Speedo stop and starts

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Oct 18, 2016
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52
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Winston Salem N.C.
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1993 ST 1100
So my speedo was working as it should, then one day just quit, 5 or so miles later starts again, then later failed again. So questioned the fella I know that works for honda and he said cable was the only thing he knew of that failed .Cable was cheap enough so I just ordered one and when't on about my day and when I went to change, the old one was not broken. What else besides a cable or speedo its self fails? The speedo does not act as though it binding, not hearing any movement noises( have a quiet side street that I took it down to listen). Could the issue be in the front wheel?
 
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Were the cable ends firmly seated in the driven gear and the speedo? Were the nuts tight? If the nut on either end was loose, the cable could have popped out of the socket and not turned or spun the speedo as it should.
 

Uncle Phil

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Have you had the front wheel off lately? It can be a bit of a trick to get the speedo drive 'cogs' in the right spot when you reinstall the wheel. If the nuts are tight, I'd take the cable end out of the speedo so you can see it and spin the front wheel. If the cable end moves, you probably have a dead 'head'.
 
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I think Phil meant what he said.

But it would be easier to disconnect the cable at the wheel first and spin the wheel. If the drive ( at the wheel ) spins, then either the cable is broke or the speedo head is bad.

The next step would be to re-connect the cable ( at the wheel ) and do what Phil said -- disconnect the cable at the speedometer.

My bet is on a bad speedo head - I'm not lucky enough for it to be the drive or cable.
 
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punder
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Winston Salem N.C.
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New Cable installed ( but old one was not bad, same length and ends not bad) , tried to turn the speedometer end of cable with the wheel connected and was solid both ways so I took that it is not broken at the wheel , reinstalled into the speedometer and took it for a ride and no speedometer. So, take a chance on a Ebay speedometer, or Aftermarket?
 
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did you verify that if you spin the front wheel

1. the gear mechanism actually turns, and
2. that the cable actually turns when installed into the gear mechanism.

the fact that both odometer and speedometer failed at the same time would make me question the speedometer last, and the drive components first.
 
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punder
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Winston Salem N.C.
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dwalby, that I did not do. If I get a chance will pull it apart again and check that before ordering any parts.
 
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punder
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Definately cheaper if the gear is bad versus the speedometer, $270 for just the speedometer new thru Honda.
 
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If the speedo can be disassembled easily, you could take a look-see. The problem might be something easily fixed.

There are companies on the web that repair mechanical speedos. I had the speedo bearings replaced in an old Moto Guzzi speedo several years back. Forgot now who did the work.

It may be better to have yours rebuilt than to buy a used unit. A used unit might fail before a rebuilt unit would ( maybe ).
 
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From experience (2003 ST1100P), I will say that things can get gummy inside the Speedometer itself too. I had a situation where my Odometer stuck at 29,999.9 even though the Speedometer worked (in fact even the trip meter worked). I had to open up the cluster, and manually roll the Odometer forward a tad, then I stuck the rear hub into a drill and spun things forward until the Odometer rolled over to 30,001.0 then I put things back together and now it works fine. I expect that I might have the same problem at 39,999.9 but I don't know.

This may have nothing to do with your problem, because your Speedometer needle isn't even moving if I understand correctly, but I thought I'd throw it out there.
If you have to remove the cluster to replace it anyway... it's worth a look around inside.

Link to speedo thread here.


Jim.
 
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punder
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Winston Salem N.C.
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I would prefer to keep the one I have, it was smooth and pretty accurate to a GPS, I hate that it quit.

If the speedo can be disassembled easily, you could take a look-see. The problem might be something easily fixed.

There are companies on the web that repair mechanical speedos. I had the speedo bearings replaced in an old Moto Guzzi speedo several years back. Forgot now who did the work.

It may be better to have yours rebuilt than to buy a used unit. A used unit might fail before a rebuilt unit would ( maybe ).
 
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punder
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Winston Salem N.C.
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What's funny is, I did just the opposite when assembling, I turned the speedo end to ensure that it was not free wheeling inside of the wheel at the gear. I assumed that the cable going into the speedometer was kinda self guiding, but the wheel end has a notch that has to line up. When I take it apart to look at some to the other suggestions will re assemble this way, its worth a shot that maybe it needs to be assembled that way instead.

It is possible for the speedometer end of the cable (top end) to drop out when the cable is detached from the gear on the front wheel. When re-assembling push the inner cable back up the outer and turn it by fingers at the bottom end to make sure that it locates correctly at the top end.

Also, as Phil said, make sure the drive is located correctly on the front wheel. It is easy to put this together incorrectly if you don't remember to check it when replacing the front wheel. Ensure the locating grooves / ridges on the fork legs are correctly located to prevent the gear from moving on the axle.
 
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I assumed that the cable going into the speedometer was kinda self guiding, but the wheel end has a notch that has to line up.
Your assumption would be correct. The cable and housing are made to be the exact length needed to fit properly into each end, once fully assembled into place. The drive end is located properly by the notch.

Here's a point that may give a clue to your failure. When you have had the cable out, have you lubricated it right up to the top? This is a no - no, as lube getting into the speedo head will damage it. Too much lube can also be a problem, as it will work its way up into the head as well. I use a very light coat of white grease, just enough to smear and smooth along the cable length, stopping about 8 inches from the speedometer head.
 
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punder
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Oct 18, 2016
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Winston Salem N.C.
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1993 ST 1100
I hate the thought of taking the dash out of this bike, but that might be what I need to do first, with 46000 showing on the speedometer I don't think its worn out, but the bike has been down by the previous owner so that jar might have cracked something that finally broke. With a new cable in place and I'm pretty sure that the wheel gears are good, by all the suggestions here I'm gonna guess that either too much lube over the years or when the bike went down that started a failure.The other issue is Honda says only 92 thru a 95 will fit this bike but found a really good shape 02 with almost exactly the same miles. Honda said that it was a different part number and can not confirm or deny that it will or will not fit but could be something simple or something that would keep it from being a simple install( mounting points,wiring, etc) .

Your assumption would be correct. The cable and housing are made to be the exact length needed to fit properly into each end, once fully assembled into place. The drive end is located properly by the notch.

Here's a point that may give a clue to your failure. When you have had the cable out, have you lubricated it right up to the top? This is a no - no, as lube getting into the speedo head will damage it. Too much lube can also be a problem, as it will work its way up into the head as well. I use a very light coat of white grease, just enough to smear and smooth along the cable length, stopping about 8 inches from the speedometer head.
 
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