Speedo gone bezeerk

[Siouxzy]

yes- it's been discussed before- now it's MY turn. Coming back from Wisconsin my speedo needle started bouncing around sometimes between 50 and 70 more often between 30 ans 50. This threw the odo off as well (I rode hard ALL day my odo only showed 128 miles- ther person I was riding with went over 400 miles!)

This is a relativily new bike to me. I don't even know how to get in under the little fairing to pull it out.  :-/

Thanks in advance for you help.

Did not see TOO many LS's at the national- but met a few people from the list when I was hangin out in Airhead Central getting a charging system gremlin exorcised!

Sioux in NY

[steve hawkins]

I would pull out the speedo drive and check it turns and lube it, etc.  Refit it and try it again.

The only reason I would bother is that it is a 'no cost' check.

Sounds like it is the speedo though - but you never know.

A new speedo will cost you.  I have heard of people who have fixed them.

Wait for them to chime in.

Steve H

Cycle speedo anyone?

[Justin B.]

Once you get the speedo out you can remove the right-angle gear assembly (that cable screws into) without disassembling the speedo.  We had one act similar to what you describe and it was the gear shaft bushings in that little assembly.  I "shimmed" the worn bushings with teflon tape and so far, so good...

[thrang]

 I "shimmed" the worn bushings with teflon tape and so far, so good...

Thats a good bodgers tip, wish I'd known that one when the bimbo's speedo started doing the same.   Cheers Justin

[dewjantim]

I had an R90/6 which did the same thing. I took the speedo apart and cleaned it then lubed it with WD40. Put it back together and it worked fine. It is simpler than you would think. Open it up and have a look. The LS fairing is pretty easy to take off also. Two bolts inside the fairing near the top on both sides, take those bolts out. Use needle nose pliers to unscrew the ignition switch cover ring. Pop out the ignition cover, squeeze the black part of the fairing together slightly at the headlight (there are tabs there holding it to the rest of the fairing), then GENTLY work the fairing free, being very careful not to break the little tabs where the bolts go at the top of the fairing. Next, pull the turn signal indicator bulbs out of the top of the fairing. There is a little clip that holds them in that you squeeze and they pop right out. Now and finally you can get to the speedo to take it off. I took my fairing top off this week to install Progressive springs and European bars on my R65LS. Fairing was easy, those springs were a bitch!!! Dew.

[MrRiden]

Dew,
got any pics of your LS? I just love 'em
rich

[nhmaf]

Siouxzy,

That was YOUR red LS that had the bad voltage regulator ?   Sorry that I missed
meeting you at the rally.  Suecanada and I had some beers together and she showed me
the LS that had her charger on it overnight, I believe, by the airhead tent.  
As the others have pointed out, a little patience/care and you can get to the speedo
under the plastic without a problem.   While it can be a worn/frayed or dry speedo
cable that can sometimes cause this kind of bouncing, I tend to agree with Justin that it
is probably a worn bushing/shaft at the speedo end.    

Palo Alto Speedo can do a good job of refurbishing/repairing it if it needs it, but if you don't have the
$200-300 handy it wouldn't hurt to try Justin's tip - I'm keeping that one in mind for future
reference too !

[Justin B.]

In the case of the '80 speedo, there appeared to be 2 nylon bushings/bearings that the little driven gear rode in.  These had in effect rusted to the gears shaft and started rotating in the housing.  After a while it started getting jerky (gear jumping in and out of mesh) and finally quit working alltogether.  We took the little drive unit off (just a couple of screws), unstuck the bushings, polished the little shaft, lubed with a teflon based light oil, and wrapped enough teflon tape around the OD of the bushings so they again fit snug in the housing.  Problem solved...  Of course, I didn't realize this was the problem until we had uncrimped the bezel and totally tore the speedo apart finding nothiong wrong!