Walter, an okay daily and an okay offroader

[GrimsterGMC]

So I learned some things about the clock/speedo. It is Stemco-Sangamo Tachograph. I'm not sure how Stemco is involved, but from what I found Sangamo produced these, or units like these, between the 40s and 80s. They put these in everything from buses, to tow trucks, to semis. It is almost entirely mechanical, with only three wires on the back. One is the ground, one is the backlight, and I'm guessing the other one is constant or ignition.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

This is a tachograph, so it's meant to clock the speed of a vehicle over a given amount of time. The way it does this is really simple yet really cool.

Inside the cubby on the left is where you can set and wind the clock. The clock will only run for 24 hours before you have to wind it again. The center circle with the rectangle is where you would put the sheet that records the speed.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

The three needles under the speedometer is how the speed gets recorded. The center one records the speed of the truck. I'm not sure how the top and bottom needles work, but I know the bottom is where 0 mph is, and the top is 70. As the sheet spins the speed gets recorded. I have absolutely no info on what the sheet looks like or anything like that but I am going to try and find something to see it work.

So like I said, this thing is almost entirely mechanical. The way the speedo works is really cool. I don't know if this is how all mechanical speedos work, but this one uses centripetal force and a bunch of springs. As the truck speeds up, the weights on the left spread out, stretching a spring that moves up the needle and also sets the speedo. At least that's how I think it works.

You must be registered for see images attach

This whole unit is really cool and works completely fine from what I can tell. The clock seems to keep time really well. I don't know what I'm going to do with this but I'm glad I have it.

That's all for now! I'm looking forward to learning more about this unit and how it works. I'm getting closer and closer to when I can start working on Walter again, so as soon as that happens I'll be sure to update you guys.

That is a really cool find, I love gadgets even if just to appreciate the design and function, even cooler that is in working condition.

 

[Orpedcrow]

That is a really cool find, I love gadgets even if just to appreciate the design and function, even cooler that is in working condition.

I feel the same way! This things is awesome!

 

[Erik the Awful]

Post 1973? It has 55 mph marked on the speedo.

 

[cjpett]

Post 1973? It has 55 mph marked on the speedo.

I would guess so. The only thing left from the truck I pulled it from was the cab, so it was pretty tough to get an idea of the year. They did produce them until deregulation, So that's about a 7 year period of when the truck was built

 

[cjpett]

Well, I got two things checked off the to-do list last weekend. I didn't mention them earlier because I was too excited about the Tachograph and I forgot. I was going to snap a couple of pictures, but it really wasn't all that interesting.

I replaced the wiper fluid pump, it was way easier than I thought it would be and I'm kind of angry that I didn't do it earlier. It did take quite a while to get fluid to spray out, mostly because it wasn't running for at least the last six months. It's only coming out of the driver's side sprayer, but it is spraying. I'm guessing I just have to run it some more to get it to spray out of the passenger-side one.

The coolant overflow hose isn't leaking. I filled it with some water and checked on it about 6 hours later, and not a drop spilled. The reason I figured it was the hose was because of the splotches on the passenger side fender. I'm not sure what those are from, but I'm not too worried about it because it hasn't caused any problems yet.

This weekend I'm hoping to tackle the ABS sensor. The only real reason I'm fixing it is so I can get a decent bleed out of my brakes. I know that that unit is just filled with air that I can't get to. After I get that sucker replaced, it'll be time for a marathon brake bleeding session filled with pumping brakes and complaining about my leg being sore. I bled them about a month ago when I did my rear drums, but it's still not great. If it's tough to stop at an intersection then I can't imagine how horrible it will be on a trail.

Speaking of trails, the first ones are starting to open! One of my favorites, Kelly Flats, is going to open on the 15th. It's usually delayed because of a wet spring, but fortunately ours hasn't been too bad. I'm planning on going up with my buddies around the 18th or 19th.

