amp meter

Hi Chris,

Yes, that is a known problem with the stock Veglia ammeter. There is a write up on Mike Dailey's Pantera Place website re the "stacking order" for the nuts, washers, and wires. But, if you have a bad insulator, that will need to be replaced.

http://panteraplace.com/page178.htm

Some owners have changed to a volt meter. If you do replace the ammeter with a volt meter, make sure that the wire that feeds the volt meter is switched. Otherwise, the volt meter will be drawing current all of the time (even when the ignition switch is off).

If you are not trying to keep the original look of the gauges but want an ammeter, there are several good brands available.

John

You can have a stock appearing voltmeter. Just have a gauge shop make one up for you. I had one made to match my GT5-S gauges.

David,

Those look great. Did they make the faces as well, or did they just replace the guts behind? Either way a nice job. I was considering re-facing a spare set of gauges with the Italian wording but was worried that the green was some special glow-friendly ink. Any idea?

Mark

Yes, Im interested too. I would like to have a matching voltmeter gauge made up.

Had the same thing happen, ammeter fried while loose wires shorted out while at the body shop. Installed 80 amp fuse also, based on stock 61 amp alternator. Also, crimped and soldered new lugs on. Kept stock look and problem solved.

The voltmeter in the photo above started its life as an OEM '73 ammeter. The gauge shop replaced the ammeter mechanism with a VDO voltmeter mechanism, then replaced both gauge faces with custom faces. They can really do whatever you want. If you wanted your gauges to look 100% OEM, you could have them install a voltmeter mechanism but leave the AMPS gauge face alone. It would act as a voltmeter but only you would know.

I used North Hollywood Speedometer & Clock to do the work. I also had them put an electronic mechanism in my OEM speedo and a VDO quartz mechanism in a non-working OEM GTS analog clock I bought on eBay for $25.

One of the best reasons to switch to a voltmeter is that, you can then organize your console gauge and switch wiring with new quick release connectors, so you can remove your console panel quickly and easily, without worrying about the ultra-critical ammeter connections.

Also, for those people who think an Ammeter is better than a Voltmeter, read this FAQ on the Autometer web site:

http://www.autometer.com/tech_...wer.aspx?sid=1&qid=5

Oh I didn't say it was better, just original.

As I mentioned in my previous posting, if you want to keep the OEM appearance of your ammeter, just have a gauge shop install a voltmeter mechanism into your ammeter (but don't change the face). You don't really need a different scale on the gauge to know what's going on.

I decided to convert my ammeter into a volt meter after seeing how nice Dave's gauge turned out. I dropped it of an North Hollywood Speedometer and Clock company last week where I met Hartmut, who has been working automotive instrumentation since the 50s, and was able to see some of the work they do on classic gauges. Very nice work. I am having mine printed with "BATTERY" vs. "BATTERIA", but he can print anything you want on the gauge face, including numbers.

If anyone else is interested in having the conversion done, please contact Hartmut at 818-761-5136 (6111 Lankershim Blvd, LA, 91606). The veglia "green" print is a very close match to the Porsche gauge green. He has to spread the set-up cost for the font and printing across multiple jobs in order to make the conversion affordable. Therefore he waits until he has enough gauges in the que before he starts the work. He does a lot more Porsche gauges than Veglia gauges, so it will not be that long of a wait. The cost is $175.00 + $12.00 shipping.

What is the cost like to get an electric speedo mechanism installed? I would really like to do that.

Unfortunately, I did it the very most expensive way possible. Many years ago, I bought an electric speedo and sending unit from a Pantera Si. I then had North Hollywood Speedometer and Clock remove the workings from the Si speedo and install them into my OEM Veglia speedo housing. It looks 100% stock and the trip ODO reset cable/knob still works as it did before.

At the time, NHS&C told me they could do the same thing by using the workings from a VDO electronic speedo. This is obviously the way to go because a VDO speedo is about 1/4 the price of one from a Pantera Si! There are quite a few ways to go, as far as sending units are concerned. Mine is an OEM Veglia unit, that's used on a few different Italian cars (Alfa, Ferrari, etc.) and it screws onto the angle drive in place of the speedo cable. There are also sending units available that replace the angle drive entirely. One such unit is an HE-22CS-16 from Milwaukee Speedometer Service (414-463-6660). Apparently, Intellitronix (http://www.intellitronix.com/sending-units-gauges.html) has one too but I have no first hand knowledge of it.

I recently installed an Autometer GPS speed sending unit and am happy to report it works flawlessly. The antenna is remote from the control unit, so I was able to hide it inside one of my defroster vents.

Anyone who wants to convert their OEM speedo to electric operation should contact Hartmut at NHS&C (818-761-5136 or info@nhspeedometer.com). Also, while they have your speedo apart, have them install two extra bulb holders!