Oil Pressure Gauge Needle Sticking

[jmahall]

Speaking of oil gauges:

Getting close to finishing the project. Fired up new motor yesterday.
Oil pressure gauge came up but stayed there. Needle sticking at high point.

Any ideas?

 

[mikephillips]

The way the oil pressure gauge work it is a curled oval tube that pushes on the end of the needle. As pressure build the tube wants to straighten out, pushes the needle over towards the high end. As pressure drops, should move back but of the pivot for the needle is dried out it can stick. You can remove the gauge, take the glass and face off and with a toothpick or brush put a drop of machine oil on the pivot. Then by hand work the needle back and forth to work it in. Should after a few back and forth movements then go park by itself again. Fortunately it isn't normally rust inside the gauge, just dryness that causes this.

 

[alpine_64]

A side note...use VERY light pressure when moving the smaller 2" gauge needles, they are very thin metal and will kink if you push them to hard when stuck... So patience and gentle

 

[jmahall]

Thanks Michael, will give it a shot. Not surprising though, it's been sitting since 2004.

 

[alpine_64]

Another quick sidenote. You can use wd40 and a soft cloth to clean the gauge face, it wont remove the silk screenes lettering.

 

[mikephillips]

If you look at the other thread on disassembly it shows a picture of the insides of an oil pressure gauge. If I have to work the needle back and forth to loosen it and get light oil in, I push it down at the bottom where it forms a U with a small pair of tweezers that have a 90 degree bend at the pointed end. Then I can reach the back part, move it back and forth till it will reset on it's own and not risk bending the needle any more than necessary.

 

[jmahall]

Got it serviced and all's well, but I must say, as it sits on top of the steering column, it was a pain to get out and back in again.