Speedo Cable connection ??????

[Chaz]

Hey guys,
  I now have time to start working on my coach and one of the first things is I would like to get the speedo working. I found the culprit, but I don't know how to rectify it. See pic:
    NO, it won't just plug in and I put a drill on the cable and it mkes the speedo work fine.
  The guy who had it before me said the tranny had been redone, but after seeing that the cable is not connected, I wonder if it was swapped. All I know is that it's a 3 speed auto. It shifts ok except for when it's cold it down shifts into second pretty hard.
  Any idea on what I need to do to connect it?? I guess there is some sort of adapter out there???

  Also, an easy question for most of you, but I don't know the definition of a "Class A". I was asked by a friend and don't really know. How is it defined?? Would my 4108 be considered one? It doesn't matter what so ever, I like my bus.

  Thanx,
     Chaz

[rayshound]

Chaz;
    When you say that the cable just won't plug in do you mean the cable nut is to big or small or won't screw on. I think you are o.k. with the cable an your test with the drill motor. The device on the transmission is just a 90 degree, I had one on a mt 643 that I had purchased for my other bus. I had removed the 90 degree and had put a electronic device on the transmission to drive a new electric speedo. Is your 90 degree electric. Does it have a plug or pins? If the previous owner swapped trans, you may have an electric drive. You can unscrew bottom part of 90 degree and remove. Then match up the cable nut to one that fits. A truck wrecking yard may have one or try Luke, Nimco etc.  Ray

[Chaz]

Hmmmmmmmmm....... I'll check it after school. (providing the monsoon isn't hitting about then!) 
But I'm still a little confused. (what's new!!! )

Thanx,
    Chaz

[rayshound]

Hi Chaz;
   I hope I didn't confuse you with my post. What I refer to on the 90 degree is just a angle box. You may be able to plug the cable directly into the trans tail shaft after removing the 90 degree angle box. The angle box just gives a direct way to plug in the cable without having to loop or bow the cable.   The other thing that may be confusing is if it is electric. Look in the end of the angle box, do you see 2 pins? Hope this helps. 
                           Ray

[Rich (Prevost)]

Chaz the likely culprit is your "pencil gear". Inside that housing is a pencil shaped gear that turns your cable. If it were me I would kabosh the setup you have & get an electric speedo that goes off the front tire. Much easier, very accurate, 12 or 24v.....around $250 for the entire setup....has odometer in the head...........Let me know if you have specific questions.

Rich

[Chaz]

This is a better pic:


  It looks like 3 spade connectors inside.

Rich,
  The electric sounds fine, but I have ALLOT of other things that need addressing before I drop 250 on a speedo. Especially if this one can work. Thanx tho.
  I guess I can still keep running without one. I'm not sure the ol'bird will get over 65 mph!!!

   Thanx,
      Chaz

[Buffalo SpaceShip]

If the angle has spade connectors, it's electric. The old manual tranny had the mechanical connection, and that's why it's not hooked up at the moment.

Get a mechancial angle connection from Allison and you'll be in good shape.

BTW, depending on where your governor is set, you can do well over 65mph! I have the same setup... 8v71+V730+4-1/8 rear gear and can cruise ~72mph @ 2100rpm. I can get her up to over 80mph and 2400rpm, but don't recommend it! When kept at ~65mph and about 1900rpm, she can get 8.5mpg on flat ground.

And that's as good as my 4106/4-speed got @ ~70mph... no matter WHAT Fast Fred says. 

Brian B.

[Chaz]

The old manual tranny had the mechanical connection

  I thought maybe the bus may had a manual trany in the beginning, but I can't find ANY remnents of a clutch or shifter up front. What could be the deal??

BTW, depending on where your governor is set, you can do well over 65mph!

  I'll ask the guy doing my rack about the governor. I haven't a clue. I know that going to IL. with a 1951 chevy sedan on a trailer on the back only netted me 5.6 mpg. Bummer!! That is a big reason I NEED to go wvo.
  Thanx for the help, Brian. Oh, by the way, any suggestions on where I may find one of those connections used??

   Regards,
      Chaz

 

[Buffalo SpaceShip]

Chaz, for the tranny connection part click here to find a location close (enough) to you. Give them a call and tell them you need a mechanical 90 degree connection for your V730 speedo sender.

Good luck on the WVO... you'll need to drive a LOT of miles to justify outfitting your coach to use this "free" fuel source. There's a lot of proponents of the stuff, and a lot of lip-service being bandied about the Internet about it... but I haven't seen that many successful implimentations of it. I think it would have to be more of a lifestyle choice than a true fuel alternative, once you factor in everything new you'll have to do... as opposed to just filling up w/ diesel at your nearest Flying J. Start adding up the extra tankage, line heaters, switches, filters, pumps, etc. All that stuff costs $ and takes up bay space, and requires a bunch of engineering that you either have to pay for, or spend months retrofitting. And when you're travelling, you'll have to spend some "quality time" finding quality sources of it, transferring it, filtering it, etc.

