The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk speedometer gets stuck

just got everything working, now my speedo doesn't work properly. it get stuck at 20 miles an hour indication, and doesn't roll back at all. it doesn't sound like it's stuck (then you'd hear the gear whining, have had that before). what could cause this?

Maybe a broken spring inside...I had the same problem before and it was a spring.

you have any tips&tricks how to spot that? like where to look and stuff? thanks!

My tip and trick was I found a used speed and then busted open my old one and found it was a spring...not sure how you would open yours up to see but if it cant be opened try and find a replacement then bust yers open to see..;)

Is the needle a bit warped and binding to the glass?

If you say it went up to 20, stopped and won't return to 0 the mechanism is hung up on something. If it goes beyond 20 and only returns to 20, it's not the spring.

Take it out. The bezel is held on by the edge being crimped over the can in a couple places - use a screwdriver to straighten the crimps. Remove the bezel. The mechanism is held in by two screws on the back of the can. Remove those and the mechanism is new exposed enough to examine.

The input shaft should spin free and the nothing should be rubbing metal to metal. If it is, you're better off just getting a working unit because that means something is knocked out of alignment. If it's rubbing on something you can remove (like a dead bug) remove it.

Be Extremely careful with the pointer needle. They are usually plastic and extremely fragile because the plastic becomes brittle over time. Replacement needles are available but unless you have the patience and deft hand of a watchmaker, they are VERY difficult to replace.

Any questions, PM me.

NEVER MIND!

I just realized you have a '59... my advice is for a 47-54 with the round 80 or 90 mph unit. I'm sure the principal is the same but I've never worked on a '59 speedometer.

Sorry