Stewart Warner Tach

[STEFS]

I have a SW tach 8000 RPM With a part #970M L4 and SW 257 Black Embossed . Been looking on line and have called SW and they have NO idea what year, etc what it is !!!!! Any help on this ??? thanks Joe

[bbbentley]

Where I learned a lot about S.W. go to linked site. info is from that site


http://www.roadsters.com/sw/#dates
Classic Stewart Warner gauges Last updated on September 28, 2013

1936 Police Special speedometer On this page:

Introduction
The early days
Sizes of gauges
Industrial and military gauges
Wings gauges
Big logo gauges
Small logo gauges
Custom series gauges
Stewart Warner date codes
Stewart Warner panels

Some related pages on Roadsters.com:

1932 Ford coupe project
1932 Ford roadster project
Classic hot rod parts for sale
Classic racing wheels
Interior parts and gauges
Pioneers of hot rodding
Speed equipment directory



Introduction



Until a few years ago, gauges were something that I had always pretty much taken for granted. Having recently spent four years searching for the narrow Halibrand magnesium wheels for the front of my 1932 Ford roadster project, and not needing another expensive and time-consuming automotive obsession, this was an area of hot rod history that I had deliberately avoided.

After tracking down some very rare old hot rod and race car parts for the roadster, it became clear that in order to stay with the theme of the car, its list of goodies would have to include a set of classic Stewart Warner gauges. Anything less just wouldn't be right.

Industrial oil pressure gauge In September of 2002, I located a Stewart Warner 150-psi oil pressure guage identical to the one shown here. It was made back in 1959, and was still in a sealed bag in its original box. With its crescent moon pointer, curved glass lens, and smooth, brass bezel, this was something that suited the roadster.

It was at that time that I started searching for other Stewart Warner gauges in order to come up with a complete set of them. Thanks to the help of Mike Abbott, Doug Clem, Bob Elston, Ed Norton, Tony St. Clair, and eBay, the set is now complete and many of my questions have been answered.

This Web page is one of the results of my research. Like every page on the site, it grows as I continue to get closer to actually knowing what I'm talking about.



The early days



Stewart speedometer The Stewart Warner company's roots date back to 1905. The Stewart company's initial offering was an inexpensive magnetic speedometer that outsold those of their main competitor, Warner.

John Stewart's speedometers were first used on original Model T Fords. Shown on the right is a Stewart speedometer from an early-1900s Model T.

Following a legal and marketing battle, the Stewart and Warner companies merged. The Stewart Warner company was founded in 1912, when John Stewart and Edgar Bassick started making vehicle instruments and horns.

In 1926 the company began supplying what would become hundreds of thousands of gauges to hundreds of manufacturers of cars, trucks, motorcycles, buses, and boats, as well as to builders of a wide variety of material handling equipment and machinery.

While best-known for their gauges, Stewart Warner's product line also included air washers, bumpers, grease guns, horns, industrial measuring tools, paint spray guns, home movie cameras and projectors, radios, record players, refridgerators, search lights, sirens, television sets, vacuum tanks, and the popular South Wind automotive heaters.

Stewart Warner tachometer This 1932 Auburn tachometer features a curved glass lens as well as Stewart Warner's distinctive crescent moon pointer.

Unlike most of the other gauges shown on this page, this Auburn tach is commonly known as a rear-mount, meaning that it mounts to the rear of the instrument panel instead of sliding through the front of it.

Gauges of this style were also produced in marine versions, which were commonly used by Chris Craft and many of their competitors. The marine tachometers usually had graduations that increased in a counter-clockwise direction rather than clockwise.

By the 1940s, due to their diverse product line and all-around quality, Stewart Warner gauges became by far most popular choice for hot rodders.



Sizes of S-W gauges



NOS 1946 Ford speedometer Most Stewart Warner gauges were manufactured in five basic sizes.

The smallest gauges have bezels that measure 2 1/4". The earliest versions of these fit in a 2" hole, which for some reason was later enlarged to 2 1/16".

The second-smallest size gauges have bezels that measure 2 5/8", and mount in a 2 7/16" hole.

Most Stewart Warner speedometers and tachometers have bezels that measure 3 13/16" and mount in a 3 3/8" hole.

Many Stewart Warner speedometers and tachometers that were made for Harley-Davidson motorcycles have bezels that measure 4 3/4" in diameter.

