedo repair in MI and came back smooth and quiet and nice as could be.  He kept my OD reading too.   so if cable does not do it might need a rebuild. 

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

If the cable is good, then it is a sticking or stripped odometer gear.

What causes the needle to flick is when the odometer drive slips over the seized gear, and there is a sudden release of the rotating part, until the next time the shaft tries to turn.   This goes on and on, until something actually breaks.

I put in a replacement speedo that I got out of New York, and everything was going beautifully, until at about 15 miles I was getting the needle swinging from zero to 110 mph, and I had to disconnect the cable from the back of the speedo.

The replacement speedo had come out of a car that had been sitting out in the weather for about twenty years, and actually had to be cut in half to get it out from between trees that the owner didn't want damaged.   What had happened was that the internal lubrication had dried up that much that it started to seize the shafts as the shafts began turning for the first time in years.  I had bench-tested it before installing it, but it was hard to foresee the grease losing its' lubrication properties.

A simple stripping down and lubing fixed it. 

Bruce.

[Bob Kielar]

There is a tread in the Mid Century Cadillac forum that I posted. All you have to do is go to the forum and do a search for speedometer. It relates to my 55 what I found out it was mostly cleaning out old grease that harden over the years and relubeing.
Regards,
Bob Kielar

[russ austin]

I just did a search with no results. can you please post a link?

[Bob Kielar]

Here is the link to my post on Mid-Century Cadillac. Hth   http://midcenturycadillacs.com/index.php?topic=1214.0

Regards,
Bob Kielar

[bcroe]

Nice pictures of the speedo internals. 

If the odometer is affected, one of the above should fix it.  There is another bearing
that can throw the needle around if dry.  The needle has a bearing in front and in
back.  The back is actually a small center hole in the rotating magnet assembly; can
be seen in the first picture above.  If this grabs, it tries to turn the needle with the
cable.  A drop of oil may fix it, but takes pretty much dis assembly to get to it. 
Bruce Roe

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

The reason I had to get another speedo for my '60 CDV was that the spinning ring that is soldered to the spindle came loose, and the power of the magnet eventually spun the hole larger, and my attempts at resoldering it to the shaft didn't really work, as it was virtually impossible to get it centred.

I made up a jig to hold both the spindle and the ring into place, but I couldn't get it to stay put.

The replacement speedo took 18 Months to get to me from New York.  That was back in 2001 but that is another story.   The Sender and I are still good friends.

Bruce.

[bcroe]

The replacement speedo took 18 Months to get to me from New York.  That was back in 2001 but that is another story.   The Sender and I are still good friends.  Bruce.

I wonder what the shipping issue was?  I have shipped electronic car stuff both ways
across the oceans in just weeks.  Europe usually just extra days, Australia or New
Zealand a little longer, S America the longest.  Bruce Roe

[Highwayman68]

Mine was doing the same thing on my 68. I soaked the cable form both ends several times with oil allowing the oil to run down along the cable. After the oil had a chance to works it's way along the cable the issue went away and hasn't come back.

I left the cable in place on the car and disconnected both ends, held each end as high as it could go and poured the oil in the cable using a small can with a small spout on it.

It is the cheapest and easiest way to find out if the cable is still good before moving on to the other suggestions.

http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org/index.php?topic=136728.msg308635#msg308635

[D.Smith]

The speedo needle in my 62 series 62, tends to make a chattering noise around 50 mph and will wander up and down around 70, meaning it goes up to 80 then back to 70 then back up to 80.
Also the odometer quit working...any ideas on a fix for these two items?
Thanks.
Brad

My 1961 is doing the same thing.   Last summer after driving for maybe 15 minutes it would chatter and wave around 55 mph.   It was intermittent.    Then this winter I took it out and the needle was wavering much more and ticking.   Finally it started wavering like crazy and finally pegged at 120 mph all while screeching like a stuck pig, very loudly.    I pulled over and unplugged it.    Then a while later I plugged it back in and it started making the noise right away, but after a few minutes it went back to normal for the rest of the trip.   

So figuring it was the speedometer, I bought a used one on Ebay.   It was shot of course.   So I sent the used one out to Bob's Speedometer. http://www.bobsspeedometer.com/1/120/index.asp      I was very impressed with the speed of their service!     I sent it out by UPS on a Monday, got a call from them Thursday morning with a diagnosis and it was fixed and back on my door step by the next Monday!    That is fast!    They rebuilt the speedo head and left off the odometer wheel as I told them I was going to swap it into my car later and would switch over the odometer so the mileage would remain accurate.

I haven't swapped them out yet.  I will wait for warmer weather.   Or maybe until the original one starts acting up again.   But I now at least have a good one to put in.     I didn't need to buy the used one, but I figured it would be good to have just in case mine got lost in transit.   

[bcroe]

So figuring it was the speedometer, I bought a used one on Ebay.   

I haven't swapped them out yet.   I now at least have a good one to put in. I didn't need
to buy the used one, but I figured it would be good to have just in case mine got lost in
transit.   

Rebuilt spares on hand are always a good thing.  Bruce Roe

[russ austin]

So I took apart a known speedo that wobbles.  What is there to do in here?  Where do I put the lube?

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

Looking at the picture, it looks like the spindle has lost its pointed pivoting pin.   The end looks too blunt to me.

The condition of the gear looks a bit worn as well.

Now for the lubrication.

At the end of each shaft is a "bearing", and as there are two shafts, fore spots to lube.

Plus, the main input shaft from the speedo cable needs lubing.

Don't go overboard with the oil/grease, as there is nothing worse than too much, as once it gathers dust, then it goes hard and gritty.

Usually one drop is sufficient, and the plastic gears are best left dry, as the plastic is naturally self-lubing.

Bruce.

[russ austin]

Thanks for the info.  Are there repo parts out there?