Speedometer/Odometer Cable

kennetht · February 25th, 2014, 08:54 AM

This weekend when I changed by brake fluid, I later decided to take a look at the speedometer/odometer cable on my bike (since my speedometer/odometer never worked since I purchased the bike)

I figured the cable snapped when the previous owner owned the bike, and he never replaced it.

So I decided to do a little investigative work. I removed the cable from the bike to inspect it. What I found was a perfectly intact cable. One end of the cable is squared off like it should be (the end that goes into the dash) (picture 1), and the other end has a slit in the middle of the metal (the part that attaches to the wheel end) (picture 2).

I put the cable back onto the bike to see if perhaps the cable just was not inserted correctly on either end, but to no avail, the speedometer didnt work once I reconnected everything.

What could be the problem? Could it be on the dashboard end, or on the wheel end?

Note: Pictures are not of my cable, they are just used to help explain my discussion

Picture 1

Picture 2

cuong-nutz · February 25th, 2014, 09:32 AM

Have you tried spinning the cable probe and see if it spins on the opposite end? Hook up a power drill to the wheel hub end of the cable and spin it. It could possible by that the needle is stuck. There's a thread here where someone had an issue with the needle sticking which didn't allow it to move. Otherwise, make sure the wheel hub gears are in alignment. The only way the speedo gauge would not work is if it's been tampered with if everything else checks out.

kennetht · February 25th, 2014, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuong-nutz

Have you tried spinning the cable probe and see if it spins on the opposite end? Hook up a power drill to the wheel hub end of the cable and spin it. It could possible by that the needle is stuck. There's a thread here where someone had an issue with the needle sticking which didn't allow it to move. Otherwise, make sure the wheel hub gears are in alignment. The only way the speedo gauge would not work is if it's been tampered with if everything else checks out.

Well I know the needle is not sticking because the odometer miles never change.

But you just gave me a brilliant idea. Leave the cable attached to the gauge, but unattach it from the wheel hub and hook up the drill to the wheel hub end of the cable. Then power the drill and if the speedometer registers a speed, that would eliminate a problem with the gauge unit. So if that is the case that would mean the problem is with the wheel hub gears?

cuong-nutz · February 25th, 2014, 10:15 AM

The wheel has two notches that align and operate the speedo hub. I'm not sure how it could get damaged but you could take a look. Make sure that the slit in the hub cable end goes in properly to the hub. You can see in the pictures how the speedo hub works.

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=93061

kennetht · February 26th, 2014, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuong-nutz

The wheel has two notches that align and operate the speedo hub. I'm not sure how it could get damaged but you could take a look. Make sure that the slit in the hub cable end goes in properly to the hub. You can see in the pictures how the speedo hub works.

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=93061

Thanks for the link. when i attached the cable, I made sure that both ends went in all the way into their corresponding ends. I am going to try the drill method as in the post above and if that does work, then it has to be a problem with the hub.

kennetht · April 2nd, 2014, 11:29 AM

So this past weekend I removed the speedo cable from the hub at the wheel end. I then attached a drill to the hub and spun it righty tighty, no response from the instrument cluser, odometer or speedometer. So then I spun it lefty loosy using the drill, and wallah! I got a reading.

My question is this. Does the cable naturally spin lefty loosy?

And now since I know the cable and dash are working properly, I can now conclude that the hub on the wheel end is the problem. Correct?

mgentz · April 3rd, 2014, 04:41 PM

Pull the Speedo spacer off, clean it and give it a spin while watching the metal worm gear at the bottom to see if it spins.

kennetht · April 4th, 2014, 06:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgentz

Pull the Speedo spacer off, clean it and give it a spin while watching the metal worm gear at the bottom to see if it spins.

which part is the spacer?

does this require the tire to be removed?

mgentz · April 4th, 2014, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennetht

which part is the spacer?

does this require the tire to be removed?

