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rpm gauge hookup
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 2:15 pm    Post subject: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

i’ve got this vdo guage that came with the car but doesn’t seemed to be working/hooked up. don’t have the slightest clue about electronics so i’m in need of some help hooking this thing up.

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it’s only got one wire connected right now and it goes to the speedometer.

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ive found this mystery wire that seems to go through the car and is hooked up to the positive side of the coil but i could be wrong

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Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

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any help with what wires i need and where to hook them up would be a huge help.
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blaunuts
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PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 5:43 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

Hi I have a tach just like this one its kind of rare,just move the red wire to the center terminal then move the other end to the negative side of the coil then plus(+) side of gauge goes to key on power and negative goes to ground (body) hope that helps Greg
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EverettB Premium Member
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PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 5:53 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

Yes, there are normally 4 connections
+ goes to 12v switched/keyed power
- ground wire
1 goes to the coil
The lighted connection hooks into the dash gauge lighting wiring, you could run a jumper off the light for the speedometer

Also that's an original Formula Vee VE accessory tachometer.
Another thread
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=240286
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 7:15 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

blaunuts wrote:
Hi I have a tach just like this one its kind of rare,just move the red wire to the center terminal then move the other end to the negative side of the coil then plus(+) side of gauge goes to key on power and negative goes to ground (body) hope that helps Greg


like i understand what you’re saying but no idea how to execute it. the only part i get is hooking it up to the negative side of the coil. not sure where a key on power source would be or where a wire to ground would go. pretty stupid with this kind of stuff Laughing
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kx5inOR
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 3:23 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

JaimeReyes wrote:
blaunuts wrote:
Hi I have a tach just like this one its kind of rare,just move the red wire to the center terminal then move the other end to the negative side of the coil then plus(+) side of gauge goes to key on power and negative goes to ground (body) hope that helps Greg


like i understand what you’re saying but no idea how to execute it. the only part i get is hooking it up to the negative side of the coil. not sure where a key on power source would be or where a wire to ground would go. pretty stupid with this kind of stuff Laughing

This is my first post and I apologize for not having the complete answer but I thought some pictures of an operational(well the tach is operational at least) setup might help.
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Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

On ours the green wire is the one going to the negative side of the coil as blaunuts noted. The only other connection to the negative side of the coil is going to the electronic "points" in the distributor.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

I'll try to see if I can find a better angle of the rats nest to try to show where mine is getting power, ground, and backlight.

Samba has great wiring diagrams for us here: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiring/1970_VW_Type_1_Poster.jpg

The fuse terminals are laid out in the same orientation as the diagram on the vehicle so the switched power could be taken from the terminal on the passenger end of the fuse box where the radio hookup is.

It is always best practice to check with a multimeter to make sure it does what we think/hope it does before hooking it up though given how many hands have touched these things in the last 48 years.
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 5:58 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

kx5inOR wrote:
I'll try to see if I can find a better angle of the rats nest to try to show where mine is getting power, ground, and backlight.

Samba has great wiring diagrams for us here: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiring/1970_VW_Type_1_Poster.jpg

The fuse terminals are laid out in the same orientation as the diagram on the vehicle so the switched power could be taken from the terminal on the passenger end of the fuse box where the radio hookup is.

It is always best practice to check with a multimeter to make sure it does what we think/hope it does before hooking it up though given how many hands have touched these things in the last 48 years.


okay cool that would be awesome! so your keyed on power source is on one of the fuses? where do you have your ground hooked up?
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Cusser
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 6:10 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

JaimeReyes wrote:
so your keyed on power source is on one of the fuses? where do you have your ground hooked up?

I have a similar tachometer on my 1971, just goes to 7000 rpm.

Yes, positive power needs to tap into a fused switched-on location of the fuse box. Ground wire goes to any body metal, like on an existing ground wire mount (brown wires) or a sheet metal screw into the body. There are several ground screws in the "trunk" area, like at front corners of the fuel tank.

The illumination should tap in parallel to the dash cluster illumination.

For the signal wire, you'll need a wire from coil negative terminal #1 (typically single green wire there to the distributor) forward to the signal terminal of the tachometer.
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Might also be a good time to run additional wires back to the engine compartment for other future gauges. I ran my wires under the driver side running board.
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Brian
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 9:38 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

Yo, I'll buy one of those tachs off one of you guys. I have a nice large VDO and want a smaller one
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MonkeySee
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 5:49 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

JaimeReyes wrote:

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I don't mean to throw this discussion off or anything but are you using a bay bus firewall tin on your bug?
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MonkeySee
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 6:04 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

This is a beetle firewall tin.
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This is a bus firewall tin.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

If you're running a dog house cooler you have a one year only bus firewall tin. Those are hard to find.
I know some bus people who would love to have that tin.
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kx5inOR
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 8:52 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

JaimeReyes wrote:
kx5inOR wrote:
I'll try to see if I can find a better angle of the rats nest to try to show where mine is getting power, ground, and backlight.

Samba has great wiring diagrams for us here: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiring/1970_VW_Type_1_Poster.jpg

The fuse terminals are laid out in the same orientation as the diagram on the vehicle so the switched power could be taken from the terminal on the passenger end of the fuse box where the radio hookup is.

It is always best practice to check with a multimeter to make sure it does what we think/hope it does before hooking it up though given how many hands have touched these things in the last 48 years.


okay cool that would be awesome! so your keyed on power source is on one of the fuses? where do you have your ground hooked up?

Hope this helps. I added colored straight lines to help bring out the connections but the actual wires are visible from this angle. Looks like they found ground on the bottom of the windshield wiper motor terminals.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 11:01 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

MonkeySee wrote:
This is a beetle firewall tin.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

This is a bus firewall tin.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

If you're running a dog house cooler you have a one year only bus firewall tin. Those are hard to find.
I know some bus people who would love to have that tin.


i’m not sure honestly, it was on the car when i bought it!
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 11:05 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

kx5inOR wrote:
Hope this helps. I added colored straight lines to help bring out the connections but the actual wires are visible from this angle. Looks like they found ground on the bottom of the windshield wiper motor terminals.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


dude this helps a lot! thank you, i really appreciate you taking the time and showing me some pictures. gonna try to hook it up soon
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 10:25 pm    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

i need to buy some new wires to get this all connected. i’ve seen a few different gauges of wire and no idea which size to get? any recommendations?
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kx5inOR
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 29, 2018 8:39 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

JaimeReyes wrote:
i need to buy some new wires to get this all connected. i’ve seen a few different gauges of wire and no idea which size to get? any recommendations?

16 gauge
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JaimeReyes
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 29, 2018 8:44 am    Post subject: Re: rpm gauge hookup Reply with quote

kx5inOR wrote:
JaimeReyes wrote:
i need to buy some new wires to get this all connected. i’ve seen a few different gauges of wire and no idea which size to get? any recommendations?

16 gauge


cool thanks! you’ve been a huge help
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