Speedo rattle

[tfranklin]

Hi everyone and apologies if this has been covered. I did a search and couldn't find anything on it. It's driving me crazy, it rattles between 2500 and 4000 rpms, when the bike is pulling hard off the bottom. I can touch the speedo glass and it stops, but I can't figure out how to do anything about it. Anybody had this issue?
thanks!

 

[jedi-]

Unscrew it and give the cable a really good dose of oil and that should fix it assuming it's not the glass or something else.

 

[gamorg02]

or could be as simple as one of the screws in there loose?

 

[tfranklin]

Well, I didn't see any screws to be loose but I didn't take it off. It stops when I touch the glass, so I'm assuming it's not the cable, unless the cable not spinning freely enough is causing too much vibration. The freakin' thing is 10% fast anyway...

I'll go take the cable out and see. I don't see how you take the top ring off to get to the glass though?

 

[tfranklin]

Can I get the speedo cable off without removing the headlight or handlebars? Either way, I tap on the speedo and hear the rattle, so I guess the answer is take it off.

Thanks for the quick responses!

 

[gamorg02]

Can I get the speedo cable off without removing the headlight or handlebars? Either way, I tap on the speedo and hear the rattle, so I guess the answer is take it off.

Thanks for the quick responses!

headlight, no, handlebars yes. u gotta take off the headlight crown tho.

 

[[email protected]]

You could just unscrew the speedo cable down by the wheel and go for a ride and see if it eliminates your problem.

 

[tfranklin]

That's easy enough, thanks. I'm about to ride from Fort Worth to Oklahoma for a tax free nicotine run, going to have to do it after I get back. :clapping:

 

[tfranklin]

So much for tax free nicotine, the Chickasha Nation is getting rich. They buy tobacco tax free and mark it up 500%! It was a nice ride anyway, 60 miles each way.

Took the cable out of the bottom and the glass still rattles in the speedo, but not as bad. Fixing to put some bubble gum on it.

 

[RaWarrior]

Bubble gum sounds like a plan, a dab of clear silicone might work well. Work it around the edge between bezel and glass, maybe it'll hold it in place and stop the rattle.

There was a how-to somewhere here about how to remove the glass from the speedo, there was some trick to it.

I found mine tended to read fast with a worn Bridgestone front tire, but with a brand new Metz ME880 it's virtually spot-on now when tested against a handheld GPS. It's about dead-even at 75mph, slower speeds actually have it reading a bit slow, with faster speeds having it a bit fast. When the GPS says I'm doing 30, the speedo says about 28. When I'm actually doing 100, the speedo shows about 102.

I don't know how people afford to smoke anymore.....in NY it's like $10.50 for a pack of reds.

 

[tfranklin]

Thanks, I was joking about the bubblegum, but I did consider taking it off and using super glue to suck into the cracks. You wouldn't see it and it should work, it just won't come apart again. :biglaugh: I imagine the rubber seal in there dried up.

If for some odd reason the speedo ever quit working, I'd probably buy one of those cool digital models I've seen you guys talking about on here anyway. In searching, somebody here talked about the outer ring being crimped on and you had to pry it off. I guess I would do as much damage going that route as I would with super glue.

Also, funny you say that about the tires. I have a half worn out OEM Bridgestone on front and I'm putting a new ME-880 on the back tomorrow. I've not clocked mine with a GPS, just traffic, it seems like at low speeds it reads way fast... But at highway speeds, it's closer. I held it at 75 on a 70mph freeway for the most part, passed a lot of people and was passed by some. I would bet at highway speeds it's a lot closer than at low speeds. Everybody goes at least 70. I'll be putting the Metzeler on the front when the Bridgestone is gone. I'll see if I can strap my car GPS on with a couple of zip ties and test it before and after. I've put 1300 miles on it since late September. You drive the same old roads, you know how fast people usually go...

 

[RaWarrior]

I used a handheld Garmin eTrex. Just used a zip tie to hold it to the handlebars. An automotive style works fine too, but just make sure it doesn't get wet and is securely fastened.

It's got some nifty features for a bike too. It'll tell you "rate of turn" in degrees/sec as you burn it through a corner, rate of climb or descent, acceleration, jerk(rate of charge of acceleration, or the 3rd derivative) and of course peak speed, in addition to like a million other things. Plus it lasts easily all day on 2 AAs, and it has fallen off the bike at 70mph and been totally undamaged. Also totally waterproof. Then I can plug it into the computer at the end of the day and create a "track" of the days ride.

It can store limited road navigation maps...mine has enough memory for the "upper tier" of NYS....like I87 and above, plus the capital district. Otherwise it shows "general" maps for the lower 48. Major cities and roads only.