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Shaky Gauges

7K views 19 replies 14 participants last post by  hyperbuzzin 
#1 ·
Hello Group,

You may want to read this if your gauges are shaky, rusted or falling apart.

Thought I would let you guys in on some issues I have been having with my gauges. I just purchased my VN700 6 days ago BTW. The tachometer gauge’s rear housing was falling off, the screw in the very back was all the way in, however, it was not actually attached to anything. Also, the same gauge would shake violently when riding because it was not securely mounted inside the center instrument panel. So, the two problems went accordingly…

I removed the front headlight, instrument panel main bolts, instrument panel backing, etc. to start off with. Upon removing the Tachometer gauge backing, I noticed that the plastic piece that the backing screwed into was broken and, apparently, had been “fixed, lol” before with some kind of cheap glue. I ended up using epoxy and dabbing a couple dots around the inside of the housing and then holding in place on the gauge until it dried, works and looks perfect.

CAUTION TIGHTENING THE GAUGES:
Now, as far as tightening the tachometer’s securing bolt under the instrument panel so it would stop shaking…yeah, small amount of pressure and the screw snapped! Wow, that sucked! The screw is press fit in so I had to drill through the left over screw and screw head and use a new screw and bolt to re-attach the tachometer. Unfortunately, I did not have the right hardware, good lighting, loc-tite, or time (late for class) so the new bolt has already shaken loose and is just as bad as it was before. Must now purchase the correct hardware and start over, this time will be less stressful and done correctly. Moral of the story, be gentle on these bolts!, use loc-tite and a lock washer also.

Another problem I am going to fix at the same time, since I will have the gauges off, is the rust issue on the 1” chrome ring around the face of the gauges. The speedometer especially is rusted pretty badly. I plan to sand down the rings on both gauges with light grit sandpaper, tape everything off, and then paint either flat or gloss black (haven’t decided yet). I think this will add a nice accent to the gauges and it is sure to look better than the rust! I will try to include a picture when I am done and let you know how it turned out.

Adam
’85 VN700
 
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#4 ·
#5 ·
Hey, that's a good idea Dianna. It looks good too. I was thinking I would like to add a voltmeter and a clock sometime in the future and that would be a good way to do it.

I agree, matte black should look the best; I was looking at my bike last night and decided that gloss would look bad. Hopefully I can get to that project this weekend, however, it’s finals time (college) so I am very busy. I will upload photos when I am done though.

Thanks for the photos and the advice!

Adam :smiley_th
 
#6 ·
I too have a very loose tach on my 06. I took it back to the dealer and they told me that it is normal for the tach to be that loose. So taking their word I left. I met another guy on a 750 vulcan and asked him about his tach. His was just as loose as mine. Could there be a factory defect in the mounting system? I havent taken mine apart yet, but I will soon.
 
#7 ·
"loose" is a very nebulus term. i have a 2000 and the guages vibrate when riding, but nothing that makes them unreadable. i believe there has to be some play in them otherwise they would rattle themselves apart. so unless they are floppy around i wouldn't go real crazy. Dianna's brace will work also a member of the yahoo group "knifemaker1954" use to make a dash for our bikes but he has stopped now. you can go to his profile in yahoo and get the plans for them yourself and fab one. that is what i am doing . i am going to use a piece of 3mm carbon fiber. congrats on the new bike.

ride safe
 
#8 ·
My 05 tach rattles a little. Speedo is ok. I like Dianna's brace and will do that when I have some time.
 
#9 ·
rusty gauges

Re: the rust. I live near the ocean in South Florida and the rust on those rings is a constant problem. I have tried a product called "Wink" and it does a terriffic job at removing light rust. It is available at Tru- Value hardware and several other locations that sell household cleaning products.
 
#10 ·
Another tip for rattling, I put a 1 1/4" diameter 3/8" thick rubber grommet between the guages and the sides of the idiot light pod and no more shaking. I may have to put a dab of silicone under the one on the trach as it tries to slip out every once and a while. Will post a pic later, if your not looking they are hardly noticable.
 
#13 ·
To follow up…

A few weeks ago, I finally got around to doing some work on my gauges.

This is what I did:

I disassembled the instrument panel and took both gauges off. The tach had been shaking very badly because the mounting hardware attaching it to the instrument panel was not sufficient. I did some detailed Dremel work to correct the problem. I had previously drilled out the press fitted bolt, by the way. I took the Dremel to the mounting brackets and removed any irregularities or bumps on the contact surfaces so that the brackets would fit together flat and tight. I did this to the speedometer as well. When I was done, I repainted the brackets to protect them form the elements. I then used a 6mm thick bolt and screw I purchased from Home depot, along with a lock washer and loctite. This was a burly, allen top bolt that I could really crank down hard. (Only the tach, I used the original hardware on the speedometer since it has never had a problem coming loose).

But before I actually tightened everything back up, I also painted the “rings” on the tach and spedo.

With the pods removed, I used my Dremel to sand off all the rust from the rings and to prep the surface for paint. I taped up the chrome housing and the glass and left only the rings exposed. To cover the glass, I cut out circles using thick paper and put two-sided tape on the paper, tucking in the edge between the glass and the ring. This will take a few attempts to get it right but it worked well. So with only the rings exposed, I then applied 3 coats of the professional grade rustolient spray paint in flat black. No primer needed for this stuff. Word of caution because I was impatient and screwed this job up a bit. Let the paint fully dry before removing all the masking. I pulled off the paper covering the glass too early and it ended up taking some paint with it off the rings. Not the end of the world, it still looks good, but it could look perfect. Just be patient, I know better and I did it anyways.

I reassembled everything, using my new mounting hardware on the tach. My gauges don’t shake anymore and they look MUCH better with the new flat black rings. See picture below. Next, I will put some rubber between the gauges and housing like suggested.

Adam
'85 VN700A :motorcycl
 
#14 ·
Thanks for the great write-up, has made me think about my gauges. They have shook since the bike was new & I have had the rust problem as well. Sanded the top rings down a few years ago & painted them with silver hammerite which seems to have kept the rust at bay. The shaking has never really bothered me but seeing your write-up has spurred me into doing something about it so will follow your instructions.
 
#15 ·
Tach trouble

I too have a new 750 with the same problem with the tach.I will be taking it in for first service soon and will ask the dealer what is wrong with it.I agree it should shake a little but on a bumpy road it is unreadable.I do like dianna's bracket if the bike was'nt so new that would be the thing to make.I will pass on what the dealer tells me.
 
#18 ·
Here is a not so good pic of the grommets I used, there is one on top of the instrument pod for reference. I did use a dab of clear silicone on both sides of the grommets.
 
#19 ·
One observation I have, and mind you, I am only basing this off of my bike. The tack is mounted so that it is slightly higher than the speedometer. The Speedometer tends to naturally rest against the main housing while the tach hovers above it. Without the added support of the housing, it shakes. Then, over time, as with my case, it shakes the hardware loose which in turn does what? You got it, shakes even more! Take apart your housing, add new lock washers and loctite to the studs securing the pods to the housing and then use the rubber grommets and I'm sure this problem will be cured for good.

Adam

P.S. Don’t be too hard on Kawasaki, they have only had 22 years to fix this problem; I have the utmost confidence they will get to it in due time.
 
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