Refurbishing meters

How would you clean the face of a speedometer? I've already disassembled the speedo and have wiped the face with a clean damp microfiber cloth. There are a few minor spots, nothing significant. I may try good ole' dawn dishwashing liquid or simple green, unless someone found something that works great.

Also, does anyone know if there's a good spray paint match for the green liner?
Krylon & Rustoleum have some colors that're a close match, but kind of too light.
The liner has been separated from the black housing & the gaskets are soaking in LW silicone spray.

1981 KZ650-CSR speedometer.



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I use rubbing alcohol to clean them.
Steve

Okay. The face is in pretty good condition, so I was hesitant to try rubbing alcohol or any solvents.
A junk meter would be handy for experimenting. A few years back I kind of went overboard collecting extra parts
but didn't happen to get a useless speedo or tach. I've got plenty of other useless junk. :laugh:



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For cleaning, I used the spray for cleaning the dashboard of your car. Came up a treat. Dont know what its called though.
(Dont know what dashboard is in Americanish!)

Same as you, dashboard! So, do you mean a general purpose interior cleaner or something specific for the dashboard?

Liner paint. Rustoleum Satin Vintage Teal appears to be a very close match >> painter's touch 2x ultra cover paint+primer.
Krylon colormax satin sea glass is also close >> maybe too light but probably not that noticeable.

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I use this stuff on anything black, brilliant stuff for brake hose, radiator hose, bike seats, engine black paint, pretty much anything you want returning to black. It has no pigment so will not cover the lettering on the face but will return the face to unmarked black.
Not sure if you can get it in the US but worth a try.
shop.cannontools.co.uk/car-valeting-prod...666-115-15751377.php

I think the stuff I used was called 'Cockpit spray' but it looks like the stuff Warren is using. Good on anything black. From a car shop (?) . I also found a can of 'Tyre Magic" and tried that on a bit of plastic. Came up nice. Anything for car interiors would probably do you.

Stay away from solvents. I accidentally picked up contact cleaner when I reached for the dustbuster spray.

The result was not good :sick:

The speedo face is in pretty good condition, so that'll have to be good enough after cleaning with plain water. Going in, I knew restoring the speedometer was going to be problematic because there are no parts available. Everything has to be re-used & probably the biggest unknown right now is the rubber gaskets as one is still stretched & needs more cleaning. I soaked them for several days in silicon, but there's still hardened crud that'll need to be removed from the top gasket. I boiled them in water to shrink them, which worked on the bottom gasket but not the top gasket which is thicker, so it may need more boiling time. or it may just be shot.

I used Krylon satin sea glass on the inner liner. Rustoleum satin vintage teal is another option. To the naked eye the Krylon color looks almost the same as the green plastic bottom housing cover, but in digital pics it's lighter. I think the rustoleum vintage teal would be darker, so I chose Krylon. someone else might prefer another color.

Duplicolor gloss black engine paint. Speedo glass looks crystal clear but has fine scratches.



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For restoring hardened rubber parts,try 'winter green'. No idea what its called by you but I bought it at the chemist (drugstore?). It was recommended to restore and soften the inlet rubbers. ( another article in Practicle sportsbike magazine. The same magazine as the clock restoration article) You are meant to boil them in it but as it smells so strongly,I wiped them down,sealed them in a plastic bag and put them away somewhere 'safe'. That must be at least 5 years ago,and I still havent found them. I ended up buying new ones!!!

Thanks. Pharmacies or drug stores here often times carry wintergreen oil. If new gaskets were available, that's what I'd do. The earlier meters are different & have different measurements, so I don't think those gaskets would fit.


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I've always used Windex on a soft cloth for cleaning parts like that. Goes on a Q-tip well too. Never had an issue with it removing paint etc. on gauges and other items.

Nice attention to detail, I can dig it.