That is also the day I plan to have the first semi-functional prototype of my radio done. "Done" meaning I can put it in Walter without risk of it completely falling apart immediately. I don't think I have talked about it at all here, so let me fill you guys in. About 2 months ago I decided to make an almost entirely custom Raspberry Pi based radio that offers Android Auto, GPS, Bluetooth, and possibly a backup camera, all while fitting into the stock 1.5 din pocket, using the stock mounting system, and looking about as stock as you can get for a guy trying to stick a touchscreen into his 20-year-old pickup truck with mediocre CAD skills and an even worse understanding of electronics diagrams. Yeah, I am seriously over my head on this one. I am going to do a full write-up about it when I'm done, so I probably won't put too much info here unless you guys are interested.

Boy, this post flew out of control! Lots of words and no pictures, not really a fan of that. If I get the ABS sensor in this weekend I'll be sure to update this, hopefully with more pictures!

Alright, that's it for now!

 

[GrimsterGMC]

Well, I got two things checked off the to-do list last weekend. I didn't mention them earlier because I was too excited about the Tachograph and I forgot. I was going to snap a couple of pictures, but it really wasn't all that interesting.

I replaced the wiper fluid pump, it was way easier than I thought it would be and I'm kind of angry that I didn't do it earlier. It did take quite a while to get fluid to spray out, mostly because it wasn't running for at least the last six months. It's only coming out of the driver's side sprayer, but it is spraying. I'm guessing I just have to run it some more to get it to spray out of the passenger-side one.

The coolant overflow hose isn't leaking. I filled it with some water and checked on it about 6 hours later, and not a drop spilled. The reason I figured it was the hose was because of the splotches on the passenger side fender. I'm not sure what those are from, but I'm not too worried about it because it hasn't caused any problems yet.

This weekend I'm hoping to tackle the ABS sensor. The only real reason I'm fixing it is so I can get a decent bleed out of my brakes. I know that that unit is just filled with air that I can't get to. After I get that sucker replaced, it'll be time for a marathon brake bleeding session filled with pumping brakes and complaining about my leg being sore. I bled them about a month ago when I did my rear drums, but it's still not great. If it's tough to stop at an intersection then I can't how horrible it will be on a trail.

Speaking of trails, the first ones are starting to open! One of my favorites, Kelly Flats, is going to open on the 15th. It's usually delayed because of a wet spring, but fortunately ours hasn't been too bad. I'm planning on going up with my buddies around the 18th or 19th.

That is also the day I plan to have the first semi-functional prototype of my radio done. "Done" meaning I can put it in Walter without risk of it completely falling apart immediately. I don't think I have talked about it at all here, so let me fill you guys in. About 2 months ago I decided to make an almost entirely custom Raspberry Pi based radio that offers Android Auto, GPS, Bluetooth, and possibly a backup camera, all while fitting into the stock 1.5 din pocket, using the stock mounting system, and looking about as stock as you can get for a guy trying to stick a touchscreen into his 20-year-old pickup truck with mediocre CAD skills and an even worse understanding of electronics diagrams. Yeah, I am seriously over my head on this one. I am going to do a full write-up about it when I'm done, so I probably won't put too much info here unless you guys are interested.

Boy, this post flew out of control! Lots of words and no pictures, not really a fan of that. If I get the ABS sensor in this weekend I'll be sure to update this, hopefully with more pictures!

Alright, that's it for now!

I for one will definitely be interested in how your radio goes together and mounts into your truck.

 

[Kens1990K2500]

Another day, another dollar wasted. That's something my friend Charlie would always say when he was working on his 67 Camaro. That unit is so badass that it's the car on the poster for the Sweetheart car show we have here in NOCO. I was hunting around the forum today because I was bored, and oh boy do I want to waste some dollars. I decided to learn a bit more about Cab Sunvisors. The things I learned about them are as follows:
1. Lund was founded in 1965 by Allan Lund
2. There are two types, a Moonvisor, and a Sunvisor. I believe that the Moonvisor has lights where the Sunvisor doesn't, but I might have that wrong.
3. I lack critical thinking skills. For Example, it took me 2 weeks to look up "lund". I kept looking up "lund sunvisor chevy k1500" and "sunvisor chevy k1500".

