whining from my speedo?!?!?

[drifter8844]

did a multitude of searches for this and found nothing.... so

i'm riding out on the back roads today and noticed a high pitch whining noise at about 55mph.  i thought it was just the wind cutting through my helmet until it started getting louder.    then realized that it was coming from the front end of the bike, more specifically the speedometer.  i put my hand on the cable that connects to the back of the gauge and felt that it was buzzing with the same frequency.  and it tends to change pitch with speed, and completely stop when completely stopped. what to do? Lube the cable... replace it?  

anyone ever heard of this before?

thanks in advance

[Lukewarm Wilson]

try taking off the speedo cable pull the centre out of the cable and put some grease over the insert then slide it back into the housing and refit.
I haven't heard of anyone here complaining about it but thats what we use to do to cars that were doing the same thing  if that dosen't work inspect clean and lube the speedo drive failing that the speedo itself is faulty or the noise is coming from elsewhere  

[Cal Price]

Yes, do as LW just said. Pay particular attention to the bottom end of the cable. Sometimes it is possible to get water ingression into the cable, this obviously gravitates to the lowest point and the cable can/will corrode, before it snaps it will fray and this can cause a whining noise or a vibration. A good clue is to look at the outside, lowest point, for a tell-tale bulge. If you have to replace the cable it's not a big deal. I recently had this happen on my old Yamaha but without the noise.

[starwalt]

... what to do? Lube the cable... replace it?..

If you need another for comparison, I've got one or two (used) extra should yours fail.

Lube it.  

[drifter8844]

thanks for all the advice guys...  def get to checking that out.  probably won't be for another couple days.

starwalt, i appreciate the offer. i'll let you know if i could use one.

this forum rocks (at any age) :lol:

[phire]

First I must ask if you only hear this sound in 5th and 6th gear near cruising rpm's? If you start to hear it in 5th (or 4th if the rpm's are very low) and 6th, then I'm going to assume that this is normal because I hear the same thing. I'm not quite sure that it is the speedo-cable making the noise but I definately hear a speed-o-cable-type sound around 55 which is about when I'm in 6th gear cruising. Buuut, I'm no mechanic and I'm just getting into the bike-world so I haven't exactly pinpointed it to a normal tranny issue with this bike or what so... But, I'll find it someday!

[drifter8844]

it will make the noise in any gear, mainly just when i start moving and picking up speed.  i also noticed that when i'm just maintaining speed the needle tends to flutter all over the place... past 130 and all the way to 0 and back like a wacked out pinball flipper.  i'll see if i can take a look at it today and let y'all know.

[Cal Price]

I recon the cable is frayed and about to bust, lube may make it last a bit longer.

[phire]

Ah yes, Cal is right if the needle is jumping all over the place. Try lubing the cable up as sometimes they get old/dry but if it's too bad you will need a new cable.