Gauge change-Ideas?

I'm running on just a tach now and have been for a month or so and I'm used to it. I've been looking at several options ranging from finding replacement cans to fit the round housings to running just an eectronic tach.
even thought about re-doing the whole deal, indicators and all.
Ijust wanted to see what opinions were out there.
............the only reason I have the tach is because I split the can and got into it, not a fan of that actually
sooo.. What would YOU do?

 

Drop a 550 Seca cluster on there, and replace the fuel gauge with a clock? The 550 Seca's cluster comes apart easily, allowing all sorts of interesting retrofit options. Some bracket mod might be necessary, I haven't measured (yet.)




Go "old school" and get a set of matching gauges from Mike's XS or off the 'web, and move the indicator lights to the top of the shell. I've been seriously considering this for my 650 Seca since the original cluster has a whole lot of non-functional ugly to it. My Norton-- Left to right: Green high-beam; red low oil pressure warning; amber common turn signal indicator. The little rubber boots are "sunshields" so they can be seen in bright daylight.

 

yeah man I ike that "old school" set up on the Norton! Thats me all day.
That 550 set up come registering 150?

 

That speedo face looks like it came from an XJ900RK Seca.

Dave Fox

 

Whatever style you go with, having seen your bike I would suggest white faces.

 

I like that, also reminds me Ive gotta get some current pics up.
White faces would be cool hel yeah. good Idea bro
Your fender and signals are on the way too

 

The speedo is a "transplant" from an XJ900; not just a face substitution, it's a 150mph speedo. NOS off eBay, $20. (It was mis-listed.)

 

I wish I could find a mis listing! I dont have to have a 150, a 120 would do.
so far white faces are a must have and Im diggin that Norton set up.
I'd rather not do another 80 one, I think Id end up breaking the needle again. Thats the first thing I broke, the needle was pinned against the stop alot and it being old it gave way, a few days later on its way back around to 0 it gave up and went to gauge heaven. I dont think I can make 150 anyway and I dont commony pull 120, though I believe I can, but I do more than 80 on I-10 just to keep from being ran over. the tach I re-did works fine but I just want a change and the indicators are a tad fugly. the bike has had a few changes since the last pic I posted but that cluster is the same, one of the few things I haven't changed, just doesn't fit the bike as I see it anymore.

 

The 550 will only do around 110; I just couldn't deal with the 80mph thing any more. (I left my other 550 stock.) I was actually trolling for a 120mph or 135mph unit when I stumbled across that one and couldn't pass it up.

But here's what's really cool: Look at where 60mph is on the speedo, "o-clock-wise" and look at where 5K is on the tach. Running down the road in top gear, the speedo and tach needles point at approximately the same position, like in most tachometer-equipped cars. (And, like the Norton.)

The Norton is of course, bone stock with one minor exception: I added the rubber booties to the outside indicator lamps; originally only the center one had the little boot. I guess "low oil pressure" was the only one they felt was imperative you be able to see.

The speedo and tach are in black forged alloy cans attached directly to the fork tube caps as it appears. Both are mechanical, with the speedo being driven off the rear (!) wheel by the longest damn cable you've ever seen.

 

I'm on the hunt, taking a break at the moment. Ive looked at maybe 500 gauges today on the net, trying to learn the secrets of mis listing locating.
I like the old school look. I spent some time "looking" at the bike, getting fab ideas and "visualizing" that Norton set up, thats when the idea crossed my mind about changing the headlight set up too. thinking....

Cable from the rear wheel? Holy s@#t batman!
That's a cool ass old Norton though, gotta be blast to ride

 

The secrets to mis-listings are just that; the "mis" part. YOU have to know what you're looking at, because the seller screwed up.

In the case of my speedo, it was listed as being for an XJ750R Seca; that was because somewhere over the years somebody had shoved it in a box with that part number.

Anybody with a 750 Seca looking for a new speedo would have immediately recognized it WASN'T for their "Atari" equipped bike, so no bidders. I also knew that it wasn't for a Seca 750.

However, I didn't care what bike it was for; it was a brand new speedo "guts" with a frame like those on my instruments; so I jumped on it. Turned out there were a couple of minor differences in the frame, so it took some slight re-engineering of the housing to mount it.

But the key to the whole thing was me knowing that what I was looking at was NOT what the seller thought it was; and the fact that most prospective BUYERS were likewise knowledgeable enough to not bid on it.

A good way to find compatible Yamaha gauges is by using the fiche and "trolling" models outside the dreaded "85mph era." On eBay, search on "XV" "XS" "FJ" "YX" etc., in addition to "XJ" to pick up additional Yamaha transplant prospects. Most "canned" instruments of the era are compatible; likewise most "cluster mounted" units. The input bearing angle on the "canned" instruments is slightly shallower than the "cluster" instruments; those seem to be nearly all the same with some minor variations in trip odo reset location and bracket details.

If the NOS speedo hadn't dropped into my lap, I was looking at instruments cut from an FJ600 dashboard (a little Dremel action would free them from their common faceplate) with 135mph speedo; or one of the big tourers had a 120mph unit in a cluster. I gave up researching when I found my 150mph unit. (I also have a matching electronic tach I haven't gotten around to engineering the mounts for yet.)

 

much knowledge master jedi, thank you. I've been doing that in a sense already then but minus the virago and xs... just entering "motorcycle" or "yamaha". kind of a head ache filtering the results but it is what it is. Your search method should yeild a better "net", I dont know why I didnt think of that
And now I'm soory to say I have a dumb question in 2 parts,
After considering the electric tachs........A. What actuates them? stator, coils?
B. does the "double spark" have any effect on that?