Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

This forum is for the Fordson New Major, including the Super Major and the Power Major.
Post Reply
case680rob
Not Quite Blue Yet
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2015 4:00 am

Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by case680rob »

Hello Fordson Fans!

There are quite a number of tachometers that were used over the years, changing with the variety of fitment needs. There are also a great number of aftermarket and reproduction units available, and a handful of companies that still repair and restore mechanical tachometers.

Tell us what you have! Tractor’s year if possible , at least a model would be nice.

I’ll start...
I have a ‘61 Super Major, AC Angle drive and an unmarked non-functional tachometer which I presume to be original. I also have a reproduction AC tachometer with a 0-2400 dial, but I’ll be returning it because it’s horribly inaccurate!

Billy26F5
True Blue
Posts: 1913
Joined: Fri Jun 26, 2020 12:01 am
Location: On Billy

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by Billy26F5 »

There are lots of kinds, looking at parts books there are two manufacturers, AC and Smiths. Then there is the first type (used 54-58), the second type (used 58-62), the third type (rotates in the opposite way, used 62-63) and the fourth type (used 63-64). Within these types there are speeds in mph and km/h, and special ones for certain countries, the last type had two versions to cover the two crown wheel ratios. From the introduction of the minimec, exhauster type pumps needed the previous arrangement (angle drive instead of the pump camshaft), this meant using a special clockwise tachometer for the NP Super Major, and the second type for the minimec Super Major. There are probably more variations than this, but these appear in various parts books.
Sandy
ImageImageImage

case680rob
Not Quite Blue Yet
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2015 4:00 am

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by case680rob »

That’s quite an array of different models. So far I have been able to find 4 different models, but they aren’t always advertised in the correct year range and sometimes no year is given at all! The application of the counterclockwise version is obvious, but how does one know for sure how to sort out the rest?

Billy26F5
True Blue
Posts: 1913
Joined: Fri Jun 26, 2020 12:01 am
Location: On Billy

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by Billy26F5 »

There are several anticlockwise tachometers, all use minimec's, and there are two basic types, the Super Major type, and the NP Super Major type, the difference being in the PTO band, two at 1200 and 1600 rpm for the Super Major, and one at 1500 rpm for the NP Super Major.
The earliest ones (54 to 58, clockwise) had only three gears instead of four.
I think some parts books give more info than others, you also need to see the correspondence with the actual parts to confirm many of these variations and find all the ones that aren't in parts books.
Sandy
ImageImageImage

case680rob
Not Quite Blue Yet
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2015 4:00 am

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by case680rob »

Were Smiths units used alongside AC units? Did they have their own drive like AC does?

Billy26F5
True Blue
Posts: 1913
Joined: Fri Jun 26, 2020 12:01 am
Location: On Billy

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by Billy26F5 »

Both companies made drives, If you look at the Farm Major thread (viewtopic.php?f=7&t=8365) there's a good pic of a Smiths drive.
Odd combinations were possible in the later period.
Sandy
ImageImageImage

case680rob
Not Quite Blue Yet
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2015 4:00 am

Re: Tachometer Tales: tell your story!

Post by case680rob »

Looks like that drive was missing a few pieces. I can see now why the cables are sold in different lengths between the Smith and AC units. And that thread had a nice close-up of the Smiths tachometer as well, I haven’t seen anything but pictures of reproduction for any of the various tachs used so far. Except for my AC model, which is just a housing and gears, no dial face or needle.

Post Reply