[77 Canamman]

Glad to hear the light issue was a simple fix. One has to wonder what made the fuse blow in the first place?

[OVERULD]

Most likely caused by our activities while lubricating the speedometer cable. Time will tell.

BJ

[OVERULD]

Checking out Tapatalk to see how it works. Going to try to post a pic now.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[77 Canamman]

Tapatalk is designed for mobile devices. This photo shows up well on my Android phone. BentBob posted photos on his thread and they show up well on the phone, but utterly terrible on my laptop, and desktop computers.

[OVERULD]

Canamman,

Did you attend the recent even in Atlanta - not sure of the name, but a bunch of Smokey and the Bandit fans with lots of Bandit edition TAs. I was hoping to take my 74 down but got tied up and couldn't make it. Heard there were a bunch of cars that showed up. Would love to see yours someday.

BJ

[77 Canamman]

BJ,

I didn't attend this years festivities in Jonesboro. It was actually two events that met there. The Snowman's Run, and the Bandit Run. I participated in the 2014 Run with my Sheriff's car, since I did not own my '77 T/A yet.

[OVERULD]

I'm getting ready to pull the radio and ship it to Ward's Classic Car Radio Repair in Huntsville, AL. Got a few questions.

1. What's the best way to get the radio out and can it be done without pulling the dash or console?

2. When I turn it on, I can see the needle on the volt gauge move a little, but I get no sound. I know the antenna is connected and presume that the speaker wires are connected at the back of the radio. So, before I go to the trouble of pullling it, is there any troubleshooting you would recommend I try first? Fuse, loose connectors, ground?

3. The PHS shows this car had an AM/FM Stereo radio. What would be the correct model number for that radio and did they still have the red light in the dial to indicate the reception of a stereo signal? I believe that I saw this mentioned in the original owners manual that came with the car, but it is at my office at the moment.

Thanks,
BJ

[74 SD455 Formula]

I never pulled the radio/ stereo out of my Formula,but pulled the one from my GTO . All i did was to pull the knobs off and slide it out the back. As for the Stereo, I have a factory Stereo in my 74 Formula and do not have a red light. I have 1 speaker up front and 1 in the rear.My PHS says Radio- stereo U58 opt. code.

[Bentwheelbob]

BJ - I forget if your car is an AC car or not, but regardless I think you'll need to pull the console and if AC pull a couple pieces of the ducting. The knobs have spring loaded locks that you have to release using a 90 degree pick to get off. Google the topic and you should be able to figure it out. The key is figuring out the exact spot to insert the pick tip.

[Held for Ransom]

The 1974 Firebird radios had a blue tag on the side.
Code - Year-Brand-Model-Subcatagory-Revision
U63 - 42FPB1
U69 - 42FFP1
U58 - 42FFM1 (has red light between the 96 and 100)

I've been able to remove the radio from a non-AC vehicle, but not without a few scrapes.

[OVERULD]

Thanks for the info Mike. I just confirmed on PHS that mine has the RPO U58, and I have the red light between the 96 and 100 on the FM Dial. When I select the FM button, the whole dial rotates but the FM dial does not come fully into view, but I can see the top of th red light.

Bob, I think MPR has one of those 90 degree picks, thanks for the heads up.

Now, I need to figure out how to pull the console. I think if I remove the glove box and console, there is a piece of AC duct that has to come out and I should be able to get the radio out. I found a bracket that appears to hold the front of the console to the dash but don't see anything at the rear but what look like the smooth heads of rivets or carriage bolts. Does the insert under the lid have to be removed to get to the rear mounting bracket? And how do you take the knob off the shift lever?

Thanks,
BJ

[Bentwheelbob]

Remove the inner console box and you'll find four screws. The front has a screw in each side going up into the dash. You shouldn't need to remove the shift know, but it comes off by loosening the jamb nut and then threading it off.

[Held for Ransom]

It's an automatic, so the button pops off with a gentle prying with small screwdrivers from the sides of it. Then a snap ring pliers is used to get the knob off.

[OVERULD]

You guys are making me smart enough to become dangerous!

[OVERULD]

O.K., I got the shift lever knob removed and console ready to remove. Still can't get the radio knobs figured out. It appears that there is some sort of spring behind the knobs. I was able to get the tuning knob to release with a 90 degree pick and it moved about a 1/4" then stopped, and you could see the spring behind it. Since I couldn't get it to move any further, I pushed it back on and heard a click, and decided to leave it until I could get more info. Do any of you have a photo of the knobs removed? Or, a scan of the page in the service manual that describes the removal process?

Thanks,

BJ

[Bentwheelbob]

I'm traveling and can't send a picture, but you were halfway there. Pull the spring steel lock against the back of the knob and keep it compressed against the back of the knob while pulling it off. Even when compressed against the back of the knob it's a tight friction fit and requires a hard pull and some force. Once get the one off you'll be home free in terms of seeing the orientation of the spring to the shaft for the other one.

[OVERULD]

Thanks Bob - I'll give it another go!

BJ

[Held for Ransom]

Danger, overload.

Pictured is the knob with the slot to move the spring clip. I used the tone/balance bezels to push on the knob spring clip (but I don't remember if the coil spring was there).

[OVERULD]

Thanks Bob and Mike - good info. About to try it again now that work has ended.

[unruhjonny]

now I'm really slipping...

I thought there was some sort of a spring in the mix, but I cannot picture it in that mix.

Lets call the little metal tag on the back of the knob a 'lock';
The lock is there to prevent the knob from falling off;
The lock has a serrated section which inserts into the back of the knob to hold it in place;
The lock, when viewed on a removed knob will be cocked at an angle - this angle is what places pressure on the volume/tuning shaft, and serves to anchor the lock against the shaft;
As mentioned previously, the lock needs to be pried - in this case you are prying it towards the back of the knob - this un-anchors it, allowing you to pull the knob off the shaft.

The locks can be removed, but I'd discourage it, as they can break, and once broken you will need to source replacements

I hope this helps!

EDIT: maybe the spring goes behind the speaker balance knob?