Speedo cable removal

[Rockape]

Right. Finally got round to getting the tunnel cover off to try to fix the oil drip from the speedo.

Have removed the stud bolt, and the cable so now the drive unit should withdraw

except it doesnt…..

i assume its tight because of the O rings? So just keep working it out without twisting? Or is there something obvious I am missing here?

[Pete Lewis]

yes  it does just pull out    can you get a grip on the flange and rotate and wiggle it 

some joker may have sealed the drive and you need to break the seal 

its quite easy to damage the threads take care here

Pete

[Josef]

If you’ve got an old cable it can help to screw that partly on to give yourself something to pull on or lever against. 

[Colin Lindsay]

45 minutes ago, Josef said:

If you’ve got an old cable it can help to screw that partly on to give yourself something to pull on or lever against. 

+1 for that - it'll draw out, very stiff sometimes as you're fighting against the O-ring seal, but don't damage the threads. Try putting a long thin screwdriver down the hole where the fixing bolt sits and gently push it out, but again don't damage either the plastic drive or the threads.

[Rockape]

Thanks all -got the drive out - a very small amount of leverage on the end moulding and it came out fairly easily with no damage…

but of course - there is a surprise. I happen to have a spare drive head and can see the moulding in the middle is quite different - and in the one I have just removed, it almost looks as though there has been something either glued in, or perhaps melted?

the attached photos show the “clean” spare next to the one I have taken out.

thoughts?

question on the O Rings - Is there a specific part for these, or do I just use  one from the generic O ring box?

 

[Colin Lindsay]

Looks like silicone sealer gone bad... my drives have the same central outline as your spare, no inner 'ring', and the early metal ones have only one 'O' ring and no centre groove at all. i managed to break that one whilst removing it due to the metal being badly corroded, so the plastic ones are a more sensible option.

I bought sealing rings from Paddocks last time but I don't think they're contoured in any way so any suitable O-ring would do. 

[Josef]

Might even be some of the housing having been friction melted? I’ve had one where I had to cut the pinion section out cause the outer had melted on to it!

[Rockape]

Yes - the colour and feel is exactly like the rest if the unit.

[Rockape]

Clarity is starting to break-out. 
 

the central disc in the removed unit actually rotates - so the extraneous material I can see is certainly melted plastic/nylon.

this also explains why I can’t withdraw the pinion and shaft - the disc in the middle is stopping this.

so - do I just replace the o rings and re-install (assuming the melt damage is old)

or try to install the “spare” which has a different design without the central rotating bit. 
 

if i go that route - how do you remove the bushing at the end (assuming I can get a spare that is!

[Colin Lindsay]

That outer is probably scrap, it's melted through leaving only what looks like internal reinforcing. I'd replace. The bush at the end can be prised out with a pin or needle, it's only soft rubber.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134096522133?hash=item1f38c68b95:g:9LMAAOSwOPFiZYSq&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAoEd%2FfAH2pfI8HGIDm3vWV4KElijIFtXr6mj8EUYDU%2FUdfZZC95x46Lkhj300QtJFPD7jiZWvzhQ%2BXXljOXPSJmgOktLnvevuCfQi6%2BgswLG%2BZl80ZDvTX9vIe1tx3pOr5oRbHZueK0jKE6j2Vpi2YBKNa2Gpw0e72DJ6jKuLrLe%2FcoaQs4o%2BEF159MhyOWs0%2FKr3YWuG8X3XPPc8e9uSjI8%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR7Lvn-fdYA

[Rockape]

41 minutes ago, Colin Lindsay said:

That outer is probably scrap, it's melted through leaving only what looks like internal reinforcing. I'd replace. The bush at the end can be prised out with a pin or needle, it's only soft rubber.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134096522133?hash=item1f38c68b95:g:9LMAAOSwOPFiZYSq&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAoEd%2FfAH2pfI8HGIDm3vWV4KElijIFtXr6mj8EUYDU%2FUdfZZC95x46Lkhj300QtJFPD7jiZWvzhQ%2BXXljOXPSJmgOktLnvevuCfQi6%2BgswLG%2BZl80ZDvTX9vIe1tx3pOr5oRbHZueK0jKE6j2Vpi2YBKNa2Gpw0e72DJ6jKuLrLe%2FcoaQs4o%2BEF159MhyOWs0%2FKr3YWuG8X3XPPc8e9uSjI8%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR7Lvn-fdYA

Thanks. And this could help explain the oil drip as well - the first O ring is probably not doing much work…..

[Rockape]

I thought  I would post a wee update….

the build-up of melt material easily separated from the rest of the unit, with the back end sliding off. I now know why I can’t withdraw the pinion - molten plastic on the shaft! 
 

This thing got pretty hot at some point in it’s life! 
 

i will try to recover the pinion as a spare, and have ordered the o-rings and seal to rebuild the other one. !

[Josef]

That’s exactly what I saw on one of mine. Was easy enough to cut / rip the plastic away from the metal and save the pinion. 

[Rockape]

Yup - got it cleaned up fine. 
 

seeing as that component is running in oil, it’s a bit of a puzzle how it could happen ! But the recovered pinion is fine…