Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums Accessories New Gauges (oil pressure & oil temp)

These may interest some of you (see pic below).



The gauge on the inside (in the oil-fill hole) is the oil temp gauge, and was bought from Brent at newspeedmaster.com. The other gauge on the outside is an oil pressure gauge bought from Bill Gately at bonnevilleperformance.com .

Now I got more things to look at.

-BT

Mark,

They look great... oh, WATCH OUT FOR THAT CAR IN FRONT OF YOU !!!!!!

Hey BT
Looks good!

Did you fabricate the bracket yourself?

Adey,

The Oil Pressure Gauge kit comes with the bracket (included). Check this out......

Oil Pressure Gauge

how was it to install?

Frank

Frank,

It was simple. My existing stock bolt that holds down the banjo fitting was a bit buggered. So I used my Craftsman "Bolt-Out" kit and it came out pronto (I recommend getting that kit BTW). After that I just followed these instructions and, viola! - Done!

-BT

Thats great, but what about a microwave oven? Handlebar mount would make it convenient too.

BT,
Cool, more guys with the gauges.
Tell me wht you are getting for average pressures and temps eh?
I run ~170ºF most of the time and the pressure varies from 30-80. Colder it is higher, goes up and down as throttle changes as well. All normal according to Bill Gately that makes the pressure gauges.

I think they look cool and they are on my to do list, as well as lots of goodies from Brent

Pat,

I haven'nt rode with the oil-pressure gauge yet (I installed it last night). But, this is interesting, - last weekend I took my Speedy on the first real ride since the Wiseco kit (100 miles) and at 25 miles into the ride the temp gauge was right around 200 degrees. By the time I got home it was hovering around 180 degrees. I attribute this temp difference to the new tight tolerences breaking in.

I'll let you know about the oil-pressure readings I get.

-BT

I got the temp gauge for Christmas...

Does the gauge itself turn so I can have it oriented properly? With it tightened, the 'top' of the gauge is at right angles to the bike instead of parallel.

Just give it a twist Phil. The gauge itself is just sitting in a tight rubber mount system.

very cool pressure gauge. i have the oil temp gauge. i need to paint the lip black though.

cat

I have em too!

Pat, I still hover around 200, even with my old oil cooler back on there, even in cold weather! I guess my bike is just hot

Mine read about the same. The temperature rarely gets near 200, even on the hottest days.

BennyB, just a few thoughts about oil temps. Searching the web I find that it is considered normal for a non-turbo piston aircraft oil to run 180-200 degrees during cruse,and higher during climb out. Forum members motorcycles are going to run at different oil temps depending on state of tune(lean/rich),final drive gear ratio,altitude,air temp,driving style,ground speed, and if you are using Synthetic or non-synthetic oil. Also the oil temp in everyones engine varies quite a bit from place to place within the engine itself (the oil coming from the bottom of a piston is one ell of a lot hotter than 200 degrees. Also you need to get your oil up to at least 180 degrees for it to have a chance to rid itself of mosture from condensation.To cold of an engine oil is not good for the longevity of your engine.This is one instance where colder is not better.While everone sitting around the forum compairing oils temps may be entertaining, it does not tell us a lot. I guess you could get all the temps together and average em out and you might learn something? Also, how many bothered to check the calibration of their temp gauge? If you are running Synthetic oil you have nothing to worry about. The Forum guy with the lowest oil temp is not going to get the prize, except for maybe the shortest engine life. Vegas

That's good to know:) One thing, Pat did test both our gauges together in boiling water and they read the same. So at least that's for sure... I do run synth. So that's good. PRobly just a wee bit lean or something, but I have a hard time believing that with 160s...

One other note on the install, be sure to take your time with the banjo bolt stack for the pressure gauge. Make sure all the little washers are lined right up and slowly snug it down, otherwise it will leak.

Is there another source for the pressure gauge? Anybody roll their own?

Is there a issue with the little washers? I don't understand when you say to make sure they are lined up correctly. Are they different sizes, or thickness?

leonard,

Just as long as you follow the instructions & tighten without over-tightening, you'll be fine (see pic below).



-BT

Leonard, the banjo bolt is narrower than the copper washers. So look at BT's pic and you can see that the copper washers are nice and centered around the banjo bolt. That's the key.

Also, be sure to clean the area well. I had a lot of random sand and junk in there, a little pebble can prevent a good seal.

Why aren't you guys using crush washers that are a snug fit to the banjo bolt with the same OD?

The threads on the banjo bolt are bigger around than the body of the bolt...

Ok, got it. Where else can anyone go and have even the questions asked for you! You guys are Great!!!

Cause they would probably leak. The copper washers are very soft and need to snug down the three spots where there is a great deal of oil pressure. They also must allow oil to low freely from the top to the bottom around the bolt as well as through the center of the bolt.

Phil, you are right. I think the kit comes with AL ones, and I hit up Autozone for a pack of copper ones which I used.

Aren't the aluminum washers softer than the copper washers? I would think the copper would hold their shape better, but the aluminum would seal better.

Hey Benny
Does the tightening of these copper washers to the banjo create the seal?
There's no additional sealant applied is there?

Am I assuming correctly that it's like a sump drain plug washer?

I thought copper was softer but I could be wrong...

Yes the copper does the sealing like a drain plug.

on a ride saturday i couldn't get my oil temp gauge above 150. it was 40 degrees out??

cat

Mine goes higher in colt air too, like I said, I think my bike just runs kinda hot. I gotta check out the jetting again. Actually experiment. I've mainly just done lots of homework and then adjusted everything at once. Need to go back to basics.