clock removal.

[therivierakid]

trying to remove my clock in my 64 to service it or replace with a tach or oil pressure gauge. i twisted it and it came out but for some reason i cannot pull it to me because there are wires of coarse but there is no play at all. any advice? car is very original and i doubt if it was ever removed. thank you

[Jim Cannon]

Carefully remove the dash pad and access the wires from above.

 

You can convert the movement to a quartz clock movement that looks really good (and original).

 

I have seen tachometers there and, if done right, they look good there.

 

[telriv]

There should be enough slack in those wires to be able to pull it out to remove one wire & bulb.

 

Tom T.

[Riviera63]

31 minutes ago, telriv said:

There should be enough slack in those wires to be able to pull it out to remove one wire & bulb.

 

Tom T.

 

2 hours ago, Jim Cannon said:

Carefully remove the dash pad and access the wires from above.

 

You can convert the movement to a quartz clock movement that looks really good (and original).

 

I have seen tachometers there and, if done right, they look good there.

 

 

Tom is correct to a point. There is enough slack to do this but, barely. Buick must have been on a cost saving kick when doling out the wire for the clock. An extra 2 inches of wire would have been very helpful. Not too bad disconnecting. Reconnecting was a different story. Much colorful language was used when reinstalling after a conversion to a quartz movement. Jim's suggestion to remove the dash pad might be the least frustrating as far as the clock goes. However, removing the dash pad could present a challenge in itself if it has not been removed in awhile or if the windshield has been removed and they got over zealous with sealant when putting the windshield back in. 

 

Bill

[telriv]

In the case of removing the stuck dashpad.

Put the car in the sun for  few hours.

It will usually soften the "Glue" enough to be more easily to remove the pad.

 

Tom T.

[RIVNIK]

 Removing the dashpad for the 1st time may not be easy. If there's a crack waiting to happen, it will. It's been a while, but I believe I accessed the clock wires by reaching up through the fusebox panel. To reinstall you could fabricate a jumper to extend the wire a few inches. However, for me the oil pressure gauge is the way to go. IMO a luxury sedan w auto trans has little need for a tach, but does need an oil pressure gauge, especially at that age. I always have a wristwatch to refer to, and I get a warm fuzzy every time I look down at my oil pressure. If you do go that route, search the net for the available gauges & you should be able to closely match the look to your existing instruments. It's 48F in Fla this morning, so obviously it's too cold to go out & look, but I believe I installed a Sun gauge, as that was the best match to the speedo numerals.  good luck

[telriv]

This morning in Ct. it was 23*

 

Tom T.