Speedometer disassembly

[Guest Squashed Nose]

This may sound picky but, after only seven months, the paint on my speedo needle is fading badly. I mentioned it to my dealer and he has got me a new speedo under warranty. I questioned the necessity of this, saying that I only wanted the needle to be repainted, to which he replied that the speedo cannot be taken apart.

 

I don't want a new speedo as I want to show the true mileage of the bike.

 

Does anybody know if I can get it apart (I don't mean with a hacksaw or an oxyacetyline torch!) and, if so, what sort of paint I can use to touch up the needle?

[dlaing]

I would use rust-oleum. Graffiti artists use it because it paints well over dirty-galvanized metal. If there is oxidation on the surface of the needle, the Rust Oleum will deal with it best.

If you do not have that brand in the UK, try any anti-rust enamel with fish oil. I once blued out the number 55 on my US model speedometer. I used a color mix of acrylic artist paints. It held up very well and the color was a pretty good match.That speedometer was pretty easy to get to the face. It was from a V65.

[callison]

It's not too difficult if it's like the Vaguelia tachs. Just put a towel or something on a hard surface, lay the speedo face down on that and use a couple of medium to large flat blade screwdrivers to gently pry the perimeter of the bezel outward. Don't try to do it all at once in one spot, work your way around the tach bending it out about 20 degrees each time at probably, one-quarter inch intervals. After a while, you can use some pliers to grip and bend. Just keep doing that until the bezel slips over the housing lip easily and you're in. Do what you need to the needle (I'd use a magic marker, but then, I'm a lousy painter). Closing it up is the reverse except that you just use pliers and crimp the bezel down around the housing lip again in one or two passes.