Headlight knob and getting and odometer problem?

[Kell]

My speedometer/odometer will not work properly, it kind of got stuck turning over to 20,000 (more like 320,000). It makes the needle bounce, sometimes it clicks to the next mile, but most of the time it just bounced as it tries to click the tenth's over.

Anyway, I can't get the 46 year old knobs (headlight and wipers) off to take it apart. I am pulling hard, I know what hard is, and this stuff is brittle. Has anybody tried heating it? I am worried it will melt it. I guess I can try to clamp the shaft but I am afraid of tearing up the switches. Any advice?

Also, I am hoping by manually getting the 2 in the right spot everything will start working again, it is just kind of stuck down there. Any lube I should put on this?