Well, just call me a drunken sailor. I bought the gauge at an auto parts
store not known for low prices. The -3 hose I used is teflon lined. Now
I'm not sure where I saw a higher price on the Aeroquip hose, which is
an armored synthetic rubber AFAIK. In the Pegasus catalog under Gauge
Accessories, there is a comment regarding the typical nylon tubing kit
like the one blowing oil next to my pit: "These kits can be used to
install Stwart-Warner mechanical vacuum and oil pressure gauges. However,
for pressure gauges, we recommend size 3 or 4 stainless steel braided
teflon hose for maximum safety and reliability." -- Pegasus 98 catalog.
Paul Meis makes a good point about the fragility of &^%&$^%$ capillary
tubes. Why do you think I had to replace the gauge? The new ones do seem
to be much better protected than the original ones with the spiral wire.
The new ones are jacketed, looking somewhat like a control cable. I have
had no problems with the new SW gauge I put in at least 2 seasons ago.
I replaced the water temp gauge, and since I was in that bundle, I also
replaced the oil pressure line. The two were actually unrelated. The
old oil pressure line was Aluminum tubing with compression fittings. It
had been crushed down so far, I was getting very sluggish gauge readings.
With the -3 hose, gauge response is much better.
Brian Evans wrote:
>
> I've seen the SW gauges, but where I saw them they were very expensive.
> Since my car had Smith's originally, that's the look I'd like to get to, but
> not at any cost. Even brand new Smiths gauges have not been acceptably
> reliable or accurate over reasonably short periods of time. BTW, what's the
> difference between -3 SS braided brake line hose and Aeroquip gauge hose? I
> just go to the industrial supply house and order the hose - it's usually
> Aeroquip, because they are industrial suppliers, but not always. The
> counter guy showed me, in the Aeroquip catalog, how otherwise identical hose
> (the blue oil line hose) was almost twice as much if you bought it using the
> auto-parts catalog part number compared to when you specified the industrial
> equivalent part number. I also tend to use the bronze push on hose-ends for
> low pressure applications, rather than the anodized aluminium equivalents -
> cost is a fraction as much, and I think they look better, too.
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