Tyre pressure gauge

all our work vehicles have gauges in the tyre repair kits of varying kinds and they all read different aqlthough not by as much as 10psi

I have 3 gauges, including a digital one & they are all different. I have never had 2 that are the same, they are about as inaccurate as Staun deflaters.
I set the deflaters the other day, then double checked them & they varied by about 7 psi after being set off a tyre at 28 psi. Or I should say ... .I think it was 28 psi!
I used the most recently purchased guage, which is Jamec dial type purchased last month from Repco.

G'day Don

I have had similar problems, I used to have a great gauge that came with my polyair bags, but it was lost in one of the moves. I have recently brought a digital smart gauge by topeak. I needed a good one as I use it for my motorbike, 4wd, car and the polyair bags. This one seem pretty good so far. I got it from a Honda motorbike shop $40.

I have the VDO gauge that came with my ARB compressor. I have heard that they can be calibrated however I have never looked into it myself.

These tyre gauges are a lucky dip at the best of times. I cant offer you guys a solution but i can give you all a tip. When you are in a service station checking tyre pressures, alwasy check to see if the gauge they supply is of a good quality brand name like Jamec Pem( should have the name either pressed in the metal or a sticker on it in view).
If you dont see a brand name then steer clear of them, more service stations these days are buying Taiwanese gauges as they are very cheap to buy. Main reason for them following this path is because people steal the good ones. In most cases they can buy 10 new cheapies for the price of a good quality one.

The problem is .. "water" in the compressor causes rust and gun build up insde the gauge thus causing it to stick and gives a false reading. I once witnesseda lady puming up her tyre with one of these gauges until the tyre exploded in her face. The problem was that the gauge kept reading 28psi where infact it was way above that.
So be warned guys. She was a mess and lucky to be alive, the steel belt really did her some damage.
What i usually do is when I go to a tyre shop, I alwasy compare my gauge with 3 or 4 of their professional gauges to give me an average of where mine is.
Hope i didnt bore you all
Cheers Angelo

I bought a gauge from Toyota which has a large easy to read dial and appears to be very accurate

I bought an Aunger dial type at Supercheap for $10. It agrees with all Service Station guages so I think it is reasonably accurate.

I've got one of those pen type thingies from Bob Janes and it is accurate with the digital one at the servo. Bit hard to read sometimes.

Michelin make a great gauge.. Any motorcycle shop will get one for you... $35....
ARB/VDO are dodgey unless calibrated...

The VDO gauge can indeed be calibrated.
Naturally you will need another gauge to compare it with.
Remove the chrome ring and the glass cover.
This will expose a small lever.
The lever allows the scale to move beneath the pointer.
Ours was 8psi high when new, but now is spot on.

Chers,
Trev

I bought the BushRanger 3 in 1 Gauge that allows you to deflate the tyres and check the pressure contantly. The fitting screws on to the valve and then you can push the next section of the fitting in to deflate slowly or give it a half turn and lock it in for hands free deflation. When you stop deflating the gauge reads immediately and has a nice big dial so you can see it accurately.

It beats pushing the valve in and then attaching a gauge for a reading and the letting more air out and then taking a reading etc. I can reduce all four tyres by 15psi in less than 2 mins per tyre.

Handy piece of kit in a carry bag that lives in the glove box. I also have one of the pencil type gauges as a check and it reads within 2 psi of the Bushranger dial type guage.

http://www.bushranger.com.au/one_gauge.html

Cheers
Muddy 'doe