help getting ignition switch out please

i am trying to get my ignition switch out and it is being stubborn. i read that it unscrews from the front but mine wont turn by hand and i dont see how the whole front bezel will turn because that would cause it to move to easy when starting the car
also i have seen photos of a switch and it looks like it has a spring on it and mine and it feels like it has a spring

was wondering if it comes off more like a lightbulb comes out?

thanks
for an help

There is a little pin hole in the front around the area where you put the key in. You take a pin or a paper clip & put it in the hole then push it in while turning the key. I think that you turn the key counter clockwise.

that takes the tumbler out or the whole ignition switch?
i want to remove the switch and bezel
thanks

You have to take the tumbler out to remove the switch.

Mine broke while trying to remove it...but I am led to believe that you need to push the switch towards the dash from behind the dash and compress the spring, and the bezel should push in and turn of. It's not threaded, it has claws, the lock on to the switch. the spring keeps everything tight to the dash. My claws were all bent from the last person that tried to remove it incorrectly. my van is a 66...I hope this helps and that you have the same switch

thanks again for the input on this
so does or doesnt the tumbler have to come out first to get the rest out
i tried to get mine out today using a small pin to push in the little hole and turned the key and pulled but no luck

i would think that the bezel is indexed to the dash so that would mean that you have to twist the back f the switch to release the bezel wouldnt it?

sorry to belabor this but want to get that switch out so i can paint the dash

thanks!!

I tried to get the switch out of a 69 Chevy for a whole day off & on a while back with no luck. The next day a friend of mine came by & took it out in less than a minuate. He took a paper clip & put it in the little hole pushed it in turned the key I think counter clock wise pulled the tumbler out then the rest of the switch came right out. I already had the chrome piece on the front in screwed. He said that they all had to be took out the same way.

This video is on a classic mustang but your switch should come out basically the same way. Hope this helps ya out.......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCMLzQaiUB0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

From what mine looked like after it broke and eveything came flying out from behind the dash, I reassembled it and the bezel turns counter clockwise, I think. You need to get your hands in behind and push the switch towards the dash to compress the spring. Then just twist the bezel counter clockwise and the push the bezel in and it should release from the switch. There may be a big plastic washer kinda like a shim in front of the spring and all this will come out from behind the dash. This is wnat the bezel looks like with the little hooks broke off.. Thos hollowed out spots used to have little hooks that hold onto the switch. And you don't need to remove the tumblers as far as I remember. Push in from behind and turn bezel to remove it. hope this helps. I saw the video and that looks like the same switch. He shows you the bezel and that looks the same as mine as well. You may want to remove the tumblers as this may prevent push the switch in from behind. Again mine broke and the little fingers wer mashed so it would not turn off for me.

you have to remove the tumbler first,then push from behind and twist. easier if you remove the gauge panel first

Yep.... Just watch the YouTube video & you should be able to get it out with no problem.

There you have it...easy as pie...lol. Thanks for that link HVM, wish I had seen that last summer, But ya that's our switch.

Yep... me to cause by the time my buddy came by & took mine out I had just about beat it all to pieces

worked like a charm
big THANKS

I just did this on the magic bus, frustrating, didnt use the you tube video but the fsm came in handy, its a learning curve...you don't become an ace mechanic overnight..