69 tach cable

[Don W.]

I was getting a horrible squeaking noise which I thought was the power steering pump or a pulley. Turned out to be the tach cable. I disconnected the cable at the distributor and ended the noise. I understand that I need to pull the driver's side dash to access the back of the tach to remove the cable. Is there any other way to clean and lube the cable in place? Also, what lube; wd40? If I get the cable out; should I try and clean and lube or just buy a new one?

Thanks,

Don

[Joe L.]

Re: 69 tach cable

I was getting a horrible squeaking noise which I thought was the power steering pump or a pulley. Turned out to be the tach cable. I disconnected the cable at the distributor and ended the noise. I understand that I need to pull the driver's side dash to access the back of the tach to remove the cable. Is there any other way to clean and lube the cable in place? Also, what lube; wd40? If I get the cable out; should I try and clean and lube or just buy a new one?

Thanks,

Don

Don-----


The cable must be removed as you described. There is no way to clean the cable in-place. There are ways to LUBE the cable in-place using a special fitting that you can attach at the distributor end and then inject lube with a grease gun. I wouldn't do this, though. I'd remove the cable.

If the cable appears to be in good shape, I'd clean it up thoroughly, lube, and re-install. Special speedometer cable lubricant is available at good auto parts stores. You could also use a chassis moly grease, though.

If you need a new cable, I'd have a speedometer shop make you up one using your old one as the "model".

[Pat M.]

Re: 69 tach cable

I'd consider buying a new one and hanging on to the old one.
When the tach on my 70 whined and jumped a bit I took out the original cable, cleaned and lubed it, and reinstalled. It was a bit of a hassle, and while it improved, the jumpiness did not go away to my satisfaction. I also didn't want to take a chance since I had a PV coming up.
So I bought a new cable, which looked nearly identical to the original, and installed it and it's worked perfectly ever since. And when my speedo began to jump a bit shortly after that, I went straight to a new cable and it's been perfect too.
Others may have had better luck than me cleaning and lubing originals, but with a new cable it's nice to know you'll do the job once and have perfect functionality. And you can always go back to the original if you keep it. JMHO Good Luck.