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The speedometer needle on my 1954 Packard Clipper Super bounces erratically at most speeds when driving. It seems to be less erratic at higher speeds. I removed the threaded cable coupling from the rear of the speedometer at the instrument cluster. I put some lube into the cable at the threaded coupler and put a miniscule amount of WD40 into the fitting on the rear of the speedo while the cable was removed. The lubrication manual says to pull the entire inner cable out and lubricate it. How do I get that puppy out? And, once I get it out, how do I get it back in? I am hesitant to use a great deal of force. Would I be better off just replacing the whole cable? Do you think the problem is in the speedometer and not the cable? I appreciate your input!

The cable should just pull out of the housing from the top although it will be very dirty so take care it doesn't flop around and hit something. Clean it and then lube and just slide it back in the housing with the square end first and flange end at the top. When it gets back down near all the way, twist it if needed while lightly pushing so the square end slides into the socket.

Also make sure there are no kinks or breaks in the cable or sharp bends in the housing as it routes to the dash. You can check for kinks by holding the cable in the middle and turning it with your fingers. It should be a smooth movement at each end. Any obvious kink or sharp bend or jerking and the cable is suspect and could be causing the issue.

There is an oil hole on the speedometer bushing area. Here is a picture of the 54 senior showing it at the end of threads for cable nut. It is on top and I think yours will be similar--although some have said their hole is on the side. Put a drop or two of oil in the hole. It would be a good idea to turn the speedo end with a small screwdriver (or even the cable after cleaning but before you lube and insert it back in the housing) to work the oil in. There are some gears in the speedo that could be dry and causing a big drag, but those require taking the speedo out to lube. If it still feels rough after the oil, that would be the next step. You do need to get the oscillation under control. If it gets too bad, on one of the large jerks the needle could hit the end or stop hard enough to break off.

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Howard,

Thanks again for this great info.

Seems like when I had the threaded coupling unscrewed from the rear of the speedo, and tried to tug on the inner rotating cable with my fingers to pull it out of its sheath/housing, it was offering some pretty good resistance to being pulled out. Is it ok to grab the inner cable with a pliers to get it to come out or is that too much force?

Do you have Ultra or standard. The standard cables should pull out because of the one piece cable & adapter, the flange won't go on the bottom. Normally, the cable is done so it can be serviced from the top. That means the flanged end is topside and straight end on the bottom. Not sure if it is possible to reverse on the Ultra and have everything screw together but if ultra and no flange on top, then you will have to go under. If the flange is on top and still nothing, possibly the cable has frayed and broken strands are holding things in. Another poster had a situation like that not too long ago. If there is a sharp bend in the housing, possibly some friction is holding it in. Cable won't break by pulling it--or I should clarify that and say if it does, it needed replacing anyway.

Here is a poor pict of a universal cable showing the different ends. Packards will be similar but maybe not exactly the same.

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Howard, Thanks again.

I have a standard 3-speed, so I will try pulling the inner cable out from the top side. It doesn't appear to have any big kinks along the length of the outer housing.

Warren

Pulling out with pliers is usually not needed, as has been said someting may be amiss inside causing it to stick. It was recommended that you lube it, but the type of lube was not mentioned. Using anything that gets thick when cold will create high friction problems. The best thing to use is powdered graphite in a plastic tube, often used for lubing lock keyholes.

Remove cable and cledan, give a few good shots of graphite down the cable. By the way all speedo cables are made to remove from the top. Lubing the spedo mechanism, use a light oil, like 3 in 1. Ands not too much , just a few drops. There is a felt wick in the bottom of the hole that will hold oil for the next 50 years.

Fred,

Lubed the cable with graphite as you suggested. Big improvement. Thanks to you and Howard for all the help!

Warren

Just in case anyone else reads this...

You can buy speedo cable lube at auto parts stores. $1.79 a tube, a lifetime supply for most of us.

When you lube a speedo cable leave the top 6 inches to 1 foot dry. You do not want excess lube working its way up into the speedo, it will gum it up.

Normally it is enough to pull out the inner cable, wipe it off with a rag, smear some lube on it and put it back. Do this once every 20 years lol.

I've never encountered a speedo cable that had too much lube on it adn gummed up the speedometer. As I recall form the construction of the speedo this is a remote possibility.
Regardless, using graphite would make this impossible as graphite does not get gummy and is not affected by temperature. This is one case in which I don;t follow the
Factory Manual which says to use chassis lube.

Years ago (many years ago) I was a helper in an auto electric shop. The shop also serviced speedometers. The mechanic who did the speedo repairs would only lubricate the lower two thirds of the cable when installing a new one or cleaning and lubricating an old one. I believe he used Lubriplate a white light grease. He said the grease on the lower part of the cable would distribute into the top part of the housing as the cable was inserted, and lubing the entire length of the cable would cause some of the grease to migrate into the speedo head. He had a long and successful career doing this work. I don't think he ever had any comebacks.

(o{I}o)