Speedo, and an Odd Options

[kkid]

Hey guys,

So my Creamsicle has finally seen a road after about 1.5 year of jack stands time. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cheer.gif) Now the speedo didn't work so I changed the cable.

I see other cars passing by like a rocket while going at 65pmh so the speedo needle is way off??? I will check this with a GPS today.

Anyways, the odometer is not working at all. This is a bigger problem. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

Has anyone encountered the same and succeeded to repair??? The speedo works(barely) but odo does not.

Let me know.

Thanks,

kkid (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[worn]

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Thanks for the suggestion but I might be the only in the world who still uses a flip phone (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)
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I do too. And I use it about once per month. I do have an iPad though, and I bought a GPS sender from Aircraft Spruce. There are some nice weep pages that give stock tire diameter. Then I use the Tire Rack data to make comparisons. The odometer/speedo problem does well as a DIY project. Good luck.

[forrestkhaag]

I just received my rebuilt 150 speedo ( work done by Tim in this thread). His work was fast, expert, extremely reasonable, and the speedo is flawless in it's operation including the rebuild of the Odometer which i use and need to use with some degree of accuracy.

Tim put in full-ring LED's, reworked all innards and added glass in the place of the brownish scratched and pitted plastic lens.

On the speed reading to ground speed, tire size, wheel size are key to the calc.

PM Tim and you will get it right.

[kkid]

my pot metal gear is loose from the shaft, the worm gear seems ok.

[kkid]

my pot metal gear is loose from the shaft, the worm gear seems ok.

wondering if the needle needs to be come off prior to the operation or can stay there to re-attach(glue or deform) the pot metal gear.

[timothy_nd28]

Thanks Forrest, I'm glad you like it.
The nylon worm gear never wears out, just never seen that happen on a 914 yet.

Removing the needle and faceplate would give you great access to the pot metal gear. However, you do risk damaging the needle as it's pressed on, you also risk damaging the face plate. More importantly, the needle is aligned to the shaft which is attached to a hairpin spring. I can give you some pointers if you decide to go that route.

Pointer 1: With your finger, carefully lift the needle so it clears the needle stop. This means that you will rotate the needle backwards (past the 0mph mark).
Wiggle the speedo while holding it upright. At the bottom lip of the face dial, you will see a series of tick marks and a 0 center tick. As you wiggle the speedo, observe where the needle comes to rest. Do this 3-4 times and take a average of where the needle lands. When you put the needle back on, this is where the needle needs to point to. This will take care of not losing your calibration.

Pointer 2: When removing the needle, I use 2 big spoons. Point the needle straight up, position the spoons so that they are 180 degrees apart from one another. I put the fulcrum of the spoon right over each faceplate screw. I also put paper towels between the spoon and faceplate, to prevent scratching the faceplate. Pressing down on the spoons will cause a upward force under the gauge needle. Some needles pop up easy, while others are a super pain in the ass. Just cross your fingers when doing the deed.

[timothy_nd28]

I better point out that pointer 2 only applies to 914 speedometers. If one were to use this technique on a 911 speedometer, you would most likely ruin it. 911 speedometer needles come off by turning the needle past its stops. Rotating the needle slightly past the 0mph stop and rotating it past its max speed, all while pulling or putting a slight upward force. Rinse and repeat till the needle pulls off.

I have seen many posts lately talking about broken nylon gears and what not. The 911 speedos use a bakelite plastic material for one of their gears. If you happen to sneeze near it, it will break. People assume that the 914 speedometer has these same brittle gears, I assure you they don't. You will never see a broken plastic gear inside one of our speedometers. If the speedometer is recording speed but the odometer isn't working, 99% of the time it will be that pot metal gear slipping on the drive shaft.

Fixing the slipping metal gear can be done by pinching the gears hub onto the shaft. I know Pelican has a write up spelling this procedure out, but it's not a good repair. I strongly urge anyone doing this repair to use locktite instead.

Since the gear was originally pressed on by the VDO factory, and now it's slipping or free wheeling, pinching the gears' hub with vice grips will only oblong the once circle hole. The now oblong hole gets you 2 pinch points on the drive shaft. We know the gear failed even though it was a tight pressed fit at one point. How long do you think it will last if you pinch it back on the same shaft? This job that you are about to do will suck. It's best to do it once, go the loctite route.

[kkid]

I did not have to remove the needle, but had to take the 2 small screws off on the face plate. That way there was a enough room to take the pot-metal gear out.

[timothy_nd28]

Yep, I used to do it that way. Problem is when you do it that way, the face dial can bump and rub on the back side of the needle and scratch the face, or worse yet bend the needle. With great precision and surgical hands, it can be done.

Keep in mind when putting it back together, you will need to make sure all the upper following gears are in the right position with each respected odometer wheel, including the pot metal gear. All this needs to be done in situ of pressing the drive shaft thru the pot metal gear. Many things happening at once, especially if you are going the glue route, its very easy for the face dial to hit the needle.

[kkid]

So I pinched/squeezed the hub of the pot-metal gear from both side then put it back to where it was. With some drag while skewering the shaft to the pot metal gear along with all the other gears, I hoped it would not come off again (at least for a while). I didn't fully understand about making "all gears the right positions" but I assumed I did not move anything since I got all the gears wrapped up with a blue masking tape prior to the shaft removal. So I put everything back together as is and tested on the car.

And it works great!!!

It's (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer.gif) time.

Wish I can (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif) with you timothy.

Thanks a lot for the help!!!

kkid (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[kkid]

Also, I was lucky enough not to damage the needle or face plate.

Thanks!!!

[timothy_nd28]

Looks good. As long as the numbers aren't halfway in the windows, you did good with putting it back together. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[Mark Henry]

There's a guy in Canada that repairs the odometer for $150 Canadian shipped.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/canada/9498...ter-repair.html