Sun Tachometer Retrospective

[kieth]

[quote=markeb01;4756634]That looks great with the upgrades. Those later GMC panels looked so much nicer than the early style mine came with.

Originally Posted by kieth

Here is what it looked like finished on my 66

Thanks Mark, it is of course the stock instrument panel, just upgraded a little.......Like my whole truck I am trying to redo it with a retro theme but better than it was ever done originally........Just a little upgrade.

[Joemomma1]

I like what you did with yours kieth. I wanted some contrast on mine also so I left the black on the perimter and around the guages.

[1Bad62Pro/Street]

Sun FZ88R Tach Tachometer Gasser Hot Rod/Street Rod
$139.28

http://www.buy.com/prod/sun-fz88r-ta...219380994.html

[kieth]

Originally Posted by Joemomma1

I like what you did with yours kieth. I wanted some contrast on mine also so I left the black on the perimter and around the guages.

I was originally going to do that but the flat surface on mine did not look good it had some deep imperfections, so we tried spraying it with crinkle paint and it covered it up. Necessity is the mother of invention.......

Your looks great........Kieth

ps set my bed on today---needed the room in the paint booth......
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-G...7_QhFTT5D-A-LB

[HEI451]

I've installed groups of old Sun tachs and never upgraded the electronics, not even to use them on HEI ignition systems, nor do I use batteries in the transmitters.

To power up the transmitters, I go to Radio Shack and get a 12 volt to 12 volt power inverter power supply, one that is designed to take power from a cigarette lighter. I set the voltage need on the main box of the power supply, cut the cigarette lighter plug off, and hard wire the thing in place, and they work just fine, no longer need replacement batteries.

[markeb01]

Outstanding tip. Can you post a picture or model number of the type inverter you use for these installations? Thanks for sharing!

[kieth]

I took the more expensive route and everything was replaced with new electronics for $219.99......oh well live and learn. Kieth

[198plus]

That is really nice....Almost like mine, except I'd rather have a vacuum gauge instead of the clock.

Originally Posted by LeftCoast32

Here is my finished Vac and Tac Cluster

[LeftCoast32]

Originally Posted by 198plus

I really like your Clock and Tach Cluster!!!

[198plus]

I like yours better........

Originally Posted by LeftCoast32

I really like your Clock and Tach Cluster!!!

[chevyrestoguy]

Leftcoast32-
Where did you score that vacuum gauge? They are not easy to find.

[HEI451]

I wouldn't mind finding either the vacuum guage, and/or the clock. I'd put a different tach under the dash if I had one each of the other guages.

[LeftCoast32]

Originally Posted by chevyrestoguy

Leftcoast32-
Where did you score that vacuum gauge? They are not easy to find.

There is a guy that sells them on e-bay - http://motors.shop.ebay.com/235chevy...id=p4340.l2562

[pdxhall]

Well, I'm always a sucker for old stuff and couldn't resist this buy on craigslist today. I bought this old Sunpro tach. The old guy (older than me ) that I got it from claims it will work with batteries. Okay I know the obsolete battery thing but a conversion or modification is possible. But I'd like to find out more about it. I've seen ones on here that look close to this but none with a black face and it did come this way. I was hoping Markeb01 would know. You seem to be our resident expert. But any help would be great. All the guy said was that is was "real" old. I got it for "real" cheap, I think.

[markeb01]

Very cool purchase, I like all the various vintage models. The tach you acquired appears to be a standard 5,000 rpm Sun Tach head with an EB9A transmitter for an 8 cylinder engine running on 12 volts. There should be a tag on the back of the tach head identifying which transmitters are compatible, hopefully they were used together and are a matching set.

I’ve seen black gauge faces and cups sold for automotive use. They were never as popular as the chrome models, but for a fleet vehicle the boss may not have wanted to pay for flashy appearance. I’ve also seen black bezel gauges sold for industrial applications like tractors, and also airplanes, but most I’ve seen use a 2,000 or 3,000 rpm range.

The lack of a zero adjusting screw on the panel below the gauge face probably dates it as before the mid-60’s. The needle and dial face appear to be in great condition. A nice feature of these tachs is the ability to easily remove the mechanism from the bezel/housing. Should you want a chrome bezel and can find one in good condition, simply remove the fasteners on the back and transfer the mechanism to the chrome bezel housing. It’s that simple. It comes out as a complete unit. There is no need to touch the needle or the face.

Having been painted all these years, the bezel may also be an excellent candidate for chroming. Most original and even NOS tachs have wear scratches and pits in the chrome. Chrome plating a painted bezel may produce a result even nicer than NOS.

Also – for those with interest, here’s a bit of Sun Tachometer history I’ve recently discovered (because I wanted to know myself). The original 1950’s–1970’s Sun Tachometers were produced by Sun Electric Corporation located in Chicago, Illinois. In 1988 Sun Electric licensed the rights to produce the Sunpro brand to Actron Manufacturing Company. In 1992 Snap-On Tools acquired Sun Electric for $110 million.

What all this means is that the Sunpro brand came along years after the departure of the classic Sun Gauges from the automotive culture. There really isn’t any connection between the vintage Sun gauges and the current Sunpro retro styled gauges, beyond a lineage of corporate licensing agreements. Here are a couple of related historical links explaining some of the details:

http://www.sunpro.com/timeline.php

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4127476.html

[pdxhall]

Thanks for your help. I've been reading all your posts on this so I was hoping you could help. I've looked around on various pages and I haven't seen another exactly like this one. The transmitter is the one that goes with this unit. Would it be best to have it updated for use by Williamson's or someone, or have someone come up with an alternative to the 1.35V battery issue? By the way, I picked it up for $25.

