LMC Truck Dash Cluster Install - Gauging Change

In order to install the new glovebox, the heater plenum must be removed. It is not necessary to remove the front half of the heater assembly mounted under the hood on the passenger side of the firewall.

I used a scissors jack with a block of wood to turn mounting (installing) the new glovebox into a one-man operation. It's best to proceed carefully as forcing the glove liner into place can tear it and cause permanent damage.

Adjusting the glovebox liner, glovebox door, and door latch was accomplished by leaving the mounting screws loose and jiggling the trio of components into position then tightening the screws down snug.

To remove the dash cluster all of the knobs must be removed first. Each knob is attached in a different fashion and must be removed accordingly. The choke knob unscrews by holding the flats on the choke cable shaft and turning counterclockwise.

The wiper switch knob is held tight with a tiny fillister head set screw located on the backside. Snap ring pliers work great for unscrewing the chrome collars found behind each of the knobs.

The trick to removing the headlight switch knob (shaft) is to compress (squeeze) the button my thumb is pointing to while pulling the light switch knob out. To reinstall, the button must be squeezed again. Some jiggling might be required.

The mechanical oil pressure gauge must be disconnected before removing the dash cluster. A 5/16-inch flare-nut wrench works well for undoing the fitting without rounding the flats. The speedometer cable unscrewed by hand from the speedometer back.

The gauge wiring plug on the gauge cluster's backside was undone by squeezing the ends. All of the Phillips head screws on the dash cluster's face were removed and then the dash cluster was lifted out the left side while jockeying it free from top and bottom snags.

Connecting the factory optional-style tachometer in LMC Truck's reproduction dash cluster is a simple matter of plugging the included harness into the back of the dash cluster and the routing the brown feed wire to the negative side of the coil and the pink (hot) lead to the terminal marked "ign. unfused" on the fuse block located under the dashboard on the driver side.

On Delco window-type distributors, the brown lead attaches to the negative side of the coil. On GM one-wire HEI distributors the brown lead attaches to the terminal marked "tach" on the distributor cap.

Taking special precautions not to scratch the chrome, LMC Truck's dash cluster installed by reversing how the original came out. Next, the Phillips mounting screws were tightened into place, and the oil pressure gauge and speedometer were reconnected.

Thanks to connecting to existing terminals, notice how uncluttered the fuse block remained after installing LMC Truck's complete dash cluster and AM/FM stereo.