The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Greasing a Speedometer Cable

I just purchased a new speedometer cable for my '48 because the old one is binding, plus it has a plastic cover and I wanted to get a more correct metal one. My question is this. Should the cable be lubricated, and if so, with what?

It should be lubricated. Years ago you could buy just the cable without the housing (and use your old housing)and it came with a little tube of grease.
Samantha

I used to use a graphite suspended in a solvent base. It was called dripless oil or something like that.

Ask whoever sold the cable to you. A new cable is usually ready to use (ie lubricated) whether custom-made or off the shelf.
It is recommended not to lubricate a speedo cable, what you will squirt/spray in there may interfere with what is already in the housing, or cause more problem than anything.

AC made (or maybe still does make) a grease especially for speedometer/mechanical tach cables. It is pretty thin grease like Mystic jt-8.

White Lithium Grease is what I use...

Wave, I got the cable from Jim Carter, and it's not lubricated.

Since I live in the Northeast, and I take the truck out from time to time in the winter, I'm concerned that whatever I put in there might freeze, or at least thicken enough to cause problems.

White Lithium sounds like a good idea. Maybe I'll take a trip to a FLAPS to see what they have.

They make a graphite powder especially for speedometer cable lubrication. http://www.lub-o-seal.com/products/msds/MSDS-GRAPH.pdf

When my '56 GMC 3/4 ton was on the road in the early 80's, the previous owners or their mechanics must have greased the speedo cable with something thick. It worked fine except initially in subzero temperatures, when it would alternate between not reading anything then fluctuating wildly towards the top of the scale. It would do that for a while, then settle down to working. I assume the spring wound up enough to overcome the resistance of the cold thickened grease. Then I thought it a funny quirk, now as I am readying it for the road again, I will try to clean that grease out, 'cause I want it to keep working. Anyone else have the crazy needle syndrome?

Lithium works

I agree about the plastic housing. I had to really work with mine to make it work- the plastic one was not the same length and the hookup was slightly dofferent. I couldnt use the old housing because it has a tear in it and I couldnt put the new cable inside the old housing due to lenght. But it is done and working. I am looking on e-bay for the actual replacement though because I want it to be more original.

My '58 does it, and it rarely freezes here in south Texas.

I would go with the graphite power,first off because it's a powder and it won't bind up your cable like grease or oil will in colder tempratures.

The Crazy Needle Syndrome (CNS) is what made me buy a new cable. I was afraid the speedometer itself would be damaged. As time goes on, the needle gets crazier and crazier, by the way. In my case, it happens in warmer weather, too, but not as much.