POP tester guages

[riotwarrior]

K I have a awesome pop tester thanks to @icanfixall and now it is time to replace the guage.

I am considering a liquid dampened one for best results? The one on there work but lens is broken.

The one on there isnt liquid dampened but I am thinking it may be good.

Or a tattle tale one too.

Thought this be a good topic for open discussion.

Whats yer take folks...and thanks in advance

 

[bbjordan]

I would go with liquid damped. Don't know what the current pressure gauge goes to, but I would recommend a 5000 psi gauge. It puts 1800 pretty close to the centre of the gauge. And you have a little more room before you f'up the gauge. Don't ask me how I know. I had a 2500 psi gauge on my tester.

 

[riotwarrior]

Current one goes 5k

 

[homelessduck]

Definitely need a liquid filled one.

 

[mblaney]

This will be completely unhelpful but I borrow a Crystal Engineering XP2i gauge from work. Digital, peak hold... really sweet unit. Accuracy of this gauge is 0.1% of reading... so you can know your pop pressure within 2 psi . Problem is that one of these gauges will cost you $1400 Canadian. I posted about it here http://www.oilburners.net/forums/showthread.php?63111-Best-homemade-pop-tester-Ever

Your typical bourdon tube gauge is a "3-2-3", meaning that the middle half of the scale has an accuracy spec of 2% of full scale (first and last quarter scale is 3% of full scale). If you are using a 5,000 psi gauge you will have a hard time getting within 100 psi. I suggest getting a lower rating gauge and use it carefully.

I wouldn't normally recommend using a gauge near full capacity but if it is for your use... http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_357742_357742

So, either go cheap and buy a 2000 psi, 2-1/2" dial gauge (Princess Auto for RW) and just replace it if it blows up ($15), or get a 3000 psi with a larger dial. Either of these should get you +/- 50 psi.

Also, you shouldn't need a liquid filled. This is a nice to have but is really only needed for high vibration and pressure pulsing (like on the output of a gear pump). You can also attach a "snubber" to damp pressure pulsation. Usually liquid filled gauges are not serviceable (can't be adjusted).

I actually just finished building my own pop tester so now I only have to borrow the gauge and not the pump too. Was going to post about it after the weekend.

Sneak preview:

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[laserjock]

^^^ This is your gauge and metrology guru right here^^^

I work with this kind of stuff for a living all the time and he has taught me a thing or three. Yes liquid in a liquid filled gauge is really just to dampen pulses say from mechanical fuel pump or a gear driven or piston pump. Here you should get a nice smooth rise as you crank down on the tester. I would think you would have to have a nice smooth rise to get an accurate cracking pressure. Digital gauges with pmax readings are really nice... but also really pricy.

 

[mblaney]

Here is a 5K gauge that would work You won't find many of these around! 5000 psi mechanical gauge, 5 psi divisions . Big **** though.

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[OLDBULL8]

HF has the 5000# liquid filled gauges for $12.50. That's what I use. I set injectors at 1900#, I figure +/- % is close enough, as long as all injectors are set the same.

PM sent.

 

[riotwarrior]

3k is as low as I would go...the damn guage bounces crazy when popping and maybe its me but sure makes it difficult to read.

Maybe i am just to picky or need to learn better method to pop test

 

[mblaney]

3k is as low as I would go...the damn guage bounces crazy when popping and maybe its me but sure makes it difficult to read.

Maybe i am just to picky or need to learn better method to pop test

http://www.dfs-gauges-blog.com/inde...use-a-pressure-snubber-and-how-to-choose-one/

You can also brew your own... drill and tap your POS gauge to accept a machine screw or set screw. The threads leak enough to measure pressure but you won't get bouncing.

Also, bouncing might mean your lines are expanding. If that is the case, switch to using just fittings, steel lines, or smaller HP hose like used on a grease gun.

 

[icanfixall]

Al a gauge with an extra needle that tells you the max pressure reached is a nice thing to have but costly. When I was pop testing I saw the needle bounce too but its really not that important to get down to 25 lbs. Yes its OCD nice but not really needed. Not sure a liquid filled gauge will be any different than any other gauge but see what happens. Ebay has 2 pop testers available but they are like 400 to 500 dollars each. One has the tell tale gauge too...

 

[homelessduck]

My pop tester is a cheap China one off Ebay. I think I paid $275. It came with a liquid filled gauge and adapters for common injectors. I was very surprised at the quality when it arrived and it actually works very well.

 

[riotwarrior]

Princess auto has liquid filled 5k guqge...bout 17 bucks....