My speedometer goes wonkers which i didnt mind too much being i dont try to keep up with everyone.

but lately a whirling noise has started and sounds like it coming from behind my dash

im planning on replacing it but im wondering what to expect

i have a 440 engine and a 727 tranny is there a adapter necessary is it possible the previous owner didnt do it right or perhaps these things universal and straight forward (yea right)

thanks in advance!

 

It's difficult to diagnose without seeing things.My '59 F250 did as you described awhile back when the cold, wet weather began.I replaced the cable and it seemed to heal itself for awhile before the speedo totally stopped working.

I installed the NOS one I had waiting on my parts shelf, and had my original rebuilt and it's s now back on my shelf.I might have to install it again in 30 years - when I'm dead.

I would want to pull the speedo and the cable to see just what the previous owner did.There should be a place in SoCal to rebuild speedometers.You could buy this:

57 58 59 60 Ford Truck Mercury Speedometer Guage 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 Econoline | eBay

It has the correct light bronze color gauges for your 59.Have the speedo gone through and just R&R .Evaluate the cable end to see if it's compatible with a stock one and the speedometer.

Good luck,
Steve

 

The cable is probably dry. You can fix this fairly easy. You have to reach up behind the dash and disconnect the cable from the speedo head. Now pull the cable assy down where you can see it. With a pair of needle nose pliers grab ahold of the inner cable and pull it out of the cable sleeve. Spray some brake or carb cleaner in a rag and wipe the cable down to clean it up. Now with some light duty grease you can lube the cable up and slip it back into the sleeve. The old Lubriplate white grease works great for speedo cable but any light grease would do.

Years ago you used to be able to buy a set of special adapters that let you grease the cables without reaching behind the dash. They were adapters that fit the tranny end of the cable and you could hook a grease gun to them. Years ago when I worked as a wrench I used to keep one of those mini grease gun loaded up with white grease especially for those jobs.

On our old trucks its a pretty simple job
Good luck
Bobby

 

dry graphite does a great job lubing the cable. messy, but good. greases and oils will get gummy and hard with age and cold