But "it's free", I hear. Uh-huh. No free setup. Once you pay for that, there's no free filtration. And when you're travelling, vacationing, whatever... say goodbye to a good chunk of your free time. Bah!

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for people using the stuff and working out the kinks for everyone else. Just know that it's clearly not free fuel, nor an apples-to-apples replacement for petro diesel.

My Bah-humbug for the day!
Brian "Scrooge on WVO" B.

[larryh]

Chaz

I tryed WVO and it's a pain in the butt. Then I went bio-diesel cost about 200 to build a processor that made 40 gal at a time and no heaters switches filters etc just like filling with fueal and more bio fueling at truckstops every day just do a search on bio-diesel yahoo has several groups.

LarryH


PS:
my avg cost for bio was 72 cents pergallon so well worth the money for a processor I just sold my processor and designing one to put in a bay.

[Chaz]

Larry and Brian,
  I'd be interested in hearing your reasonings. I talked to Bill Glen and he has a little different opinion.
  I won't be full timing it for a few years yet, so all the use will be a little closer. I won't have to carry a filter system on board that way. I also have a gold mine of wvo about 1/2 mile from me. A buddy owns a KFC and I can have all the wvo oil I could ever use. I may even create old 30 gallon barrel containers on wheels to make it easier on both of us. It seems like a great deal.
  I thought about bio along time, but I'm not so sure I want to get into all that. I am part of an Alternative Energy Group, but I am the first one around here trying this. I have also been on www.journeytoforever.com and checked out some of their ideas on the subject. But I would LOVE to hear you guys side of the story!!! That is the best way to make an informed decision.
  Thanx guys!!!
     Chaz

[Buffalo SpaceShip]

Chaz, I guess i feel like I gave my reasonings in my rant yesterday. Setting a vehicle up for this additional fuel source is not for the faint of heart (or pocketbook), and busses (as you know) will use regularly hundreds of gallons of the messy stuff. You'll have to go though thousands of gallons before you pay yourself back from all of the tankage, heaters and valves. Finding enough for a fillup when you're away from home will be iffy... and woe be it to you if you ever shut down with that stuff in your fuel pump and injectors and the temperature drops a bit.

As for KFC, make sure they're not using hydrogenated oils. I've heard that these are a no-no for WVO. Just eyeball one of his virgin veggie oil packages sometime. I think peanut and safflower are the best oils for good atomization. I've also heard that many "fried food joints" over-use their oil, burning a bunch of crud that will be suspended in the waste oil.

Home-grown biodiesel has its advantages, since it shoudn't require the tankage, heaters, etc. But creating the stuff in the quantities needed will turn your home into a mini-refinery... and I'd suspect that many municipalies' haz-mat teams might come down on the guy with hundreds of gallons of oil and lots of lye sitting out back. And you'll still be stuck paying for fuel (bio OR petro) when you're more than half-a-tank's radius from home.  Which is 95% of the time for me.

Just playing Devil's Advocate, here.
bb

[Tom Y]

Chaz, I would try taking the 90 degree off.  That may be a mech to elect. adapter.  Try USA Parts for used Allison parts. Good to deal with and knows his Allisons.  800-USA-7899   Your bus would be a class A  a class C has the van or truck front end w/ bunk over top.  Tom Y

[akbusguy2000]

I believe you will flind that the angle drive unit shown - and others more or less like it, are straight through mechanical drive units.  They were available in various drive ratios to accomodate different coaches/transmissions, and rear end ratios.  I still have the one that was on the spicer transmission that I removed from my 4106, and if anybody needs it, its yours for the postage.  It has a gear ratio of 1-1/8 to 1.   I believe this points out the advantage of the newer electric speedometers, in that they are programmable - a real plus if you ever change tire and/or wheel sizes, rear end ratios, etc.

On my 4106 the mechanical speedometer drive cable had long since been removed when I bought it, and the speedometer had been replaced with one that worked off the front wheel.  It worked sporadically at best, so, when I installed the V730 I put a pulse generator at the output end of the angle drive unit that came on the transmission, and changed to a newer speedometer.  I bought the speedometer and the adapter from ISSPRO.

tg 

[DrivingMissLazy]

Chaz, I would try taking the 90 degree off.  That may be a mech to elect. adapter.  Try USA Parts for used Allison parts. Good to deal with and knows his Allisons.  800-USA-7899   Your bus would be a class A  a class C has the van or truck front end w/ bunk over top.  Tom Y

And I believe a class B is actually a van conversion.
Richard