(Part 2) Best automotive replacement gauge sets according to redditors

Torch cleaner and a spark-plug gap gauge.

Sun Company 306-R Lev-o-gage II... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003D2AVMO?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Doesn't seem like much, but a good stocking stuffer

CV in general, with very rare exceptions.

OK. The way a CV carb works, you have a slide that goes up and down that lets more or less air in. The bottom of this slide has the main jet needle attached, so that as the slide rises more gas comes in via the main jet. You do NOT get to control how that slide rises. At all. You have no control over it. What YOU get to control is a butterfly valve mounted behind it, between the slide and the motor. You whack on that valve and incoming air causes the main slide to rise...with a distinct delay.

The other drawback is you now have two different things in the air path - the slide and the butterfly valve. That limits airflow...which is why you can replace a 38mm factory CV carb on an XS650 for example with a "smaller" Mikuni VM34 and still get a serious power boost.

See diagram - the butterfly valve is listed as the "throttle valve", it's just a round piece of brass on a stick that can be twisted:

http://www.viragoownersclub.org/Dr%20Piston/Images/Hitachi_carb.jpg

So with airflow making the main slide rise, the "quality" of that incoming airflow matters. That airflow has to be carefully directed to make the main slide rise properly. If you look at the intake side of one of these you'll see "extra holes" around the main bore - air has to go in those holes "just so" to make the main slide rise properly.

In this example there's a "bent oval" at the top of the intake bore and a couple more holes just inboard of the hole on the bottom:

http://www.dudeworld.com.au/images/CV3.jpg

For reasons I don't fully understand CV carbs need to feed from a shared "pool" of calmed air called an airbox. I do know that towards the end of the period where the major Japanese makers were using CV carbs in high-performance sportbikes like the GSXRs, Ninjas, etc. they were using airboxes with volumes greater than the gas tank capacity.

And then they finally gave up and went to fuel injection that doesn't need that bullshit...

In a "classic" carb of the roundslide, flatslide or similar design, there's a slide that you yank on directly with a wire attached to the throttle. In these carbs (Mikuni VM/TM, Keihin CR/FCR, etc.) when you call for that slide to rise (with the main jet needle on the bottom) it rises RIGHT NOW, no delay. And they're fully compatible with individual pod filters...well, good quality ones anyhow, there's some bad ones on the market (Chinese Ebay crap, etc.).

The CV carbs were put in mainly for smog control reasons, to avoid having to go to catalytic converters. Which means you have a second set of problems IF you manage to solve the airflow issues: the CV carbs aren't too adjustable and with the serious difference in airflow from the stock air cleaner to the pods, you're going to have to change jets to alter the fuel supply to match the change in airflow from the filter change. And then if you alter the pipes as a lot of bike modders do, you'll have more airflow changes, more messing with the carb(s).

The one advantage to the CV carb is that the main slide won't rise faster than what the engine needs. With some roundslide/flatslide setups you have to learn to hesitate just a bit in the midrange to let the motor catch up to what the carb is doing, especially if you run carbs too big for the motor's state of tune. When I built my XS650 25 years ago or so I bought VM36 carbs that were a tad too big and had to learn to ride it up with the throttle, but I lived with it because the top-end rush was awesome :).

One more thing. There's a new tech available that the bike world hasn't caught up with yet that will tell you THE TRUTH about what your air/fuel mixture is really doing with no guesswork:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MDT8MW/ref=s9_simh_gw_p263_d1_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-5&pf_rd_r=0SR1QZXMS7Y8R9K1FG1T&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1935682402&pf_rd_i=desktop

For less than $200 you can get an air/fuel meter that plugs into the exhaust through a mount you have to add for it. You can then take the sender and gauge out once you have it tuned right and plug the sensor bung with a bolt. This will tell you exactly what the mixture is at any RPM range...you want 14.7:1 air/fuel most of the time, 12.8:1 balls out wide open.

A gauge like this will turn you into a jetting Jedi, but it still won't solve air direction problems on CV carbs with pods.

I should clarify that I'd only recommend using the built in gauge as a rough guide.

Something like this would be more accurate.

Personally I use a cheap version of this, nice because it also fits in my pocket.

