Photos by author.
It’s pretty much official around my house: I’m addicted to buying vintage gauges—stock and aftermarket—as long as they are cheap! You may have seen the dash clock I blogged about a few months ago. I didn’t even know what it was from, but for $5 I’d find out after the purchase. Thanks to you, it was identified in no time.
My most recent purchase is this vacuum gauge (aka Motor Minder, Motor Monitor, Economy Gauge). When it arrived last week, my son reminded me that the Buick doesn’t have enough dash space to fit all the gauges I have purchased. “That’s okay,” I replied, “because this one mounts on the column.”
That is of course, if it goes into the car at all. I may just keep it as a display item. It needs some help, and I have others in better condition for the Buick already. However, I do like the fact that the blue on the gauge face almost matches the new exterior color for the car.
As you can see in the photos the colors on the face are still vibrant, but dust has gotten under the lens, the chrome rivet heads are rusty and the orange indicator needle is faded. Also, the chrome surround has a ding and is pitted.
The gauge has a very heavy cast cup that is easily clocked to any position relative to the face by loosening the screw on the back. There’s also a chrome mount for the steering column. The face proclaims “MADE IN U.S.A.,” but I have yet to find a brand name anywhere. The outlet for the vacuum line is at the bottom instead of the rear of the cup as is common on many other vacuum gauges I’ve seen and owned.
Appearance-wise, it’s probably good to go for a rat rod, but for weekend driver or a sometime show car, it would need some refurbishing. For a purchase price under $17, I felt it was still worth checking out—and yes, it does work.
If anyone recognizes this gauge what company manufactured it and when, I’d be curious to know. I’m guessing it’s from the late 1960s or early 1970s given its face fonts and the fact that everything is metal instead of plastic.
If you are into collecting vintage automotive gauges, tell us about some of your finds.
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