Katana Gauge Restoration

[Spirit]

Does anyone have a source for renovating Katana gauges? My second-hand '83/1100 had faded gauge needles and I didn't realize how bad it was until the long end of the tach needle dropped off inside the gauge cluster. So if anyone has (1) a non-functioning tach with a good needle they'll sell or (2) knows of a somewhere you can get these gauges restored...please connect!

[Pedda]

German company: http://www.ka-ja-tacho.de/

 

[Spirit]

Damn, isn't there anybody in the UK or US who does this work? I know there was a guy who did (gasp!) CB750 gauges but I don't know if he does other marques. Anybody else?

 

[Gixer1460]

1 hour ago, Spirit said:

Damn, isn't there anybody in the UK or US who does this work? I know there was a guy who did (gasp!) CB750 gauges but I don't know if he does other marques. Anybody else?

 

Plenty with a quick Google search! Please do a search at least first as some may think you're lazy LOL!

http://www.guagerepairs.com/         .......   https://speedycables.com/instruments/gauge-repairs-conversions/      .......   https://gaugerestore.webs.com/

Edited December 27, 2019 by Gixer1460

[rureddy]

i have done 5 myself. Quite easy to do and I used WD 40 spray nozzles as the needles

[kiwi]

On 12/23/2019 at 6:50 PM, Spirit said:

Does anyone have a source for renovating Katana gauges?

yes do it yourself with patience and a little help read this   http://www.suzuki-katana.com/pdf/how_to_take_the_meter_apart.pdf  and for new needles two ways to go :- Mitsubishi shogan speedo needles (Eblag complete speedo and remove needles) or facebook Mark isaac's as he sells just needles

[johnr]

buy new needles, ive seen wd40 tubes, coffee stirrers, even playmobil knights swords used, but nothing looks right. there are a few options for these, you can buy replica needles from a guy in south africa and get them sent to the uk, otherwise, mark one mitsubishi shogun speedo needles are th same shape but slightly longer so need trimming back. theyre not too hard to do, you just need to be spotlessly clean and super gentle removing the old ones, the metal pins up the middle are very delicate and its not worth trying to lever them off, better to protect the faces with a piece of cardboard with a slot cut in it and then gently cut away the plastic with a dremmel, leaving the knurled brass ferrule that the needle is pressed onto. ive a set of these to repair for someone in the club so i may take some pics and post them here.

[johnr]

what does for the original needles is ultraviolet degradation, the uv in sunlight attacks the plastic and the top side facing the light shrinks, bending the needle upwards, eventually its brittle enough to crack and the needle bit floats about in the bottom of the case till you sort it or else it slips inside the works and disappears.