Keeping my original amp gauge

[Russell Ashley]

That was a very cool tip on changing your original amp gauge to a volt meter by Ogre. It was another good example of the ingenuity shown here on the forum. I did mine a little differently and thought I show what I did. I like the look of the original panel so I'm keeping it original, and I'd prefer an amp guage to a voltmeter. The original amp guage is a lot more sturdy that some might think. The current does not pass through any meter windings like the gas gauge, but rather through a brass framework and the hand is deflected by the electrical field around the frame. Here's a pic of the rear of the gauge showing the brass frame that I mentioned. In a parallel circuit the current is divided among the conductors. I added a jumper to two of the posts on the rear of the gauge to divide the current that the gauge actually reads so as not to peg the hand. The second pic shows the jumper. I'm using a GM 10SI alternator and so far it works just as I hoped. I did this back in October and have not had any ill effects from it. The hand acts just like it was designed to do, and goes most of the way to the right when first started and then drops back to slightly to the right side of the middle.
The temp gauge wasn't hooked up yet in the last pic but is now and works fine.