The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Spiders and the Places they Get - and Damage they Cause

I am always amazed at where I find spider nests in old vehicles. In behind any trim you care to mention; inside electrical sockets; everywhere. Just now, I went to clean up my spare speedometer for the 49 3600 and it was very stiff. I ended up disassembling it further than I wanted, but expected to find corrosion as the culprit.

Finally I Removed the clockspring - and the issue was a $#@%ing the spider nest of a TINY spider species, right in those inner workings. Nothing tiny about the nest though, the egg sack and "leavings" had gummed the whole thing up to the point it wouldn't turn. Turns freely now. Sorry no pictures, didn't think of it until after.

Previously I've found them inside the horn assemblies and got everything working after cleaning - the webs/egg sack and their "leavings" can really interfere with things; and themselves do cause corrosion on steel.

Anyone have similar experiences with these little devils?

What amazes me with these spiders (particularly inside my speedometer) is how small an opening they can take advantage of - and apparently thrive in there!

Anytime I work on a truck that’s been setting awhile I look before I leap. We have lots of Black Widow and Brown Recluse spiders in Oklahoma. Snakes are another consideration when reaching into hidden spaces like under seats, inside cab corners and under the dash.

Lets keep this discussion truck related, please.

You bet - sorry, easy to get sidelined.

Actually that reminds me of another issue on my 49 - when the 235 finally tossed a rod, I ended up swapping in a fuel injected 4.3. It ran but there's always some gremlins. The TPS in particular was out of range - when I replaced it, the reason for it was there was a bunch of tiny spider eggs and a sac in THERE (between the TPS and the TBI housing). That nest in turn had corroded the TPS mechanism, apparently the reason for it being out of range.

That corrosion can end up in otherwise protected areas like under trim, etc. Just another consideration for anyone restoring these old girls, particularly after they've been sitting for a while.