SpeedO to fast

[81 Gwing]

i thought it was fast but didnt really know how fast. finally got my GPS hooked up. well its 5mph fast at 30,50 and 60. can ya change speedo gears like in a car. or do i have to put a small front tire on.

 

[Omega Man]

Just subtract 5mph. ^_^

 

[slabghost]

Or you could go with a bigger tire or take the speedometer apart and move the needle. Easier to just subtract as suggested.

 

[81 Gwing]

wouldnt ya want a smaller tire to speed up the speedO

 

[slabghost]

Yes smaller tire will speed up the reading but why if it's already 5mph too fast? Or was your first post backwards?

 

[81 Gwing]

my mistake, at 50 im doing 55

 

[Ansimp]

Try spraying some silicon spray into the cable drive on the base of the speedo. The Rats Nest has had its issues and is getting better with repeated applications. Any resistance ( lack of lubrication) or lazy magnets would give you a lower reading than actual speed. I would try a different speedo before changing tire sizes. That said the Rats Nest had an 18" front rim and we bought a 19" front tire as that was the correct size rim for 81. Luckily Steve83 had a 19" off his 80 which he swapped onto the RN so we didn't have to get a different tire.

 

[81 Gwing]

i have a 110x90x18

 

[Ansimp]

I am thinking that 18" may be right for some of the 81s as there wasn't anything to suggest that RN had a different front wheel to original ( front and rear appeared in the same condition) and 82s went to 18" so maybe some went sooner to 18"...

 

[81 Gwing]

k, say i went 100mi, how many miles did i really go

 

[Ansimp]

Odometers are normally more accurate than the speedo. If it is an actual speedo/ratio fault then you would travel 10% more than what you have registered. The true way to check speedos is a timed run over a given distance at a constant speed. We have a couple of 5 Klm test sections on the hwy around here so that you can check calibration. The odometer would be really obvious because it would be .5k out over that test, 4.5- 4.6 instead of 5k. Speedos are allowed 10% less variance ( must be showing faster than actual speed) and odometers are allowed only 3% if I remember correctly here in Oz..

 

[81 Gwing]

10% more??

 

[slabghost]

I can't recall any vehicle I ever had that the speedo was even close to right.

 

[81 Gwing]

slabghost » Sat Aug 02, 2014 8:27 pm[/url]":356i7mys]
I can't recall any vehicle I ever had that the speedo was even close to right.

the one in my truck is right on(must be a ford thing) using the same gps

 

[sgq700]

i think the drive unit is set for each year/tire size as i run a 76 speedo on my 80 with the stock 80 drive/cable and tire size and it is +/- 2mph at all speeds up to 90 (i have never went any faster) so i agree that most likely you just need to get it lubed inside again.

 

[sledge]

i know in 1973 , I bought a new CB350four and 4 months later i bought a new GT750 Suzuki ( Water Buffalo ) , I'm not sure about the Honda , I didn't keep it long... but the Suzuki , said in the hand book , that the Speedo was off like 10% , on the fast side....... shows faster than its really going. i remember reading that . not sure if Goldwings said that or not, but I have the little 1983 Aspencade hand book that came with my last one, i might have to read it someday....... :smilie_happy: