Itinerant Air-Cooled

I want to clean up the instrument cluster from my 1975 riviera. But before i do i thought that I'd practice on the instrument cluster from my old 1976 parts bus.











Anything that I should know before I dig into this thing?

I'm thinking that I'd like to modify a nice (stock-looking) tach to put into the clock-blank and upgrade the lightning like Richard Atwell recommended.

do not replace the ALT. light with an LED it will not exite your ALT. and you will be running on batteries

The vanagons have LED alt lights, they excite just fine. I know they are resisted, as led's usually need to be, but it works somehow. I could ask my alternator guy what he thinks.

DjEep wrote:The vanagons have LED alt lights, they excite just fine. I know they are resisted, as led's usually need to be, but it works somehow. I could ask my alternator guy what he thinks.

I'm with vistacruzer . . . everyone only *thinks* they want all this stupid brightness, the original lighting behind clean glass is pretty much perfect.
SAYS I, THAT'S WHO.

Thanks re: LED lighting. LED wasn't on my radar. I was mainly thinking of a higher wattage incandescent bulb for the back light. Now, what about a decent looking tach?

Haven't yet taken the back cover off; I can't find a 6mm socket!

BellePlaine wrote: Now, what about a decent looking tach?

Back when I had a '69 I used a 3 1/8" aftermarket VDO Cockpit tach. I cut a retaining ring with tabs for the mounting screws out of sheet metal to hold it in the clock location.

If you desire a cleaner solution, German Supply has a custom mounting ring for the VDO tach here: http://www.germansupply.com/home/custom ... hp?cat=435. I'm sure other vendors must have the same item as well.

BellePlaine wrote:Thanks re: LED lighting. LED wasn't on my radar. I was mainly thinking of a higher wattage incandescent bulb for the back light. Now, what about a decent looking tach?

Haven't yet taken the back cover off; I can't find a 6mm socket!

I put the higher watt bulbs (per Ratwell) in and I like them very much. I found the stock lights were too dim and these seem just right.

I put red LEDs in for back lighting, but discovered that they did not work correctly for the ALT light, and so went back to that as incandescent. In the end, I retained the incandescents for all the indicators lights (ALT, OIL, turn signals, etc.) but have the basic gauge lighting in red LED. I love it. There's reason that sailors use red lights in the wheelhouse at night.

jtauxe wrote:I put red LEDs in for the basic gauge lighting. I love it. There's reason that sailors use red lights in the wheelhouse at night.

As a lifelong BMW driver, I get it, I get it, BUT . . . you Volkswagen DNA destroyers, um, anyways.
Colin

In a similar vein, I have a spare cluster and a spare glove box lid - my intention, when I pluck up the courage, is to replace the clock hole area with a new blank from the glove box lid, then fit four 52mm gauges in there (probably CHT, Oil temp, Oil pressure and a small rev counter)....

I have a radio blank from Werksberg that I may fit with a 52mm clock (or a digital one), along with a couple of gimbal mounted cup holders, if I can find somewhere else to put a stereo, either under the dash or in the glovebox (although, if in the glovebox, I don't want to lose half the space like a lot of people have done - maybe create something that will hold the stereo but still have storage space above it..)

rallybug wrote:my intention, when I pluck up the courage, is to replace the clock hole area with a new blank from the glove box lid, then fit four 52mm gauges in there (probably CHT, Oil temp, Oil pressure and a small rev counter)....

For only a little more than you would end up paying for those four gauges, you could have this: http://www.mglavionics.com/html/velocity_singles.html (scroll down to the E1), and it will give you more information with better accuracy (particularly the quad CHT portion). I bet it would look better, too.

www.bus-boys.com part # 220-09101 mounting ring mounts a tach in the clock hole.

rallybug wrote:I can find somewhere else to put a stereo, either under the dash or in the glovebox

Maybe an overhead console on the ceiling, something like this:

or this:


Just a thought...

tristessa wrote: Maybe an overhead console on the ceiling,
Just a thought...