The black part that the cable screws into. Yes the tire must come off.

kennetht · April 4th, 2014, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgentz

Pull the Speedo spacer off, clean it and give it a spin while watching the metal worm gear at the bottom to see if it spins.

i know exactly how the speedo hub works, but i am confused as to what you are telling me to spin to see if something else spins...

mgentz · April 4th, 2014, 02:27 PM

Clean all the grease out of the spacer. Inside is a white plastic piece that should spin. This piece spins a metal gear at the bottom of the spacer. You will see all this with the grease cleaned out.

kennetht · April 23rd, 2014, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgentz

Clean all the grease out of the spacer. Inside is a white plastic piece that should spin. This piece spins a metal gear at the bottom of the spacer. You will see all this with the grease cleaned out.

i just got my tires replaced by my local shop and asked them to look at the speedo hub. they confirmed that I need a new hub, my current hub is no longer operable.

so i am looking to purchase this one from ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2012-Kawasak...p=mtr#viTabs_0

even though that one is from a 2012 ninja, that speedo hub will work on my 2009 ninja correct?

DaBlue1 · April 23rd, 2014, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennetht

.....even though that one is from a 2012 ninja, that speedo hub will work on my 2009 ninja correct?

Correct.

kennetht · April 23rd, 2014, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaBlue1

Correct.

thank you. just purchased. cant wait to finally get this odometer working lol

kennetht · May 5th, 2014, 06:37 AM

just wanted to update you all.

this weekend i replaced my speedometer hub with the new one I purchased! finally have a working speedometer/odometer!

turns out the gears that turn the cable in the old hub were no more. they did not connect with one another so the hub never worked to spin the cable.

but now i am all good.

didnt have a bike lift, so I had to get a little creative to get that front wheel off the ground lol

mgentz · May 5th, 2014, 07:23 AM

awesome

verboten1 · May 5th, 2014, 07:30 AM

glad you got it going, on my KLR (the same setup for speedo drive) the flanges on the hub actuaslly broke off, meaning I had to get a new hub!

kennetht · May 5th, 2014, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgentz

awesome

thanks for all your help mgentz.

sorry it was a bit hard for me to understand everything you said earlier in the thread without actually seeing what the hub looks like after taking it off.

after taking it off and seeing the inside, i completely understand everything you explained.

looking back, I wish I would have done a video tutorial, so that way I can help people in the future with the same problem.

kennetht · May 5th, 2014, 09:12 AM

all in all, i am FINALLY done with my maintenance. everything is in ship shape and now fully functional. took a while, but glad to finally be done.

only thing I am thinking of doing next is putting some blue reflective rim tape on.

mgentz · May 5th, 2014, 09:55 AM

glad I could help.

***shameless plug: don't forget to tell all your friends to vote for me in the member of the month poll***

February 25th, 2014, 08:54 AM	#1
kennetht ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: Central New Jersey Join Date: Oct 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Posts: 219	Speedometer/Odometer Cable This weekend when I changed by brake fluid, I later decided to take a look at the speedometer/odometer cable on my bike (since my speedometer/odometer never worked since I purchased the bike) I figured the cable snapped when the previous owner owned the bike, and he never replaced it. So I decided to do a little investigative work. I removed the cable from the bike to inspect it. What I found was a perfectly intact cable. One end of the cable is squared off like it should be (the end that goes into the dash) (picture 1), and the other end has a slit in the middle of the metal (the part that attaches to the wheel end) (picture 2). I put the cable back onto the bike to see if perhaps the cable just was not inserted correctly on either end, but to no avail, the speedometer didnt work once I reconnected everything. What could be the problem? Could it be on the dashboard end, or on the wheel end? Note: Pictures are not of my cable, they are just used to help explain my discussion Picture 1 Picture 2

