SomeDude2k

yeah, so i got my nordskog digital boost gauge and sender today from fedex. i decided to go electric mostly for looks, and because i had a few older electric gauges from my last car, but when i got the box today, and i opened it, i felt around in the styrofoam S's to find that the box inside with the sender in it was ripped and already open, and the sender was just sitting in there, no instructions or anything. so i have been searching and just messing around with the sender and gauge to try to figure out what do do with it, with no luck. there are all kinds of threads about how to install fuel pressure senders and temp senders, but none that i could find about boost senders.

so, if anyone could help me out a little bit with where the hell i am supposed to put this thing, or give me a link to a how-to or something, that would be great.

thanks,

-John

ludeowner

You should try e-mailing Nordskog tech support to see how you are supposed to install the gauge. Or maybe if you described the gauge layout and all the small parts, we can help you figure it out.

EDIT: also...it's probably to late to say this. But you really should have gotten a boost gauge for function first and looks second. A boost gauge with a digital readout is gonna be harder to read then one with a needle sweep. I would think that checking your boost pattern and watching for spikes would be a little harder with a digital gauge.

SomeDude2k

well, there are only 2 parts, the sender, and the gauge itself, which has 4 wires coming from it, red for 12v, black for ground, purple for dimming, and orange which attaches to the sender. thats it, no other small parts or instructions or anything

ludeowner

Ok just looked at the sender on Nordskogs website and I think I know how your stuff may be set up.

#1 You will need to get a barbed NPT fitting that will screw into the threaded part of the sender which reads boost. On the barbed side of the fitting you will have to attach the appropriate length and diameter of vacuum tube. A vacuum hose with an ID of 5/16" *should work fine...and the length of hose you need will depend on where you mount the sender (can leave it flopping around you know. IMO the closer you mount the sender to the UIM the better since this is where you tap your vacuum/boost source.

#2 You probably have 4 wires on the back of the gauge itself: 12V POWER, SENDER, GROUND, and DIMMER.

If so, then wiring it up should be pretty easy:

12V power = in the fuse box next to the clutch pedal you have several options. You can fuse tap it to one of the fuses or into the right side ignition slot (right above the fuse box)

SENDER = wire goes to the sender. when you attach this wire onto the sender, you may have to sandwhich it between some rubber, plastic or fiberboard washers to provide some resistance.

GROUND = main gauge ground

DIMMER = fuse tap this to a dimmer switch that operates when the lights are on. (like the headlights or ashtray). Or if you want maximum illumination ground the DIMMER wire.

ludeowner

cool, it looks like I guessed it right. The boost gauge is similar to my temp gauge which is also by Nordskog.

Read my above post and use the following pics for reference. About the sender though, you will have to find somewhere to mount it so it doesn't jiggle around in the engine bay. You can mount it close to the UIM and run a short vacuum line and long sender wire. Or You can mount it in the crew cab and run a long vacuum line and short sender wire. I think that running a long vacuum line might be bad though, since your boost reading may be slower due to the pressure having to travel further to the sender.

Also for the sender it self, replace that one fiber board washer with 2 rubber washers. Put one rubber washer on the smaller sender screw and put your sender wire on next, followed by another rubber washer, then you put on the locking washer and retaining nut.

Here are some pics to help you with the 12V power source, main gauge ground, and dimmer switch ground. IMO you should ground out the dimmer so that the gauge is bright, even at night.

12V power source: I fuse tapped it into the ignition slot



Temp Sender: identical to your boost sender, except it reads water temp. note: rubber washers above and below wiring.



Main gauge ground: passenger side of UIM, towards the rear.



Dimmer wire: I grounded this wire right here under the shifter console. I had the shifter console up anyways for my boost gauge, so I used this location for the temp gauge too.

SomeDude2k

so i went out and got some vacuum hose, and tried hooking everything up, but i cant get a boost reading. but i did notice that when i was moving the sender around, it would jump up and down from 16 to 0 and back whenever i touch anything with it. also, in order to get a boost reading, does it have to be in gear, or can it be in neutral.

ludeowner

You may have to run an additional grounding wire from the sender screw to the engine. The sender probe for my temp gauge is grounded to the thermohousing...so maybe the boost sender also needs to be grounded?

It sounds like when you were fiddling with it you grounded it and it gave you a good reading. You said that it displayed the number 16. Was this while the engine was running? if so, normal vacuum reading at idle is between 16-20 in HG.

You can build boost in neutral, but you wont build full boost (10 PSI). If you rev it to 5-6K you should see your reading go from 16-20 IN HG up to maybe 1-5 PSI. Try rigging the gauge up and do a quick test drive to see if it shows a boost pattern or 10-8-10.

SomeDude2k

still having a problem, i know it has something to do with the grounding, kjust cant figure out what. the 16 is when the car is off, it is just doing that cause the gauge only reads 0-16 psi. whenever i try to grouund it, it jumps to 16, sits there for about a second, then back to 0, and if i give it a little rev or anything, nothing happens at all. im not sure which part of the sender to try to ground, or where to ground it to. this is becoming much more of a PITA than i thought it would be.

ludeowner

You should be able to run a grounding wire to the small screw and attach it to the engine. If all else fails e-mail Nordskog tech support and ask for help. I e-mailed them and got a reply in less than 24 hours.

What did you use as a boost/vacuum source for the sender? did you use one of the nipples on the UIM?

EDIT: also try doing some road tests with the sender grounded and then do some more without the sender being grounded. Also, did you just ghetto rig the wiring? or did you use butt connectors and ring connectors?

SomeDude2k

yeah, i used the nipple on the UIM for the vacuum source, and i used a ring connector to attach the wire from the gauge to the sender, i also used one when i tried to ground the sender. i did a road test grounded and not grounded, when not grounded, it reads 0 all the time, when grounded, it says 16 when i first start the car, stays there for a second, then back to 0, and if i give it a lot of boost, then when i let off it goes to 16 then back to 0. maybe i just have a dysfunctional sender.

EDIT: i just sent an e-mail to nordskog, but i probably wont get a response til monday, but hopefully will get one tomorrow

ZeroBanger

Did you get your problem fixed? I bought the gauge and installed it the otherday, works great.