Odometer stopped working. It will be forever stuck at 111,253 miles (and I will not know how much gas I've used) unless I can fix it. I appreciate any suggestions as to where to start looking for a fix.

Dennis,
Have a look at the plastic gears that drive the odo.
Paul.

Thanks Paul. Will do.

Dennis, sorry for taking so long with a reply, but a brain fade meant I couldn't remember where I saw a site that shows the guts of the speedo/tacho.

Here it is.

It will (at the least) show you what you can expect to see when you take one apart.

Good luck.

great link blakey...hadnt seen that one before

i can now see why the 3 pin electrical connection plays up ...its just folded metal on the socket side ...our friend "deoxit" would be real handy in there .

note those nickle plated pins .they suffer from electrolysis also ...i have seen many of them fail with dc circuits ...over the years ( the dc passing accross the nickle plating actually corrodes at the connection point , humidity has a big contribution for this effect )

if you can ,replace them. should be good to go for another 15 or more years (fortunatly we carry them in stock and or build new components with them )

My odometer and speedometer stop working all the time. About 2 years ago I got frustrated and tapped it hard, it started working. Now, any time it sticks I just give a good wrap with my finger on knuckle and it starts to work just fine again.
Easy enough to at least try.
-JR

JR...have a look in this thread.......

This is the most common illness,,,
when your prescribed medicine cures the disease temporarily.

charlie99 wrote:i can now see why the 3 pin electrical connection plays up ...its just folded metal on the socket side ...our friend "deoxit" would be real handy in there .

Yeah, all the internal connectors is similar, Charlie.
But on this specific one, only on early models.
(again...if I don`remember wrong...which I quite often do).



I`ll guess that the curved part that should keep tension against the pins also grows a bit tired as years pass by.

Another problem is that the pins is a hair to short, on this connector.

Later connector:

The darn thing started working all on its own, without my intervention. I'm thinking it might have something to do with the rain the other day (it stopped just after the rain). The bike (1985 K100RT) is naked and the instrument connectors are open to the elements. I'll check the connections, deox, etc.
Blakey, that is indeed a great link, thanks.
jr, nice, and cheap solution; just kick it once or twice . I'll try that first next time.
Inge, also a good link, thanks.
I also have the intermittent speedo problem (warm ambient temp and it stops; cool ambient temp and it works). I'll use suggestions here when I get around to working on that issue. For now, I know what the speed is by the rpm's on the tach (in top gear anyway).
Thanks all, Dennis

for a year I had to tap on my speedo when it stopped working.
This winter, I opened it, cleaned all the connections with Deoxit, and since I have not had any failure. I also resealed the cluster and the biggest contributor to keep the moisture out was the sealing of the knob on the side. I coated the inside shaft and spring with dialectric grease. It's thick and sticky and moisture repellent. No more fog, and a working seepdo!

Hello, I had moisture problem for years. Finally I tried something very simple: made a little hole 1 - 2 mm on the lowest section of instrument box. No more moisture, no more fog.

Cheers

I know this thread is old but.... Can anybody tell me how to remove the speedometer box. I remove the 2 nuts under it but it's not coming out easy. I am afraid to force it because I might break it. My speedometer is working but my odometer is not turning. I just want to see if the gear is broken or something is just loose. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Drake

I think that there should be four screws (item #8 below) then the connector block cover (#11 the cover & 12 the screw).

Then disconnect the connector block and the complete unit should lift away.



There may be some resistance caused by the rubber grommet (#10), just give it a tug.

Thank you Mike!

sidecar paul wrote:Dennis,
Have a look at the plastic gears that drive the odo.
Paul.

How do I access the plastic gears?  do I have to take apart the odo housing unit off?

JDiggamus wrote:How do I access the plastic gears?  do I have to take apart the odo housing unit off?

If you're a visual learner, this video is for you. The narration and music also might have a calming effect.

Thank you indeed Laitch

Haven't a clue what he was saying
Thank christ there was, for once, no obnoxious heavy "music"

Very impressed how quickly the needle came off.
Also impressed how the cog was removed without it shattering - like mine has. Am waiting for a resupply of cogs from China.
Now for the three non-working speedos which await.

Does anyone know of a motorcycle forum where there is such a wealth of knowledge for a bike that should have faded some time ago. I sometimes think that a perceived weakness of the bike (that it is "an old man's bike") is it's strength because examples that have been abused seem to be an exception. Thus, K bikes just keep on going. 
By the same token, I find it perplexing that BMW should have released a bike with such vibration (the R65 had this too - at 120km/h) and their solution? disguise it with rubbers. 
Still I do like riding around on a fine sunny day on mine.

Happy riding people

GF

Completely agree, an excellent video!  With three threads all going on at the same time regarding instrument cluster problems I'm wondering if we shouldn't contact BMW and demand a recall?  They need to stand behind their product if they still want us to be using it 3+ decades after manufacture