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ideas for a tach?

Dne'

Dne'

Well-Known Member
I'm wanting to incorporate a tach. Is there a small tach to fit where my clock is, or would it be too small? or what would be a better setup?
My distributer is the 'dizzy' type, and one of the plugs coming off of it says TACH, so can I run a direct wire to my new tach when I get it? I don't particularly care for the look of the larger than life dizzy distributor, but will have to do until I can sell some stuff out of my garage to seek out another distributor~ however it's working right now.
Muchas gracias!
dne'
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I'm wanting to incorporate a tach...
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Out of curiousity, why? Your car is an automatic. In my opinion.... a tach in an automatic transmission car is almost as worthless as installing a boost gauge in a naturally aspirated powered car.


But if you must..... Sure, you can ditch the clock and install a mini-tach. Wiring would be simple, but you'll likely have to perform some simple modifications to your existing cluster to fit the aftermarket gauge.
 
"daveSanborn" said:
Out of curiousity, why? Your car is an automatic. In my opinion.... a tach in an automatic transmission car is almost as worthless as installing a boost gauge in a naturally aspirated powered car.
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If the car is played with more than just putting it in gear a going, a tach comes in real handy when manually shifting the auto. Over revs is over revs....auto or manual. Besides that, a manual does not need a tach either.
 
Hey Dave! always nice to see you pop up on my threads! :pbj I guess it's not much difference than all cars have tach these days! There's a tach in our CX9 mazday, our Subaru outback, my 2 old Rav4's, and I rarely look at 'em. So, why not in my stang?
What led me to wanting a tach, is I'm just having a time feeling my C4 shift through its 3 gears! 1st, and 2nd are obvious, just can't feel the 3rd gear, thought maybe a tach would show the drop in RPM's during the shifts. So rather than go buy a external tach meter, why not just incorporate a tach? Besides, tach's look neat! :pbj However a small tach where the clock is would be so small. So, just like to see what our Stangfix group has to say~
 
A tach on a automagic car is useful for exactly what Dne' wants - to tell exactly where the slushbox is shifting. Especially useful on trucks, where you are towing - you can force shifting to keep you near max torque.

Dne' a 2 1/16 tach fits where the clock goes, I used the block plate (used when no clock) as the support.
 
"apollard" said:
A tach on a automagic car is useful for exactly what Dne' wants - to tell exactly where the slushbox is shifting. Especially useful on trucks, where you are towing - you can force shifting to keep you near max torque.

Dne' a 2 1/16 tach fits where the clock goes, I used the block plate (used when no clock) as the support.
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So useful that it was installed at the factory on automatic cars?

For a daily driver classic Mustang, which is what we're talking about within this thread.... not a truck towing a trailer through the mountains.... and not a 4000 RPM stall convertered 1/4 mile car..... a tach is pretty much useless. Would it be nice to have a tach installed this ONE TIME to troubleshoot what may or may not be a shifting problem with a C4? Sure, but after this issue is resolved it will serve no real purpose.

IMO, The OP's time/money would be better spent getting the engine tuned/adjusted and the transmission operation verified by the person she already paid to rebuild it. Installing a tach to verify the shift points is not money well spent.
 
I used to have one of those mini tachs before I converted to Autometer gauges. It was nice quality and very easy to install. I am just not sure if you'll find one in white. IIRC it was only in black about 3 years ago.

I agree with Dave though. Tachs may not be the most practicle way to spend money on an automatic driver. If I limited myself to mods to my car that only made sense I would have a dramatically different car than what I have. I say spend the money if you want to on the tach. When you add a blower or nitrous later on you will be glad you did. :lol :lol
 
Good arguements! it's too darned hot to do anything anyway! I'm going to get my 2 y/0 granddaughter, get the lawnsprinkler out and enjoy the day!
thanks!
dne'
 
"daveSanborn" said:
So useful that it was installed at the factory on automatic cars?

For a daily driver classic Mustang, which is what we're talking about within this thread.... not a truck towing a trailer through the mountains.... and not a 4000 RPM stall convertered 1/4 mile car..... a tach is pretty much useless. Would it be nice to have a tach installed this ONE TIME to troubleshoot what may or may not be a shifting problem with a C4? Sure, but after this issue is resolved it will serve no real purpose.

IMO, The OP's time/money would be better spent getting the engine tuned/adjusted and the transmission operation verified by the person she already paid to rebuild it. Installing a tach to verify the shift points is not money well spent.
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While I don't disagree with your reasoning for this car, your statement was aimed at all automatics, unless I misinterpreted. Which is probable, since I see you specified car, and I read as all automatic equiped vehicles.

