turn signal cam

[Raider L]

Does anyone know what these little springs do (the photo below)? I've put the cam on the turn signal switch and they don't touch or attach to anything. What is their function 'cause I don't see it. Of course I would never think of leaving them off, you never know, they have to have been designed for something.

Now, I have noticed that there are shaped holes where the long leg of the spring passes over, but there isn't anything that goes in those holes.

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Here's the cam (below) mounted onto the switch, but nothing is actuating or near those springs.

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[bucket]

Those little springs contact the bumps on the cancel cam. So when you turn the wheel far enough, it unseats the signal switch from the full L/R position and the signals turn off when the wheel gets close to straight again.

 

[bucket]

If you ever have an older GM vehicle that the turn signal does not cancel in one direction or another, one of those little springs are broken.

Also it may be worth noting that a standard column and a tilt column use a different cancel cam. Green for standard and white for tilt, usually.

*edit*
What you are calling the cam is not actually the cam. I think most would call that part of the switch. The cancel cam slides on the steering shaft and also has the horn contact in it.

 

[Turbo4whl]

Those springs are also not the same. There is a left and right.

 

[Raider L]

@bucket,

I actually looked the name of the "cam" in my factory maint. book so I could order it correctly from the parts store. And funny you mention that, "...people call it the switch..." because I tried to order it by the "switch" name from the girl at Advance Auto Parts and she said sh later and thought, "Let me look up what this thing is called." and the book called it the "...cam..."

Now, on other auto parts sites it is listed as the "turn signal cancelling cam" which is not what it's called in the book, but other parts places do call it the "cam". So, either switch, cam, whatever, it's what makes the turn signals work.

 

[Raider L]

@Turbo4whl,

That's what I found when observing how they go on. You can't turn one the other way or it won't go on at all.

 

[Raider L]

@bucket,

Yeah, I've owned cars that you had to turn the signal off manually. You get used to it. Just think, when my column was messed up I had the signal switch, the whole thing bolted to the side of the column and to get the signal on I had to push up or down with my finger to manually activate the signal, then after the turn I had to "finger" it off. But since it was mounted on it's side I had to learn which way was Left turn and which way was Right, up or down? It sucked, but I got used to it.

 

[Raider L]

When I get my new cam tomorrow I'm going to put it together and actually see how it works. I I can I'll post some picks of because like me there are some who would like to see this work. And it's like bucket said when your signal won't cancel it's because one of those springs are broke. Or in my case the whole plastic was broken in half and the cancel bump wouldn't contact the cam.

 

[bucket]

@bucket,

Yeah, I've owned cars that you had to turn the signal off manually. You get used to it. Just think, when my column was messed up I had the signal switch, the whole thing bolted to the side of the column and to get the signal on I had to push up or down with my finger to manually activate the signal, then after the turn I had to "finger" it off. But since it was mounted on it's side I had to learn which way was Left turn and which way was Right, up or down? It sucked, but I got used to it.

Yes, you do get used to it. 10+ years ago, I changed the steering wheel in my '79 and literally the next day, the left cancel spring broke. I refused to replace it out of spite since I JUST HAD the steering wheel off. Well, I still have never pulled it apart to change the cancel spring. Maybe one day, lol.