Itinerant Air-Cooled

I like gauges. Ever since my first car I've installed them. I never felt good about cutting holes in the bus dash so for awhile I had them mounted on those rubber mounts VDO makes just above my knees. The trouble was when I wanted to check my gauges the steering wheel obstructed my vision. Sitting in the drivers seat I determined I could see those gauges perfectly if they were sitting just right of the ebrake and pointed gently toward me. That way when I do my 180 scan, driver side mirror, windshield, passenger side mirror and back those gauges fall right in the sequence. Trouble is I couldn't locate any mounts that were angled toward me correctly so I made my own by cutting PVC pipe at the angle I desired, gluing the cluster with PVC Cement and fabricating a bracket. I'm quite happy with the result.

Looks good and is "un-doable". A win win!

RussellK wrote:I like gauges.

As an "old fart without GPS", I can't read those durn new-fangled widgetmacallits down there.
ColinCrank

Amskeptic wrote:

RussellK wrote:I like gauges.

As an "old fart without GPS", I can't read those durn new-fangled widgetmacallits down there.
ColinCrank

They're half way to the passenger side mirror. You do frequently check that mirror don't you? Cantankerous old farts

I couldn't see em down there either so I mounted em under the radio but now Monique is always putting her coffee/tea cup in the upholder dealie which I need to remove.

Bleyseng wrote:I couldn't see em down there either so I mounted em under the radio but now Monique is always putting her coffee/tea cup in the upholder dealie which I need to remove.

If they were flush with the dash I wouldn't be able to see them either. The picture doesn't show it very well but I cut the tubes so they angle toward me. That way I'm looking directly at them. Don't the cupholders interfere with the shifter?

RussellK wrote:

Amskeptic wrote:

RussellK wrote:I like gauges.

As an "old fart without GPS", I can't read those durn new-fangled widgetmacallits down there.
ColinCrank

They're half way to the passenger side mirror. You do frequently check that mirror don't you? Cantankerous old farts

I can see a truck in the mirror without having to read its vehicle number, dab nabbit.

I can't read a VDO gauge staring straight at it, the little hash marks are not in sensible and intuitive increments!
COFin

Amskeptic wrote:I can't read a VDO gauge staring straight at it, the little hash marks are not in sensible and intuitive increments!
COFin

while not as esthetically pleasing or as period correct as the VDO style gauges, this is exactly why I prefer to the Dakota Digital units. one very quick glance and you know exactly what the number is - because that's all that's displayed.

RussellK wrote:

Bleyseng wrote:I couldn't see em down there either so I mounted em under the radio but now Monique is always putting her coffee/tea cup in the upholder dealie which I need to remove.

If they were flush with the dash I wouldn't be able to see them either. The picture doesn't show it very well but I cut the tubes so they angle toward me. That way I'm looking directly at them. Don't the cupholders interfere with the shifter?

No, the cupholder does interfere with the shifter but the "stuff" that does get shoved in em does so that's why I don't like it.