Speedo Needle Paint w/pics

OK. When I got my rebuilt cluster ready to go back on the bike, somebody busted my chops because the gauges didn't match, and I said "but I got speedo needle paint!"
BEFORE




HiPo Parts Garage's Speedo Needle Paint: http://www.hipoparts.com/product_info.p ... cts_id=458
Traditional orange on the right, red on the left. Not a LOT of difference once applied and dried. I did this cluster all in the orange to match how the 150mph speedo came; on my '81 (which is more stock) I'll use orange or red for the speedo and tach and yellow for the fuel and voltmeter since that's how it was originally.




Now they match! (Almost. I have the actual matching tach for that speedo but it's electronic and I don't have that fully ready to implement yet.)




I also installed 5-led white lamps in place of the two "dash lights" only; I'll have to see how they work at night. http://www.hipoparts.com/product_info.p ... cts_id=572

 

Hey Fitz, your attention to detail is amazing! That's nice enough to be museum restoration quality. Big props dood!

 

Fitz, you... you over-achiever!

Where did you get the stuff?

 

very nice, hi five!

 

Did I see two different color needle paint or is that my imagination

 

looks like it. maybe he used one color to touch up the red on the gauge itself, and the other for the needles.

 

Yes I posted a pic of both colors. I only used the orange on this cluster, I put up a pic of the red as a contrast and in case anyone else is interested.

The colors on the faces weren't touched up. If you look closely at the tach, it's a tiny bit faded. I HAD an even nicer one but it just died a horrible screaming death (which is why I pulled the cluster back apart.)

 

OK, now that's much better.
Now box those gauges up and ship them to me. How much do you want for them?

 

Looking good. Great job. Thanks for sharing the pics!

 

Fitz,
I bow to you.
I USED to think i was a restorer.
Now i realize i'm just a detailer. YOU are a restorer.

Humbly,
Christopher.

 

Fitz, let's hear about the tach that took a dump. Is it repairable?

 

Dunno. I've got the pilot (input) bearing soaking in Kroil right now, then I'm gonna flush it out real good and see. It was bouncing, reading low and screaming pretty loud but it was still pretty cold out. When I pulled it out, the input bearing felt "crunchy" but it might have just been dried rust.

Mechanical tachs are a temporary measure on this bike. Like I said, the actual match for the speedo is electronic, and I have one. I need to get the wiring figured out so that it's "plug-n-play" and bone stone reliable before I install it. That will solve my problem that the mechanical tach cable is in the way of fitting an FJ600 oil cooler, which I also have.

Stay tuned.