Speedhut-Vintage Gauge Learning Summary

[scrubs]

I hope this helps someone someday..


After a posts here and few calls with Speedhut, who were patient and friendly, this is the summary of what I learned:

1) No more daisy wires in the kits
2) all gauges have the red/black/white wires now (no inverter or red/black wire on the speedo)
3) gang the reds together (except clock), whites, and blacks using whatever you like - I will use their recommended WAGO 221/2773 series connectors
4) connect the clock to the speed-clock red wire as the FFR manual says
5) there is no need to use the second speed-clock wire for the speedo, it is treated with all the other reds as above
6) best to use the Speedhut supplied senders and their wiring
7) the Speedhut sender circuits are internally grounded, so just connect the sender to the motor and the gauge

Let's see how this goes:)

j

[Tooth]

I'm kinda hoping you get this all sorted out soon. I've got my gages mounted, but will likely start this weekend on wiring them up. :cool:

[JohnK]

That's an interesting change. The daisy chain harness was a convenient plug-and-play solution but it was a bit of a hassle to bundle up all the excess and get a clean wire routing behind the dash. Wago connectors should work OK but may get a bit bulky behind the dash. You might want to consider using Molex-style crimp-on connectors.

[scrubs]

That's an interesting change. The daisy chain harness was a convenient plug-and-play solution but it was a bit of a hassle to bundle up all the excess and get a clean wire routing behind the dash. Wago connectors should work OK but may get a bit bulky behind the dash. You might want to consider using Molex-style crimp-on connectors.

Will try to get this connected today and show how "stuffy" it may be. The 2773 is pretty compact.

[Windsor]

WAGOs are great if you need a one-to-two ... one-to-seven distribution point, where "weatherproof" isn't a requirement and you see yourself changing things up in the next year or two.

For one-on-one, two-on-two, ... fifteen-on-fifteen you're better off using Molex or weather packs.

For a rather permanent setup, I wouldn't go WAGO but that's a matter of personal preference.

As a side note, 221s max out at 5-connector (one-to-four) and 2773s max out at 8-connector (one-to-seven).

[scrubs]

WAGOs are great if you need a one-to-two ... one-to-seven distribution point, where "weatherproof" isn't a requirement and you see yourself changing things up in the next year or two.

For one-on-one, two-on-two, ... fifteen-on-fifteen you're better off using Molex or weather packs.

For a rather permanent setup, I wouldn't go WAGO but that's a matter of personal preference.

As a side note, 221s max out at 5-connector (one-to-four) and 2773s max out at 8-connector (one-to-seven).

Do the molex result in all the wires being in continuity?

[F500guy]

No, they do not all connect to each other, you would need to break out each pin on the power side to connect to a single power supply wire, then the gauge side each pin to the individual gauges. There may be a way to daisy chain the supply side of the plug-2 wires in each pin, say pin 1 had power and wire that would chain to pin 2, then pin 2 has wire from pin 1 and wire that would chain to pin3 and so on. Have not had my hands on Molex connectors for years so wire gauge may preclude that daisy chain if they will not fit in the crimp.

[F500guy]

looks like the gauges now have the inverter built in for dimming? so that would mean dimming would be back to a rheostat voltage directly to each meter?

[JohnK]

Molex has a range of connectors (https://www.molex.com/molex/products/group/power_connectors) covering different amperages and wire gauges. Each connector "family" typically requires its own dedicated crimper. I chose to go with the Mini-Fit connectors (https://www.molex.com/molex/products/family/minifit_power_connector_solutions?parentKey=power_ connectors), as they cover 16-28 gauge wire and up to 13A. These, along with weatherpack connectors for higher amperage and/or weatherproof connections cover 99% of my connection needs. With the Mini-Fit crimp pins you can double up 22 gauge wire to create a daisy chain if needed.

[scrubs]

looks like the gauges now have the inverter built in for dimming? so that would mean dimming would be back to a rheostat voltage directly to each meter?

I will call speedhut later this week, told the guy I would give others a chance to talk to him:)

[scrubs]

Completed the rear of the dash this PM.

1) Sometimes you wonder if a tool is worth it...then you wind up saying, thank God I had this tool....if you haven't started wiring and don't have one, get one:

182901

It makes for very quick (like ridiculously quick) and accurate work of things like today when I had to strip 11mm off all the wires for the gauges.


2) I opened the box of the 221 and they were smaller than I expected:

182902

I chose this to create my own daisy chain over the 8 connector bcs these lever locked connectors can be released. They don't damage the wire or need re-stripping if you do need to remove it. A lot of flexibility. I gave it a good tug and it held the wire well (more than it would ever be subjected to sitting behind the dash or being positioned). I may test the holding strength one of these days for the academics of it.

3) A rear view of some of thew wires in the 221. Lets you see they are in far enough. The 11mm is...perfect, as it should be.

182903


4) Here is a rear view of my homemade daisy chain. Note, the white and black wires from the clock were not in the chain, but corrected after the pic. The red stays out of the chain.

182904

The configuration was tested and got both gauge and needles working. Tomorrow will place final connections to the dash harness.

5) I may start another thread, but can I get confirmation on dash position at the R/L points relative to the 3/4" hoop. I have read 3/16" inch below, but seems to be when you start with the blank. Also read to go flush if using the pre-covered from FFR. Thoughts?

thanks, everyone for helping out with my wiring questions,

j

[edwardb]

looks like the gauges now have the inverter built in for dimming? so that would mean dimming would be back to a rheostat voltage directly to each meter?

No. Speedhut changed from the AC powered electroluminescent backlighting (why the DC to AC inverter was required) to LED backlighting. The dimming function in the headlight switch adjusts voltage. So the LED's don't dim when you turn the knob. They just switch off when they don't have enough voltage to stay lit. I remember a post some time ago where a builder found a module that could dim the LED backlighting. Sorry, don't remember or know anything about it. On a practical side, I've found it's not a big deal. Don't drive that much at night and when I do, I don't have any issue with the full lighting. It's just not that bright.

[F500guy]

Something like this

https://www.autometer.com/led-lighting-dimmer.html

Or

https://www.amazon.com/Leisure-Lectronics-Dimmer-Switch-Incandescent/dp/B01M63XHQ6/ref=sr_1_8?crid=14YP5OOANKVYX&keywords=dash+led+dimmer&qid=1681389827&s=automotive&sprefix=dash+led+dimmer%2Cautomotive%2C159&sr=1-8