Is it possible to move around in the gauges in the instrument cluster? I'd like to replace the big fuel gauge with a '73-'80 style tachometer (configured to work with the 6.2L), and put a small fuel gauge where it would have been for the '73-'80 year group trucks.

About the only thing I'd lose is the clock, but who looks at that thing anyway?

Thanks

So, does anyone have any idea as to whether this is possible?

I took my gauge cluster apart recently (Gvan)
All of the gauges come out individually - speedo, fuel, temp/oil/volts are together.

All the gauges connect up in the back to a sheet of plastic with conductors in it that terminate at the connector block. All of the lights click into the plastic sheet to make contact.

If you were to change locations of the gauges, you'd have to make new wires from the gauge to the connector block.

The pinout of the connector block is in my '84 shop manual.

Not altogether true - the Gm rally package had the tach and all the gages - find one in silverado or other hi-option truck, black-out the UNLEADED, leaving the FUEL ONLY, and ya gots a Diesel inst cluster....................

WTS and WIF is seperate, in the bezel

Is it possible to move around in the gauges in the instrument cluster? I'd like to replace the big fuel gauge with a '73-'80 style tachometer (configured to work with the 6.2L), and put a small fuel gauge where it would have been for the '73-'80 year group trucks.

About the only thing I'd lose is the clock, but who looks at that thing anyway?

Thanks


That would be very nice. I'm sure it could be done quite easily.

I never look at my clock... Doesn't work. For a while I didn't wear a watch and I was really lost so I stuck a cheap plastic alarm clock I had laying around to the top of the dash... ):h

So you are looking for a setup like this: (AKDiesel's truck)
http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=35000&d=1172896722

here is a thread with a related discussion. http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=127940

yeah, that's it. Cool!

So, what guages are in the smaller positions. I can read 3 of the 4, but one is blinded by the flash.

Nevermind, I read the whole thread and found out what the four smaller gauges are. Thanks for the post!

This means I may be able to replace the air gauges with a second alt gauge. Sort of like a CUCV, but as a gauge instead of an idiot light.

The circut board on the back of the panel is open for the tach as well as the air gauge so installing a different gauge in the lower left would be very easy.

AK,

Good to know. So, would I just connect the leads strait to the gauge since the circuit board is open? Or what?

Also, are the other smaller gauge positions open on that circuit board? Could I rearrange the gauges if I wanted to?

Thanks

I finally broke down and bought a tach. :D

Now with all the options out there, I chose one of the cheeper products avaiable. I wanted to do the stock dash tach, but it can be spendy to piece together, so I bought a Tinytach.
Now from the Tinytach site their product is $65usd, and they charged me $7 for shipping. The install was simple and it has a built in Hr. meter you can read all about what it can do on their website.
Now the best way to describe this is as a "tractor tach" It seems to be a bit slow to read the rpm on the screen. Seems like its made for an operation where the motor is at a steady RPM while running. The other thing I didn't even think about is that it is not back lit, which isn't to big of a deal.
Overall I like it, If you are looking for a more conventional style go for the OEM dash style or the Autometer tach. But this does a good job of giving an idea what the motor is doing at cruising speeds, idle, and works for what I need. (im not driving a race car. :rolleyes:) Considering the options available in my min this is a good choice.

here are some pics of it installed and a video of it running.

Video:http://s69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/?action=view&current=05-14-07_1854.flv

[/URL]http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/garageimage.php?do=full&p=31703&d=1179221435 (http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/garageimage.php?do=full&p=31703&d=1179221435)



[URL="http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/tinytach.jpg"]http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/tinytach.jpg (http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/tinytach.jpg)

That's pretty neat. It would almost be worth installing for the hobbs meter alone. You're right, that is mainly intended for a constant speed application. What kind of sensor does it use?

Nice steering wheel, by the way... ;)

Nice steering wheel, by the way... ;)
Thanks!

... What kind of sensor does it use? ...


It uses a "transducer" pickup that is clamped to the injector line.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/ttach2.jpg (http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i70/matt_mocabee/Truck/ttach2.jpg)

That seems to work just fine. Good job.
On an old '83 that I have sold since, I put a cheap Suntach in the clock spot. It fit perfect behind the stock plexiglass and had a light that I wired to the light switch.
To make things simple, I would say the only two spots for a tach would be the factory spots and the clock location. The other spots are dedicated spots for oil pressrue, water temp, and battery charge.