Ford 3000 Tach Intermittent Failure

tlj87 · Jul 30, 2013

I have a 1969 Ford 3000 gas tractor with about 2410 hours on it. The tachometer recently stopped working. I pulled the gauge cluster, disconnected the tach cable from the tach and started the tractor. The shaft in the cable spun. I reconnected the cable to the tach and reinstalled the cluster. The tach worked for about 2 hours and the quit again. I repeated the above steps and had the same problem - it worked, then it stopped. Does anyone have any ideas, or is it time to replace the instrument cluster or something else?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Soundguy · Jul 30, 2013

does the end of the cable have any wear? have you tried leaving the cluster out when it fails and see if manipulating the cable connection helps any?

most likely the tach coupling is getting flaky.. and yeah.. new cluster...

Soundguy · Jul 30, 2013

ps.. i believe there may be 2 cluster types. the new style and old...

tlj87 · Jul 30, 2013

I did notice that the the face end of the cable itself looked like it had snapped off instead of cut square. The end was not rounded, however. If you can follow me...
Perhaps even if 1/8 or 1/4" of the cable broke off at some point, the tach would work for a bit and then stop after disconnecting and reconnecting? The best route could be to buy a new cable (cheaper) and see if the tach itself continues to function?

Soundguy · Jul 30, 2013

if significant drive end of the cable is gone.. I imagine it has a hard time staying engaged...

tlj87 · Aug 11, 2013

Update:
I ordered a new tach cable and installed it. I ran the tractor for about 2.5 hours today it the tach/proof meter worked fine. I'll post again for reference if the tach stops again and I end up installing a new instrument cluster.

Soundguy · Aug 12, 2013

that's about what i figured when you said the cable was damaged...

bobflange · Sep 3, 2013

Had a similiar issue on mine, I only needed to replace the coupling that joins the tach cable to the generator and the tach worked again. Mine was intermittent for a while then stopped altogether. Not sure what exactly went wrong but the new one had to be fiddled with and placed in a very exact position when tightened. Once we got it right it has worked for a few years now without issues.