February 25th, 2014, 09:32 AM	#2
cuong-nutz RIP Alex Name: Cuong Location: Houston, TX Join Date: Apr 2011 Motorcycle(s): '10 250r, '09 265r Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 2	Have you tried spinning the cable probe and see if it spins on the opposite end? Hook up a power drill to the wheel hub end of the cable and spin it. It could possible by that the needle is stuck. There's a thread here where someone had an issue with the needle sticking which didn't allow it to move. Otherwise, make sure the wheel hub gears are in alignment. The only way the speedo gauge would not work is if it's been tampered with if everything else checks out. __________________________________________________ HalfFast Racing Team Serving Greater Houston Area Riders:WFO Riders MotoHouston HPC CMRA Ride Smart Fastline Lone Star Track Days

February 25th, 2014, 10:15 AM	#4
cuong-nutz RIP Alex Name: Cuong Location: Houston, TX Join Date: Apr 2011 Motorcycle(s): '10 250r, '09 265r Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 2	The wheel has two notches that align and operate the speedo hub. I'm not sure how it could get damaged but you could take a look. Make sure that the slit in the hub cable end goes in properly to the hub. You can see in the pictures how the speedo hub works. http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=93061 __________________________________________________ HalfFast Racing Team Serving Greater Houston Area Riders:WFO Riders MotoHouston HPC CMRA Ride Smart Fastline Lone Star Track Days

May 5th, 2014, 07:30 AM	#17
verboten1 ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Jason Location: Monroe, MI Join Date: May 2013 Motorcycle(s): '75 CB550:.'82 XV920:.'00 KLR650:.'00 EX250:.'08 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot. MOTM - June '15	glad you got it going, on my KLR (the same setup for speedo drive) the flanges on the hub actuaslly broke off, meaning I had to get a new hub! __________________________________________________ '82 XV920: Soon to be tracker--'00 KLR685:adv --'04 DRZ400E--'12 Super Tenere --'13 Versys Ride more, worry less.

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April 2nd, 2014, 11:29 AM	#6
kennetht ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: Central New Jersey Join Date: Oct 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Posts: 219	So this past weekend I removed the speedo cable from the hub at the wheel end. I then attached a drill to the hub and spun it righty tighty, no response from the instrument cluser, odometer or speedometer. So then I spun it lefty loosy using the drill, and wallah! I got a reading. My question is this. Does the cable naturally spin lefty loosy? And now since I know the cable and dash are working properly, I can now conclude that the hub on the wheel end is the problem. Correct?

April 3rd, 2014, 04:41 PM	#7
mgentz Board Member Name: ... Location: WI Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 250R (street), 250R (dirt) Posts: A lot.	Pull the Speedo spacer off, clean it and give it a spin while watching the metal worm gear at the bottom to see if it spins.

April 4th, 2014, 02:27 PM	#11
mgentz Board Member Name: ... Location: WI Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 250R (street), 250R (dirt) Posts: A lot.	Clean all the grease out of the spacer. Inside is a white plastic piece that should spin. This piece spins a metal gear at the bottom of the spacer. You will see all this with the grease cleaned out.

May 5th, 2014, 06:37 AM	#15
kennetht ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: Central New Jersey Join Date: Oct 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Posts: 219	just wanted to update you all. this weekend i replaced my speedometer hub with the new one I purchased! finally have a working speedometer/odometer! turns out the gears that turn the cable in the old hub were no more. they did not connect with one another so the hub never worked to spin the cable. but now i am all good. didnt have a bike lift, so I had to get a little creative to get that front wheel off the ground lol

May 5th, 2014, 07:23 AM	#16
mgentz Board Member Name: ... Location: WI Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 250R (street), 250R (dirt) Posts: A lot.	awesome

May 5th, 2014, 09:12 AM	#19
kennetht ninjette.org member Name: Ken Location: Central New Jersey Join Date: Oct 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Posts: 219	all in all, i am FINALLY done with my maintenance. everything is in ship shape and now fully functional. took a while, but glad to finally be done. only thing I am thinking of doing next is putting some blue reflective rim tape on.

May 5th, 2014, 09:55 AM	#20
mgentz Board Member Name: ... Location: WI Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 250R (street), 250R (dirt) Posts: A lot.	glad I could help. *shameless plug: don't forget to tell all your friends to vote for me in the member of the month poll*