Odd Speedometer Cable???

[kclark]

My speedometer cable is broke. The end that goes to the gauge is a typical square end and it looks good. the end that broke is at the tranny.

 

Is this end an odd end? Aren't most square at both end?

 

It's out of a '29 Dictator

 

Edited September 22, 2017 by kclark (see edit history)

[SC38dls]

Mine on a 38 3 speed flat six State Commander was different on the trans end. You might want to post what it is out of. 

[Guest]

Most GM's in the 30's, 40's and 50's were like that.

[automaschinewerks]

I know the way my post turned out with the pics and text is a little mixed up but I put in there that I just replaced the speedo cable in my Erskine, it was from a model a ford came from macs ford restoration parts.  it had that end at the trans. the round part is .185" diameter, which is 3\16".  I got a bunch of nos speedo cables from 40-50s domestic cars that I thought would work, but the round is .150"

forget about my pictures, they didn't come through

Edited September 22, 2017 by automaschinewerks
pics i posted (see edit history)

[kclark]

On 9/22/2017 at 6:37 AM, automaschinewerks said:

I know the way my post turned out with the pics and text is a little mixed up but I put in there that I just replaced the speedo cable in my Erskine, it was from a model a ford came from macs ford restoration parts.  it had that end at the trans. the round part is .185" diameter, which is 3\16".  I got a bunch of nos speedo cables from 40-50s domestic cars that I thought would work, but the round is .150"

forget about my pictures, they didn't come through

 

I looked at macs auto but they don't have the length. Theirs is 61 1/2" and I need 70"

[automaschinewerks]

well that answers that about the length, as I need a cable for my 26 standard six. its missing entirely, I don't even have the casing to get the length, so thanks for posting that

[automaschinewerks]

I just had a look in macs, under 32-47 pickup, it shows a 70" cable, but with square ends on each end.  ive been looking for and I'm sure ive seen apaptors to convert round\key end to square end, or you could take your round end and silver solder to the trans end on the replacement cable.  at least you have your trans end for the sender.

[kclark]

I am ready to put my new speedo cable in. What is the correct fluid and amount to put in the housing for the cable?

[Guest]

Light oil (like 3in1) or the thin white lubriplate and only on the bottom third of the cable.  If you get oil on the top part it can migrate into the speedo head and cause troubles.

[keninman]

My owner's manual says Vaseline. 

[Guest]

That would work fine as well.

[Spinneyhill]

Vaseline would be better than oil because oil is a wetting agent and any dust getting in will stay there and eventually clog it up and maybe cause a broken cable. Oil will also seep out of tiny openings and cause a mess on the outside.

 

Vaseline is not a wetting agent so will lubricate and not hold dust in the same way. I learnt about this with my trail bike: you oil flexible drive cables, soon you will be replacing a broken cable. Yes, trail bikes are used in a dusty environment, but the principle still applies.

[kclark]

I put the cable in and the speedo still doesn't seem to work. I know when I had the speedo out that I put a couple of miles on it with the drill and the speedometer, odometer and trip meter all worked. I figure either the cable is not set just right in the tranny or something similar. In looking at the keyhole at the tranny, how easy should that end turn. Can I slide a small screwdriver into the keyhole part and turn it just to see if that end is freed up?

[stude24]

Within the transmission housing there should be a speedometer drive gear and a pinon (gear) which is driven by the drive gear. It's the end of the pinon that the speedometer cable slides into. The pinon (gear) is typically made from a fibrous material, similar to the material used for camshaft timing gears. This fiber pinion gear being softer is considered sacrificial should something freeze up in the speedometer or speedometer cable, so it's possible that whatever caused the cable to break could also have stripped the pinon gear. You should check the pinon to see if it's stripped. Also I tried to look up the pinon and speedometer cable part numbers for your car to see if it interchanged with other years or models, however I learned something new, Studebaker didn't list parts or parts numbers for anything related to the speedometer prior to 1932, indicating in the parts books prior to that time to go to the speedometer manufacturer (typically Stewart-Warner) for parts and service.

Edited November 8, 2017 by stude24 (see edit history)

[kclark]

I pulled the cable from the tranny and it is snapped off again, so there is definitely something going on with it. I'll have to study over this before I jump into it.