Speedometer bounce

[TorqueWinsRaces]

1979 Waggy w/ cruise control.

I pulled both speedo cables and they looked great- no fraying or anything. I lubed them with white lithium grease and reinstalled. The bounce got a little better, but not much. Is the white grease not heavy enough? Should I use wheel bearing grease, or what? Or, could it be the speedo or possibly the gear in the transmission? Help!

 

[SteelHeadz]

Check the speedometer gear on the transmission for chips or missing tooth. Also, see if there's any sort of binding from the transmission end of the cable to the speedo end. While you have the cable off the speedometer , check the speedo drive gears on the gauge. lube it and make sure there's no resistance or binding when you turn it. Any kind of binding or a bad gear on either drive will cause the speedometer needle to bounce.

 

[TorqueWinsRaces]

I bought some Mobil 1 synthetic grease and re-lubed the cables; it didn't fix the problem. While I had the cluster loose I did spin the speedo head and it seemed OK. I'll check the gear on the transmission side another day. In the mean time, I noticed that the the cables were tied with cable ties in a few places, I think I'll remove those ties to see if they are causing the cables to bind.