Will this really work on temp gauge?

Lawson Cox

Lawson Cox

Well-known member
My temperature gauge, 35 Ford, reads right at the hot line after running for a while, however, the water temp shows at about 170 degrees when checking it using a cooking thermometer. It sits at about mid way when it is cold. A couple of folks mentioned recently in another post that you could put the temp gauge in the freezer for a few moments and it would run the fluid down to the bottom, and correct the gauge reading. Does this really work, or is it an old wives tale? I have also heard that you could spin it around and around your head for a few moments and the fluid would settle down to the bottom. I am not about to pull my sending unit out, but I thought I might take it loose from the engine and hold a couple pieces of dry ice on it for a few moments and see if that would help. Any truths to these two rumored "fixs"? Inquiring minds want to know. (Sure wish this site had a spell check feature. lol)
 
Don't know about the temp gauge but we used to get taylor thermometers with air in the tube seperating the red dye and with them came instructions to freeze the bulb with ice and salt and the dye would all return to the bulb removing the air from the tube and returning them to normal when brought to room temp. Zeke
 
Lawson if you remove the bulb from the block, you stand a a chance of breaking the seal on the tube right at the joint. It's fragle and breaks easly. Ask me why I know. It's then an expensive fix from Williamson. I had the one on my 35 rebuilt by them and it still don't work correctly. They did the one on my 39 and that works well. Go figure? Frank pkny PS frezing will sometimes work the dry ice sounds like a workable idea.
 
FRANK PKNY said:
Lawson if you remove the bulb from the block, you stand a a chance of breaking the seal on the tube right at the joint. It's fragle and breaks easly. Ask me why I know. It's then an expensive fix from Williamson. I had the one on my 35 rebuilt by them and it still don't work correctly. They did the one on my 39 and that works well. Go figure? Frank pkny PS frezing will sometimes work the dry ice sounds like a workable idea.
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I think I will get me a couple of chunks of dry ice and place it on the adaptor nut that goes into the block, thereby not disturbing the capillary tube. It has only been in there for a few months, NOS gauge, so I don't see a problem if I wish to remove it. I just tried it with regular ice and the fluid dropped down to blow the cold line so it should work. It came back up to where it was so seems like it might work if I left it on a little longer. I will try to run it up to running temp to see if that did any good before I try anything else
 
Steel 35 said:
Lawson: I can't help you with A patchy as I seek answers from you; You may be interested in this it works for me. http://www.iespell.com/ down load it and you have spell check on this type form. :cool:
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I have tried to download iespell several times to no avail, from the link that pops up in the thread to going to their website directly. Maybe I am just too computer illiterate to make it work. lol
 
The centrifugal force thing works it did for my 37 gauge that was NOS but storage had the red fluid separated. Remember how the doctor would always shake the mercury filled thermometer down before inserting in mouth,armpit or elsewhere? I have an old article cut out from an Old Cars Weekly where this was somewhat answered by an even older Moto-Meter instructions that came with their gauges/radiator caps when new to exert outside force to close up separated fluid from shipping horizontal position. They suggested throwing the meter downward like you would bouncing a ball to the ground,ofcourse you do not want to let go. Little harder to do with the gauge on one end and the temp bulb on another but I tied a piece of twine securely on gauge end I think with indicator plate slipped of,some good whirling and red was back in place and never separated againg once installed or at least not laying flat and coiled up like it was for 60-70 years. Worked for me,be carefull and do it outside.
 
My fluid is not separated and has no discernable bubbles. It is on the lower mark when cold and on the upper mark when "at running temperature". Go figure.
 
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