[hopped up]

i really want a dash with the temp gage and oil pressure too. anyone have one pm me. i love the tachs too, learning lots if usefull info. great thread!!
Posted via Mobile Device

[hopped up]

that in dash factory tach is badass!!!
Posted via Mobile Device

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by pdxhall

... or have someone come up with an alternative to the 1.35V battery issue? .

I like to think so; (post #6 from this thread):

Originally Posted by Keith Seymore

You might appreciate this little tidbit:

My car still uses the old battery powered sending unit, mounted underhood -





When I got the car running again back in the mid 90's, naturally the batteries were dead and the tach didn't work. I thought "...where am I going to get those old batteries like that?"





Well, I noticed that they were physically about the same size as a modern "AA" size battery, although the modern battery is 1.5V and these vintage batteries were 1.35V.



I asked one of the electrical engineers at work about it and he said "...I'd just put a couple AAs in a flashlight and run 'em down until they're 1.35V".

That's what I did and it's been working fine ever since.

K

[HEI451]

I posted the ONLY reasonable alternative to replacing batteries inside the units, have done what I outlined for DECADES, NO ADVERSE ISSUES, but, it seems some just do not accept change that works with electronics.

Once again, REPLACE THE BATTERIES WITH A DC TO DC POWER INVERTER, one that has the capability to make the correct DC volts, and wire it to come on with the ignition switch. Simple, basic, permanent.

Anything else is a hassle, pain in the 6.

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by HEI451

I posted the ONLY reasonable alternative to replacing batteries inside the units, have done what I outlined for DECADES, NO ADVERSE ISSUES, but, it seems some just do not accept change that works with electronics.

Once again, REPLACE THE BATTERIES WITH A DC TO DC POWER INVERTER, one that has the capability to make the correct DC volts, and wire it to come on with the ignition switch. Simple, basic, permanent.

Anything else is a hassle, pain in the 6.

Really? Sounds like you feel pretty strongly about it.

I probably shouldn't respond, but let me ask this: Why would I add an additional, modern component to my otherwise vintage, period correct and unrestored 4800 mile GTO, when simply replacing the batteries seems to have worked? That's pretty much the limit of my electrical capablility anyway.

Keep in mind this repair was done nearly 20 years ago and still seems to be fine. If it lasts another 20 years I won't be around and my children will have to deal with this issue.

In my mind the best solution is the simplest solution that works.

My $.02.

K

[HEI451]

And, NOBODY is forcing you to come into the 21st century, but, the "best" solution IS to update the system to NOT require any replacement parts any tome in its lifetime, and that IS the DC to DC inverter install. The ones I use fit inside the sender, not seen outside the unit.

Now, I have dead stock vehicles in my collection, and I can say that if you were to look at one of my other vehicles that have had this done, you could not find the conversion to this inverter. Not even judges at concourse events have found them, until I told them, in all fairness.

Don't get so sarcastic about change that works, we have enough "change we have been waiting for" in government, that will never work.

I also have a couple of vintage Pontiac's, along with 119 other vintage cars and trucks. I never advocate butchering up any part of them. If a person doesn't want to make a change, wants it dead stock as it was, I fully support that, but, if someone has the need for better, and their vehicle is not concourse, and they can live with the update, who cares if they install an inverter, vs the batteries, go for it. Let the concourse and other people do as they wish, it is all open to the OWNER, not the rest of us.

End of all this, I am sick and tired of being forced to defend EVERY post I make, that someone else doesn't agree with, for whatever reason.

[LeftCoast32]

Here is a little better picture of my Gauge Package. You can see my Sun Tachometer Transmitter behind it. The transmitter has been modified so no batteries are needed. You can not tell this has been done and it works the same. I did this because I didn't want the hassle of changing the batteries all the time. My truck isn't a concourse restoration so no big deal to me. Like stated unless they want to dismount it and take it apart they wont know anyway.

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by HEI451

And, NOBODY is forcing you to come into the 21st century, but, the "best" solution IS to update the system to NOT require any replacement parts any tome in its lifetime, and that IS the DC to DC inverter install. The ones I use fit inside the sender, not seen outside the unit.

Now, I have dead stock vehicles in my collection, and I can say that if you were to look at one of my other vehicles that have had this done, you could not find the conversion to this inverter. Not even judges at concourse events have found them, until I told them, in all fairness.

Don't get so sarcastic about change that works, we have enough "change we have been waiting for" in government, that will never work.

I also have a couple of vintage Pontiac's, along with 119 other vintage cars and trucks. I never advocate butchering up any part of them. If a person doesn't want to make a change, wants it dead stock as it was, I fully support that, but, if someone has the need for better, and their vehicle is not concourse, and they can live with the update, who cares if they install an inverter, vs the batteries, go for it. Let the concourse and other people do as they wish, it is all open to the OWNER, not the rest of us.

End of all this, I am sick and tired of being forced to defend EVERY post I make, that someone else doesn't agree with, for whatever reason.

Excellent! Since we are in agreement, I will leave my car as is, and continue to dwell in the early 1960s, where I am most comfortable, both mechanically and politically.

K

[markeb01]

Originally Posted by HEI451

The ones I use fit inside the sender, not seen outside the unit.

Please share with us what inverter you are using. I’ve looked on Radio Shack and don’t find what you are describing.