tach stopped working today, where do i begin?

[pprider]

was riding along and i look down and the tach is siiting at 0, i was like UHOH, thats not right .  well i did the obvious turned the bike on and off and still nothing. so where do i begin check specific wires, or just take the battery off and then put back on or what? :dunno:

thanks for your help!

[70 Cam Guy]

The tach cable may have come lose.  Follow the cable off the tach to the front valve cover and check that it's still there.  Its actually spinning with the engine like the speedo cable spins off the wheel.  I had the end of my cable come uncrimped and I had to order a new one after a few attempts at repair.

You can test the cable by hooking it into a hand held drill chuck.  Mine was obvious because when I removed the cable from the engine, the square end fell on the ground

Good luck!  A new cable isn't expensive if you need one.  I believe it was $15-$30 when I ordered mine buts it's been over a year

[Kerry]

The first thing is to check the lower end of the cable, where it attaches to the engine:



It has probably worked itself loose over time, but it won't necessarily be hanging loose or anything.  You may just be able to twist the threaded connector back in.  But you might want to twist it all the way OUT, wrap a couple layers of plumber's tape around it , and THEN put it back in.



If the connector is not loose in the first place then either your cable is broken inside, or there's something wrong at the UPPER end.  To check the cable, go ahead and undo the connection on the lower end.  See if you can pull (part of) the innards out of the cable housing.  If so, it's time for a new cable.

I wouldn't know WHAT to do about a problem on the upper end.  Haven't "been there, done that" yet.

[pprider]

ok ill head over and goo look now thnx guys

[Dragonfly]

My cable frequently comes loose.. directily from the back of the tach.
I have learned to live with it. it really isnt that bad.
About a 30 sec fix.....

Just reach behind with 2 fingures and spin it on....

[milo]

Heh, the same thing happened to me about five months ago. A 30-second fix, and yet I'm still too lazy-- ahem, busy to fix it. I say, ride it with no tach for a while, get used to warming it up and shifting using the sound of the bike rather than a display.

Or, y'know, be all smart and responsible and fix it in 30 seconds. . . [/b]

[pprider]

thnx guys, it ended up beign COMPLETELY unplugged from the bottom of the bike! thanks for the help!

[pantablo]

that used to happen to mine every so often, even after I installed it with plumbers tape. At least you know what it is and can take care of it immediately when you see the tach at 0 and the engine running....