While I was discovering how dumb I am, I came across a thread asking for a little eye candy. This is where I saw @Ollie B's (I can't seem to find his @) '93 stepside. Turns out he pulled the scoop off a Mercury Cyclone GT. So I want to do that now. All I have to do is find an original 1969 Ford bolt-on hood scope. No biggie right? Now, I have no problem with the more traditional hump you see on a lot of these units, but that scoop just looks so mean.

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I also looked into brakes a little. They always feel a little soft on Thursdays, I don't know why. I found out about Hydroboost brakes, which I might invest in, but I don't entirely trust my power steering pump. I also learned that pulling the ABS fuse disables ABS (no shut). I pulled that when I got home, we'll see what it does tomorrow. I doubt it'll do anything though because my ABS light has been on since, well, uh, I don't know when.

I'm really excited about where this truck is going! When I did stuff last year it was mostly just based on "hey this would be cool" and "hey what if I did this", so finally having a plan is really nice.

That's about all I have for now! I keep saying to myself that I'm probably not going to post something tomorrow but I keep on coming back. I know it's early on but thanks to you folks who read my ramblings! Welp, I'm gonna try and hunt down a hood scoop. TO CRAIGSLIST!

Ha, I like what you wrote ("Another day, another dollar wasted") at the start of this post. Though, spending money on a car or truck that's cool isn't really money 'wasted,' in my opinion.

1995 was a transition year for OBS trucks ... it has the newer style interior, with the TBI engine. Yours is a clean looking truck.

 

[Kens1990K2500]

So I learned some things about the clock/speedo. It is Stemco-Sangamo Tachograph. I'm not sure how Stemco is involved, but from what I found Sangamo produced these, or units like these, between the 40s and 80s. They put these in everything from buses, to tow trucks, to semis. It is almost entirely mechanical, with only three wires on the back. One is the ground, one is the backlight, and I'm guessing the other one is constant or ignition.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

This is a tachograph, so it's meant to clock the speed of a vehicle over a given amount of time. The way it does this is really simple yet really cool.

Inside the cubby on the left is where you can set and wind the clock. The clock will only run for 24 hours before you have to wind it again. The center circle with the rectangle is where you would put the sheet that records the speed.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

The three needles under the speedometer is how the speed gets recorded. The center one records the speed of the truck. I'm not sure how the top and bottom needles work, but I know the bottom is where 0 mph is, and the top is 70. As the sheet spins the speed gets recorded. I have absolutely no info on what the sheet looks like or anything like that but I am going to try and find something to see it work.

So like I said, this thing is almost entirely mechanical. The way the speedo works is really cool. I don't know if this is how all mechanical speedos work, but this one uses centripetal force and a bunch of springs. As the truck speeds up, the weights on the left spread out, stretching a spring that moves up the needle and also sets the speedo. At least that's how I think it works.

You must be registered for see images attach

This whole unit is really cool and works completely fine from what I can tell. The clock seems to keep time really well. I don't know what I'm going to do with this but I'm glad I have it.

That's all for now! I'm looking forward to learning more about this unit and how it works. I'm getting closer and closer to when I can start working on Walter again, so as soon as that happens I'll be sure to update you guys.

You have a piece of automotive history right there. And it's an awesome feeling when you finally find that rare part you've been hunting for a year or more (your fog light switch).

 

[GrimsterGMC]

Ha, I like what you wrote ("Another day, another dollar wasted") at the start of this post. Though, spending money on a car or truck that's cool isn't really money 'wasted,' in my opinion.

1995 was a transition year for OBS trucks ... it has the newer style interior, with the TBI engine. Yours is a clean looking truck.

If it is something that makes you happy and enjoy your life then it is never a waste. Everybody spends their money on different things, some people will say taking an overseas trip is a waste because once done you have nothing to show for it but if it made you feel good for the duration of the trip then who cares what others think, it is your money after all.

 

[Spareparts]

It was used to keep track of hours and time of a driver. Usually used in semi's. From what i remember it used a round card that was divided into 24hr time table.
It recorded Speed, Hours driven and maybe engine speed. If a driver was pulled over or stopped at a scale house the DOT would look at that card to make sure the driver was not in violation of the driving laws.
I'm sure it could have been used to keep track of buses, or delivery drivers or anybody that had a driving job back then.