I thought I had a diagram for this, and also thought I'd be able to get a definitive answer searching the HAMB, but nope . . . I have a NAPA VT6187 12 to 6v voltage dropper that is supposed to be able to power all three of electric gagues in my '40 pickups stock cluster. So, does that mean they get power in series, or do I run three seperate leads off the reducer and power them parallel? I'd really rather figure this out before doing it wrong and creating a wiring fire - roadtrip to Viva Las Vegas tomorrow? Thanks in advance -
run a seperate wire to each gauge. ford did this with bus bars on the back...also the ammeter dosent need a volt drop... unless you got a voltmeter....
Volt gauges are always wired in parallel and Amp gauges are always wired in series. Most of the- guages, other than the actual ammeter - ie - your gas gauge, electrical oil pressure gauges etc., etc, work on the principle of measuring voltage across a variable resistance and are thus wired in parallel Mart 3405 ===============================
These gauges are goofy, because they are (or were) positive ground, like my freakin' Triumph. But my understanding is you can run them either way So, each gauge gets its lead from a sender, and a hot lead run series across all of them that need power. And they'll still work if I run a negative ground instead of a positive ground. . . . Right? I hate wiring. This is why Ive run this truck for four years without anything more than an SW volts, oil pressure and water temp gauge cluster. At this point a fuel gauge is a luxury.
Here you go prints for all of the gauges as well as troubleshooting tips. Run a wire from the ignition switch to the voltage reducer and from the voltage reducer to the first gauge, then jump a wire from that terminal to the second gauge, from that run a wire to the third gauge. Gauges don't care if they are positive or negative ground they operate on current. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=438925 Jim
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