Snowmobileaddict
TY 4 Stroke Junkie
Here are some preliminary photos of the fitment of an analog temp gauge install that I am working on.
I found an affordable, decent looking 1.5" water temp gauge and was initially thinking of mounting it adjacent to the 12v dc acc. outlet in the forward tank cover plate. After taking a closer look, i realized that the gauge body is the exact same thickness as the handlebar pad mounting foam!
The handlebar pad makes for a much better location. Its front and center and always easy to read. Plus, its much cheaper to replace the handlebar pad in order to return the sled to completely stock form. The bar pad is only $20
Here are some photos:
With the gauge pressed into the bar pad foam, the fitment is so tight that the mounting ring isn't even required to secure it!
The kit comes with 3 backlit color filters to change the apeparance of the gauge. I am thinking of going with blue to try to match the tach. The kit also comes complete with a temp sending unit that is 1/8" NPT.
I ending up having to source a different type of radiator hose adapter to mount the sending unit. This particular sending unit is designed to be mounted in a location that it is grounded to the chassis (ie threaded hole in engine block). Because my application requires mounting the sending unit in a radiator hose with an adapter block, the radiator hose is isolated from electrical ground.
I was able to find an aluminum billet sending unit adapter on a well known auction website that is fitted with a grounding post to run a grounding lead back to the frame.
In all, I'm pretty happy with how this install is looking. I plan on getting some vinyl friendly spray paint and spraying the pad cover so the remants of the "Yamaha Apex" logo are no longer visible. This should make install look more "finished". I suppose some self-adhesve vinyl or grip tape could look cool as well.
Wiring will be pretty straight forward and I'll be able to run the wires within the wire loom running down the steering post.
I think I'm also going to mask off the gauge crystal and bezel and run a bead of silcone at the seam to weatherproof the top side of the guage.
I'll be sure to add photos of the finished project once complete. Also, this setup proved to be quite the bargain. We'll see how the guage performs this season. If the gauge fails, the cost of replacement is less than a tank of gas for an Apex.
I found an affordable, decent looking 1.5" water temp gauge and was initially thinking of mounting it adjacent to the 12v dc acc. outlet in the forward tank cover plate. After taking a closer look, i realized that the gauge body is the exact same thickness as the handlebar pad mounting foam!
The handlebar pad makes for a much better location. Its front and center and always easy to read. Plus, its much cheaper to replace the handlebar pad in order to return the sled to completely stock form. The bar pad is only $20
Here are some photos:
With the gauge pressed into the bar pad foam, the fitment is so tight that the mounting ring isn't even required to secure it!
The kit comes with 3 backlit color filters to change the apeparance of the gauge. I am thinking of going with blue to try to match the tach. The kit also comes complete with a temp sending unit that is 1/8" NPT.
I ending up having to source a different type of radiator hose adapter to mount the sending unit. This particular sending unit is designed to be mounted in a location that it is grounded to the chassis (ie threaded hole in engine block). Because my application requires mounting the sending unit in a radiator hose with an adapter block, the radiator hose is isolated from electrical ground.
I was able to find an aluminum billet sending unit adapter on a well known auction website that is fitted with a grounding post to run a grounding lead back to the frame.
In all, I'm pretty happy with how this install is looking. I plan on getting some vinyl friendly spray paint and spraying the pad cover so the remants of the "Yamaha Apex" logo are no longer visible. This should make install look more "finished". I suppose some self-adhesve vinyl or grip tape could look cool as well.
Wiring will be pretty straight forward and I'll be able to run the wires within the wire loom running down the steering post.
I think I'm also going to mask off the gauge crystal and bezel and run a bead of silcone at the seam to weatherproof the top side of the guage.
I'll be sure to add photos of the finished project once complete. Also, this setup proved to be quite the bargain. We'll see how the guage performs this season. If the gauge fails, the cost of replacement is less than a tank of gas for an Apex.
