Need Help Adding a Voltmeter

[RobertN]

Cool. Will look nice on the tractor, and give you the info you need. And, meets the KISS parameters(keeping it simple)

Below is the gauge I ordered.

 

[Transit]

Dave, you have chosen what you feel most comfortable with, good. The meter is non-descript, I would suggest that you place a thin strip of tape on the meter face to help you remember where the pointer sits when things are normal. :thumbsup:

 

[Cold Beer]

Yes, it seems very basic, but the fuel level and engine temp gauges are the same style with no numbers on them, just red and green zones.

 

[Transit]

That's why I replaced my gauges with digital readouts and added gauges where there are none.

 

[Soundguy]

Will Larry, the only way to know for sure what's going on is to put an O-scope across the battery and alternator output, set up a DVM and test the outcome with various size caps. I still think you'll need a full Farad cap to keep the volt meter steady. And so what if the voltage wiggles some, learn to accept a few thousandths up and down; the moon will not spin out of orbit. As for the meter being a constant drain on the battery, just wire it in on the on-off side of the key switch.

I think the point being made was that depending on the sampling rate for the meter, it may not lock on, and thus may roll alot.

hook a consumer grade autoranger vom onto the output of an old style dc gen with brushes and comutator... many of them never settle down on a set voltage.

I'm also not a fan of the cheaper anakogs, like the 10$ sunpro.. the movements are not dampened.

as for leaving it across the battery.. i wouldn't. makes a great wire to chaff and short when you aren't around. true, a fuse would save the day.. but it's not any harder to make the connection to a switched hot wire than a non switched hot wire.

soundguy

 

[Cold Beer]

Ok, I have the gauge and I'm ready to do the install. It didn't come with installation instructions or wiring. Take a look at the picture and confirm the connections for me. Terminal "+B" is the positive connection, terminal "-B" is the negative connection. The large black terminal is for illumination. What is the lower middle terminal for (the one I have labeled "????").

 

[bota7800]

How is the illumination wired to the panel light switch? At the back of the post labeled "illumination" or at "????" ?

I don't know, I just wondered if the lighting was involved.

If the gauge is always lit when powered then, of course, I am off base. (put a battery across the pos and neg and see if the gauge lights up)

 

[RobertN]

Does your manual have a wiring diagram? I'll bet it shows in there.

You might try ohming it out; I'm guessing it is a ground for the gauge light. I would try ohming out across that terminal, and the black terminal for the lamp. You might also ohm out from that terminal to the gauge case. The gauge probably will not have a ground just from mounting it.

Ok, I have the gauge and I'm ready to do the install. It didn't come with installation instructions or wiring. Take a look at the picture and confirm the connections for me. Terminal "+B" is the positive connection, terminal "-B" is the negative connection. The large black terminal is for illumination. What is the lower middle terminal for (the one I have labeled "????").

 

[Willl]

Your ???? terminal might be just a ground for your lamp.

 

[dcyrilc]

Yes, it seems very basic, but the fuel level and engine temp gauges are the same style with no numbers on them, just red and green zones.

WOW. Nice clean looking tractor! Any chance of seeing a picture of the whole rig?

Have to agree with your choice of guages. Any other just wouldn't look right.

 

[Cold Beer]

The gauge lights only come on when the headlight switch is turned on. I'll check the other gauges on the tractor and see if they have similar connections for the illumination (IIRC they do).

WOW. Nice clean looking tractor! Any chance of seeing a picture of the whole rig?

Have to agree with your choice of guages. Any other just wouldn't look right.

It's a clean tractor that has had a repaint. I've done little things like a new steering wheel, muffler, cowl-mounted tool box, shifter knobs, added a pre-filter, and replaced the power steering control valve. It needs new power steering cylinders/hoses and that's about it.

 

[dcyrilc]

The gauge lights only come on when the headlight switch is turned on. I'll check the other gauges on the tractor and see if they have similar connections for the illumination (IIRC they do).

It's a clean tractor that has had a repaint. I've done little things like a new steering wheel, muffler, cowl-mounted tool box, shifter knobs, added a pre-filter, and replaced the power steering control valve. It needs new power steering cylinders/hoses and that's about it.

Very nice looking tractor. Any idea what year it is? ...and is that 21.7 hours on the meter correct?

 

[Cold Beer]

Very nice looking tractor. Any idea what year it is? ...and is that 21.7 hours on the meter correct?

It's an '88 year production. The tractor tach was replaced during the recent refurb because it stopped working. The tractor has roughly 2200 hours on it.

 

[Soundguy]

heck.. still a young one. got another couple thousand left in her till she's middle aged!

soundguy

 

[Cold Beer]

I have successfully installed the voltmeter. It works perfectly and is back lit like the other gauges. Thanks for your technical assistance fellas!!

 

[Soundguy]

lookin good.

soundguy

 

[dcyrilc]

Nice job. Looks factory installed.:thumbsup:

 

[Mace Canute]

I'm going to use the stock analog voltmeter gauge from Massey Ferguson, nothing fancy like digital or voice announcing.
It matches the other factory gauges on the tractor for that year model.

I want to add an oil pressure gauge also. I just don't like dummy lights keeping me informed of volts and oil pressure.

Don't be too quick to discount the value of an oil pressure warning light. A light will get your attention much faster than a gauge ever will! With a gauge, you have to actually be looking at it for a reading. On the other hand, your peripheral vision can catch a light coming on quite easily, especially if it's a bright light (which it really should be...after all, it will only be on when there is an abnormally low pressure situation, eh?) An old Stock Car racer trick with gauges is to orient them so that the needle points in one specific direction when everything is normal, usually to the 12 o'clock position. That way you only have to take a quick visual sweep of them to check them and it's very noticeable if any of them don't point to 12 o'clock.

 

[Soundguy]

now what they need is an oil gauge with a red backlighting that blinks ( rude) when OP drops below.. say.. 6 or something.. that'd be nice..

soundguy

 

[Cold Beer]

I want to supplement the low oil pressure warning light with an oil pressure gauge like I did with the voltmeter (alternator warning light still works).