Some Stewart Warner speedometers that were made for early Harley-Davidson and Indian motorcycles as well as for police cars have bezels that measure 5 1/4".


Industrial and miltary gauges



Stewart Warner gauges From 1946 through 1960, Stewart Warner produced thousands of 2 1/4" and 2 5/8" gauges that were used by the United States military as well as in a wide variety of industrial applicatiions.

These military-style gauges show the distinctive smooth bezel and the Art Deco crescent moon pointer that is unique to this series of gauges. The brass bezels on the industrial gauges were chrome-plated, while the military versions were painted dark green. These smooth bezels are almost impossible to remove without damaging them, but the paint can easily be removed so the brass can be polished.

The distinctive Stewart Warner trademark crescent moon pointers inspired dozens of instrument and clock manufacturers to come up with their own versions, but Stewart Warner's copyright continues to prevent anyone from duplicating their design. This pointer was only used in the industrial gauges, and very rarely, on some of their later versions.

The 2 5/8" and larger sizes of industrial gauges also featured curved glass lenses which minimize glare, making them easier to read.

Many of us who build traditional hot rods consider these old gauges to be the ultimate. In a 1940s-style hot rod or race car, nothing else seems appropriate.

As with many neat old parts, the demand for these gauges far exceeds the supply. The fuel gauges, which are among the hardest to find, have changed hands for more than $400.

Another series of similar gauges was made with 2 1/4" bezels.

Unlike the 2 5/8" gauges in this style, the smaller gauges had flat glass lenses.

Both sizes of the industrial gauges have no name on the face, and have the Stewart Warner name stamped into the back of the case.


Wings gauges



Wings set Stewart Warner "wings" gauges were made from 1948 through 1954. The original wings gauges are as highly sought-after by hot rodders as the industrial series.

The wings set in the early Stewart Warner panel shown above resides in Bob Elston's 1932 Ford five-window coupe.

Although they lack some of the character that only gauges with crescent moon pointers can have, the curved glass lenses remained. Like the industrial gauges, the wings gauges were made in many types, including air pressure, amps, fuel, fuel pressure, oil pressure, oil temperature, vacuum, volts, and water temperature.



Big logo gauges



Big block oil pressure Stewart Warner "big logo" or "big block" gauges get their name from having their logo inside a larger block than the later gauges. They were made from 1954 through 1957. The lenses were curved in the big blocks that were produced in 1955 and 1956, and then flat in 1957. The '54-'55 gauges are known as "transition" gauges, and are the more sought-after.

As seen in the picture, big block gauges were made with both small and large lettering.



Small logo gauges



Small block gauges Introduced in the 1960s, this series is by far the most common style of the classic Stewart Warner gauges. Due to their small logo, they are commonly called small logo or small block gauges.

As is the case with most of the earlier gauges, most of the gauges in this series were made in 2 1/4", with the 2 5/8" being roughly ten-percent as common.
Small block clock Stewart Warner didn't make very many clocks.

This one is NOS, from the 1970s.

It has a white plastic body and a 2 1/4-inch gauge bezel.


Custom series gauges



Custom series In 1965, Stewart Warner produced the Custom series of gauges, which feature a green ring around the face and a brushed aluminum center.

These are often called "green line" gauges.

Custom series gauges were used in some Yenko Camaros and Novas.

The Custom gauges were made in both 2 1/4" and 2 5/8" sizes.


Stewart Warner date codes



Year of Manufacture

A - 1933
B - 1934
C - 1935
D - 1936
E - 1937
F - 1938
G - 1939
H - 1940
J - 1941
K - 1942
L - 1943
M - 1944
N - 1945
P - 1946
Q - 1947
R - 1948
S - 1949
T - 1950
U - 1951
V - 1952
W - 1953
X - 1954
Y - 1955
Z - 1956
A - 1957
B - 1958
C - 1959
D - 1960
E - 1961
F - 1962
G - 1963
H - 1964
J - 1965
K - 1966
L - 1967
M - 1968
N - 1969
P - 1970
Q - 1971
R - 1972
S - 1973
T - 1974
U - 1975
V - 1976
W - 1977
X - 1978
Y - 1979
Z - 1980



Month of Manufacture

1 - January
2 - February
3 - March
4 - April
5 - May
6 - June
7 - July
8 - August
9 - September
10 - October
11 - November
12 - December

[bbbentley]

April 67 according to the data and the L4 you provide