1959 Chevy Apache Truck Instrument Cluster

I think it annoyed me more than anything that every time I drove my truck I’d be staring right in front of me at this beautiful big speedometer with a chrome bevel, but the glass was so cloudy I could barely read the numbers or see what was beneath. I could see the gas gauge moving but that was about it. So, one of the first things I wanted to do to the truck was get the speedometer working and somehow clean the glass so I could see the instruments and speedometer (it is also nice to know how fast you are going when in a school zone).

A few days after buying the truck, Steve and I pulled the instrument cluster which wasn’t even screwed into the dash (it was more or less friction fitted into the dash). We found the bulbs were burnt out, the speedometer cable was disconnected and the only gauge working was the gas gauge. Also, unfortunately the long plastic wand was broken off of the speedometer. I had hoped I could just clean the glass, but it turns out it was cloudy and not just dirty.

After going to my first Golden Cruise on a Saturday a few weeks after buying the truck, I met an owner of a late 50s Chevy truck which he had completely restored. He recommended I check out Brothers parts for various hard to find items in my project. I did some research and found they sold the glass ‘lens’ for the instrument cluster as well as just the part of the cluster for the speedometer. I ordered both along with some cab corners (more on cab corners later!)

The boxes from Brothers sat for several weeks and this last weekend I finally opened them and started working on instrument cluster. I pulled the entire cluster out of the truck (super easy once I figured out how it was wedged into the dash). A few screws later I had the speedometer unit out and the new one in. About eight screws later I had the new glass in place. When I flipped the whole thing over I was in love. It looked stunning! I put the whole unit back into my dash and now I want to get the lights working so I can see it at night! Oh, and I need to grease the speedometer cable. I tried hooking it up and I get a squealing noise. So, that will be next on my list.