IME, the factory generally makes decisions based on style and cost rather than function or usefulness.
 
A cheaper version that is white faced: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-MINI-ELECTRIC-TACHOMETER-WHITE-TACH-FITS-HARLEY-/270591429914?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f00818d1a

The font may not match the other gauges though. The tach is more useful than the clock IMO, but agree that unless the tach was really cheap I wouldn't buy one for this particular case. If anything, see if you can borrow from a friend a small tach and temporarily strap it to the steering column for a few test drives. I have a cheap Sun mini-tach that I used for when I was dialing in the distributor weights for timing, as well as setting the idle speed on the carb. It's more of a diagnostic tool for under the hood than a daily driver interior item for me.
 
For daily drivers a tach is no more necessary in a manual than it is in a auto. If you cant tell by the sound of the engine when you need to shift gears, maybe you shouldn't be driving a manual in the first place.

Hell, a fuel gauge isn't necessary either, you can keep track of it with pen and paper. The man wants a tach in his car. Telling him he doesnt "need" one is useless. If he said "i want a blower for my daily driver" would you also respond "you dont need one"? He can decide for himself what he needs. Unless of course you believe it is your place to dictate how others spend their money
 
"jonward786" said:
Hell, a fuel gauge isn't necessary either, you can keep track of it with pen and paper. The man wants a tach in his car. Telling him he doesnt "need" one is useless. If he said "i want a blower for my daily driver" would you also respond "you dont need one"? He can decide for himself what he needs. Unless of course you believe it is your place to dictate how others spend their money
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Dne' is a she.

And Dave has never been one to hold back when you're going down a path he doesn't think you should go down, and he knows a bit about Dne' and her car, and her goals, so I don't see his response as totally out of line. I like a man who will tell you his opinion, whether you'll like it or not, and doesn't spare your feelings if he thinks you're making a mistake. He doesn't call names, he doesn't bitch you out, he doesn't harp on it...he says what he thinks, he answers your "What about this?" questions, and at the end of the day, if you don't listen, hey, it's your car.

Useless? Not in the least. His stepping in on my thoughts have saved me a few times. And while I know I'm not doing my car to Sanborn-Specs, or how he would do it, I also pay extra attention to him when he says something. There are several folks on this site whose words I always pay attention to, even if I don't follow their advice. Dave is right up there at the top of that list.
 
"AtlantaSteve" said:
I like a man who will tell you his opinion, whether you'll like it or not, and doesn't spare your feelings if he thinks you're making a mistake.
Dave is right up there at the top of that list.
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Hmmmmmm :ga :lol :lol :lol :lol :lol
 
No ordinary daily driver

Thank you Steve~ but most would 'assume' most people here are men~

I'd like to think of my stang as not an ordinary daily driver. It will have GT stripes along the sides and of course the rally stripes. I'd like an interior(including the dash) to reflect a "hot rod"~ though it may not be fast, it's fun to look and sound fast! My R1200s BMW (motorcycle) is very fast, but I don't go fast or quick I should say(sportbike version), I'm pretty sure it would outrun most cars on the road, but that would be interesting to find out!

I would like to see some of the Stangfix's tach setups whether they be factory or added~ looks means a great deal to me. So please, let not your hearts be troubled by what's correct or incorrect, let's have fun~ the whole idea of why I'm here(to learn and have fun) ; )

Off topic:
To be honest, I was having more fun in the beginning phases of my restoration~ the meticulousness and paying attention to detail is getting difficult and this stang still will not be perfect! ~ most of you here know I can do a great deal, but getting the car to run well is another chapter, or maybe getting the stang ready for the road is more lengthy a process. I'm getting there!(with ya'lls help)! I've had a lot of help here and greatly appreciate everone's advice!

I need to take some new photos, but this is still what it looks like today! lol
zphotooutside.jpg


My bmw~ sigh~ its the most magnificent bike I've ever owne, but my tinnitus/hyperacusis has become so 'loud' that I rarely get to ride it, except around our neighborhood streets. The wind noise is just to loud, even with the helmet on after about 50mph.
bmw.jpg
 
Dne', run a tach regardless of what Dave says. Your car is a coupe and he hates coupes so you're not gonna win either way with him. I like having a tach in my auto coupe for those many times I like to run it out.
 
Autometer...always liked this idea, never had a place to use it easy. $321.00/5" diameter
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