Getting the spout off takes some elbow grease for sure. It's really helpful to use a vise if you have one. You should be able to get a good gauge and the required adapter for about $20. Here is what I got for my Gaggia Classic Pro's portafilter:

2-1/2" Oil Filled Pressure Gauge - Stainless Steel Case, Brass, 1/4" NPT, Lower Mount Connection 0-200PSI https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006JJ7D9W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_taa_-2NiDbYGF81AQ

EDGE INDUSTRIAL Brass REDUCING Coupling 3/8" X 1/4" Female NPT FNPT Fuel/AIR/Water/Oil/Gas WOG https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D23JS2X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_taa_x6NiDbKT488BT

If you have the new Classic Pro like me, you will find the pressure is not easily adjustable :-(

what's the engine? It looks like a 289/302 setup. If so, the oil pressure switch should be in about that position. It looks like somebody installed an in-cab oil pressure gauge with a rubber hose.

That won't work so well, and WILL burst and spew oil all over the inside of your engine compartment. If you go long enough with that off, it will run the engine dry of oil :)

you'll want to replace the gauge or the hose with new copper hosing It's pretty cheap.

EDIT: Wait.. I think there is copper hosing in there and somebody cut a rubber hose to slide over the copper hose to insulate it for some reason. It looks like the rubber hose is cut long wise along the entire piece to slip over the copper. Rubber won't keep the copper from melting or anything... so that's a odd choice. I'd remove the rubber hose to see what is under there and see if the copper hose is intact.

If you want a 2 or 3 pointer altimeter you'll need a medium stepper to drive the gearbox , but for a drum type you could use a gauge stepper motor that you can drive directly from a microcontroller.

https://www.amazon.com/Yellow-Jacket-40331-Pressure-Coupler/dp/B009AXFNFU/ref=sxbs_sxwds-stvp?keywords=yellow+jacket+410a&pd_rd_i=B009AXFNFU&pd_rd_r=23c296aa-c658-49a3-a8b0-29ae22e70b51&pd_rd_w=si7Zu&pd_rd_wg=D0UV9&pf_rd_p=d006b618-5fac-44e6-850d-a0fdd19f7847&pf_rd_r=ST8ZCZP6GPRYVC2Y8MZ2&qid=1557107606&s=gateway

I assume you have a pair of these?

tire pressure gauge I need this because I've had my car for 3 months and I haven't checked it at all.

No ball valves. I just have what came with my yellow jacket set.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0039KPPZS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_zY9HDb29G9H1X

Show this gift some love

I really like knowing the air pressure in my bike tires ;)

link

Buy one of these and check them yourself: www.amazon.com/dp/B00GWFOSRS/

I've had shops give me those reports saying I was in the green when I knew for a fact that the tires were nearing end of life. I've also had them write down that I had only 3/8 left when the tires were only a few months old and had plenty of meat left. My theory? Lube techs are lazy.

yay or nay

http://www.amazon.com/AEM-30-5132--30-35PSI-Boost-Analog/dp/B003XW47PG/ref=sr_1_10?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1397437401&sr=1-10&keywords=aem+boost+gauge

No problem. Your car is basically telling you that one or more of your tires has very low pressure in it. Your tires will lose pressure over time, especially if the outside temperature is bouncing around, so you need to check your tires on a regular basis. My recommendation is that you pick up a decent tire gauge and keep it in your glove box, so you can check whenever you need to, like at the gas station. I have a few of these that have served me well over the years.

I got this one. Yours might not require one, but my 2005 needs a tach adapter too. As far as the HVAC controls are concerned, they’re just the original CVLX climate controls.

I would say no
http://www.amazon.com/Tire-Pressure-Gauge-Pencil-10-120/dp/B004RISI6Y

these are the ones i've been using, worth every penny. Without this set I would pay someone else to sync the carbs on my bikes. Anything less is like doing a static timing with points, good enough to get the bike running... but not much beyond that.

http://www.amazon.com/Supply-Vacuum-Gauges-35-3019/dp/B0034ZWA9C

So if you really want to mess with them you need to get two things:

A foot pump (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adaptor-Bicycle-Footballs-Airbed-Motorbike/dp/B00B4TGRTY) and a tire deflator (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pressure-Gauge-Deflators-Motorcycle-Bicycle-x/dp/B01LYJUR74)

When they park in your space you pick a tire on the car and deflate it 5-10psi or so and pick a different tire and over-inflate it 5-10 psi. The next time they do it you reset the tires to proper inflation (in case they had not yet noticed the earlier problem) and pick another two tires randomly to under and over inflate. It will subtly mess with the handling of the car, on newer cars it will cause a warning light after a bit of driving that may eventually lead the annoying parker to spend time checking tires for slow leaks, and over time will cause uneven tread wear and require the purchase of a new set of tires.