Minor update. (but quite a few words, sorry)
Something we should have done last winter is change out our speedo which went kaput after sitting idle while the new engine went in.
Seems like it 'lost it's magnetism' and the needle gradually moved from zero at rest. Even with cable disconnected it's now showing 130mph at rest.
So with an MOT due (yes I know it probably isn't really an issue) and the mileage still where it was before the last MOT we thought hey why not spend a couple of weekends lying under the dash to fit a new one.
Found a US seller on Ebay over a year ago now who offered restored instrument clusters for either Satellite / RR's (120mph) or GTX's (150mph).
Seems that our Stellite had a 150mph speedo fitted by the previous owner which probably replaced a kph speedo? Or maybe the old one just broke.
Either way it lasted us 35 years so can't complain.
150 is kind cool but 120 is correct so that's what we went for.
Trouble is, when the new cluster arrived the speedo was showing 50. Credit to the seller he sent a new speedo (just the speedo section), but that arrived with the needle bent. ho hum.
So I took the 2 'new' speedos to a very helpful guy just the other side of Gloucester who checked them over, calibrated them and set to zero.
https://www.magnetic-speedometer-repair.com/
Oh yes and we thought we'd fit a clock that we got years ago. Not hooked up but better than a black square.
So a couple of weeks ago I started dismantling stuff. Had a look at some threads on FBBO which were quite helpful, and rob came round to help.
It probably would have been easier without the steering column in but didn't fancy going to that extent.
Photos below show a 'before' with the needle at 130
, then the 'new' speedo with it at 50
. And then a few of 'during' and 'after'
With the new cluster in place and everything else back in we turned the key. Couple of things didn't work:
Dome wasn't coming on with the dimmer, Brake (E brake) indicator wasn't working, and the indicator / hazard wasn't flashing.
Turns out the dome / dimmer was because I hadn't replaced the 4 screws retaining the black switch panel (earth). Brake indicator was just a dodgy bulb / fitting which I took out of the old cluster. Flasher / indicators would flash with the engine running so i'll take that for now.
I wonder if it just needs a new flasher unit? We found that Andy (Mustangbooks) has them on ebay so might order a new one.
Do these need to be earthed? or squeezed into it's spring steel housing somewhere up under the dash?
If anyone is thinking of changing their 68/69 RR etc speedo, here's a list of what we removed to make access easier:
Driver seat, drop column, ashtray, full width ally trim above cluster / under dash, trim piece to left of cluster, switch panel, loosen Pal nuts that retain the lower dash pad, Vent pull levers under dash.
All this is more suited to a teenager with very small hands rather than a couple of 60 year olds who need glasses to see under the dash.
Anyway here's some pics: