Overheating...revisited

[OrangeCrush1970]

WHOOO!!!! Well, that was a long chase, but I think I've got the overheating issue resolved. We did boil my thermostat, and it opened. Checked the water pump and it was doing it’s job so I pulled my radiator (Im running a 400 radiator on my 350) and took it to the shop to have it tested. Sure enough, there was some blockage so I had them core it out and rebuild it. Got it back in the truck and sure enough my temp gauge was still reading higher than usual (used to be about an 1/8 the way off the cold tick). I also noticed that the gauge would not fully set back at dead cold when I turned the key one notch (when truck was cold). I went and got a new temp sending unit…same story. Now we did all the regular checking / precautious stuff and the truck was running like no bodies business so I decided to drive it around for a while; it never overheated, the gauge never got above a little past half way, and so in my mind the gauge may have been fouled or warped by the overheating. My thoughts are that the original thermostat that I replaced 2 weeks ago w/ my belts and hoses may have been rated at 180 degrees, on top of that stuck OPEN because my truck always ran cool (which I know is not good in the wear department). I’m currently running a 195 degree thermostat…thoughts on the temp gauge? I have herd that they don’t go bad all that often.