Steering Column Tach Mounting

Hey Guys:

Just curious to hear about and interested to see what you may have done with your steering column tach mount method. I'd like to see something a little nicer than a hose clamp although I know that method was used alot. Certainly, even if a hose was used, some type of a fabric strap could be used to cover it up. Stainless steel exhaust pipe strap?. Others?

Thanks,

- EM

 

I have never used anything but a hose clamp. I guess you could buy or build some of those high end exhaust clamps like they use on street rods.

I still always have a larg hose clamp around for when I need to colum mount a tach. Old habits die hard I guess.

Maybe a black wire tie would work as well.

 

Yep, I thought about the belt style wire wrap as well. The hose clamp is always on the running!

 

always used a hose clamp--made a piece of black naughahyde about 1" wide with a channel/string on one edge. Install clamp and tach with piece under it then fold back over the clamp and tie underneath-looks presentable-done it a few times--mainly on 55 Chevys.

 

A little trick I learned is to put a wrap of electrical tape around the colum first, thay way when you remove the tach to sell the car the colum is not all mared from the clamp.

 

i had one mounted where the 3spd shifter was. Just build a small bracket with a 90 degree bend in it & it will locate the tach at about 2 o'clock on the column.Only thing is you need a three spd or auto shift column that is not being used

 

Hose clamp.....

 

I wrapped a hose clamp in electrical tape and it worked well. and looked good too!

 

I like "gaffing" tape over my hose clamps!

 

Yep, I have one of those! Going from 3 on the tree to a 5-speed.

i had one mounted where the 3spd shifter was. Just build a small bracket with a 90 degree bend in it & it will locate the tach at about 2 o'clock on the column.Only thing is you need a three spd or auto shift column that is not being used

 

movie lighting technician?

 

Electrical tape under the hose clamp, like Beano said. Traditional as it gets! Less it's a strip only deal, then one of those big ole honkin' cable drive 'Morosee' units up on the dash!

 

I guess if a guy wanted to get creative he could tig the curved part of the tach mount to the column, but I just did what Benno described, tape first for some grip, then the hose clamp. That is probably the most traditional way of doing it.

Don

 

Nope Gaffer.

pretty hard to come by that sort of thing back here, maybe friction tape or high voltage tape. I keep a roll of high voltage tape for wrapping burn plug wires.

 

A couple of wraps of black electrical tape and a hose clamp always worked like a champ.

 

I cut some material used for pool or fountain lining and wrap the hose clamp around it and the column. No sticky tape mess or scratches when you take it off.

 

I have drilled holes into the column and used nutserts (works with floor shifters), with short pan head macine screws. Typically the column shaft is around 3/4" in diameter, plenty of leftover space..........Looks better than a hose clamp.

 

I sawed this out of a piece of 1/2" aluminum. Holesawed for the tach & boost gauge. Sunk gauge cups and retained with setscrews.. Split the column mount end and drilled/countersunk a pinch bolt

 

The traditional way to mount a tach is to cut a piece of inner tube to protect the columns paint and to secure the tach with a large hose clamp. Thats the way my cars are done.

 

I hold the tach in the hand I am steering with. No need to take my eyes off of the road. When just cursing there is no need for a tach and I just lay it in a rag on the dash.

 

From the photo it seems to match your column drop. I like it.

 

Tach? Speedometer? Who needs 'em?

 

I have a plastic shroud around the turn signals.
I modified a kitchen door knob and mounted it to the shroud.

 

I guess I'm the only one that uses an old leather belt under the clamp. I did that on my first 55 in '80 and used that same belt to make my current gripper on the column (it's a chevy bow tie belt)

 

Stainless steel hose clamp is not only traditional but it's the only way it should be mounted!

Anything less (or more) is just hoydy-toydy and right up there with billet aluminum in my book.

 

I agree if you are building a period type car don't get too fancy. Neat is one thing, fancy is another.

 

Mine's dash mounted....

 

Slide a piece of heat shrink wire cover over it and shrink away. Multipul colors to match any column or interior.

 

I agree. Drill and tap if you can.

 

We are talking about actually mounting a tach, not something someone not talented enough to figure it out would do.

I can see that you would seldom need a tach while cursing. As you would likely do every time your tach fell off the dash and whacked you on the knee or somewhere else.

Darned rat rodders will never learn