Automotive, Commercial and Marine Instrument and Control System Specialists since 1971
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Howard Instruments Collection
Truck Gauges
We now have a complete set of truck gauges available in Cobra and HIWHITE styling.
Chronometric Dials.Porsche Metric Dial
We now have metric dials and odometer gears for most Porsche Speedo's up to the late 1980's.
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Tacho Upgrades
Changed your 60-70's car to electronic ignition?
We can help make your tacho work again.
our collection
People seem to collect something whether they set out to do so or not.
From the point of view of instrument restoration we at Howard Instruments benefit from having original samples as we are generally not able to refer to factory specifications.
So given that there is over 100 years of instrument history where do we start.
With the First Eddy Current Speedometer made by Otto Schulze from 1908 pictured above.
From a personal perspective Rodger has an interest in BMC Mini's,racing car's and tuning houses of the 60's.His racing Mini Marcos will include a fair representation of the instruments available to the boy racer in the 1960's.
Ian purchased his D3 Stoewer in 2012 which ties in nicely with the History of VDO.
Otto Schulze the inventor of the Eddy Current Speedometer in 1902 had instruments produced under the brand OSA (Otto Schulze Autometer) from 1923 the year of Ian's D3 Stoewer. OSA was a company established by Adolf Schindling in 1921 and renamed OTA from OSA in 1925.The company then became VDO in 1928 as the amalgamation of Dueta and OTA.
smiths edwardian
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This speedometer is the earliest Smiths Speedometer we have badged for Austin, it also lists Smiths Instruments first home at 9 STRAND LONDON.
smiths Edwardian
This Smiths Speedometer is approximately 100 years old and brand new.
the watford
North and Sons were for a short time a local competitor to Smiths with their Watford Govenor Speedometer.
bull nose morris
This speedometer has been in our collection since our time in Geelong and is new.
O.S France
O.S Speedometer France.As far as I can ascertain the two O.S. companies were not connected other than by the fact that the French O.S used the eddy current principle for their speedometer's. The French O.S specialised in clocks.
A-T
A T was a french company that applied a version of the eddy current principle to their speedometers. it was an extremely robust movement which was used by Smiths right up into the 1960's in their racing tachometers for bikes and car's.
deuta
This Deuta speedometer is from the 1920's prior to the amalgamation of Deuta and OTA in 1928 to become VDO
The same speedometer was used in the D10 Stoewer except that it was silver with a 100 mile per hour dial.
deuta
Deuta
OSA SPEEDOMETER
OSA Speedometer for Ian's D3 Stoewer.
OSA CLOCK
OSA Clock for Ian's D3 Stoewer.
corbin
One of the most popular early Motorcycle Speedometers in the United States.
XJ13 CHRONOMETRIC
This chronometric speedometer remained unidentified for many years and through a sequence of events I bought it and later found out that it was made to use in the Jaguar XJ13 in 1966.It has only done 452 miles and if I can reach a little over half scale in my marcos with it I will be pleased.
MINI MARCOS
The Speedwell Weston Tachometer was one of the first Electronic Tachometers available to the aftermarket.
It will take a central place in the Marcos dashboard.
speedwell speedo
Very similar to a Morris Minor speedo, the range was extended to 120mph. It is said that these speedometers were in the first 1071 Cooper S's
speedwell gauges
I like speedwell gauges and decided to use max hand versions with black bezels to minimize reflection.
heuer monte carlo
I have always wanted a pair of these and a friend of mine made it happen. They will be used in a number of cars.
Morehalda tripmaster
The Metal (Aluminium) Case Halda's came in two finishes flat black & crinkle black.
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halda Tripmaster
The Later Tripmaster's were made with a plastic case whilst the internals remained essentially the same.
Morehalda tripmeter
No its not a Tripmaster or Twinmaster but the earliest Halda Tripmeter most famously used in the early BMC Mini Works Cars behind a magniying glass.
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smiths trip of time
Smiths Trip of Time.
These clocks were used during the Second World War in Aircraft. After the War they were used in Rallying and sold by companies including Les Leston
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tripmaster
Tripmaster NOS. When you bought your Halda Trimaster this is what was included with it.
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halda twinmaster
We have used a twinmaster in our 997 Mini Cooper in events like Targa Tasmania.
Moreour collection
We added a near new Halda Twinmaster plastic case to our collection many years ago as a swap for a VDO trip computer.
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halda x & Z gears
A full set of calibration gears for a Halda Tripmaster or Twinmaster including the chrome holder for the X gears and the leather pouch to hold them.
nassco clock
This 'Nassco Clock' has just joined our collection.
It was assembled over the road from us in the late 1950's.
VDO Australia was the first VDO Plant outside of Germany.
It was established to provide instruments for VW in 1957.
The daughter of the founder of VDO competed in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne and stayed in the Olympic Village just down the road from us.
VDO began to supply instruments for the FC Holden in 1958.
This clock is a rare survivor as it was an accessory that replaced the original warning lights in the FC FB EK EH & EJ Holdens.
It has lived one suburb away from us and was delivered personally by its last owner.
rt charger dash
One of the Iconic Muscle cars of the 1970's We have restored a number of these dashes recently so over Christmas 2014 Rodger decided to restore one for our collection.
300SL SPEEDOMETER
I love the fact that the speedometer dial contained a warning that beyond 120mph the tyres may disintegrate!
MOREOUR COLLECTION
Large Tachometers such as this were a feature in racing cars up to the 1960's when cockpit sizes began to get increasingly smaller.
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VDO
VDO has been the 'name to know' for many years and we have been associated with the brand since our inception.
We carry over 1000 VDO items in stock and are the closest VDO outlet to the VDO warehouse in Melbourne.
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FW MURPHY
FW Murphy is a leader in Commercial Engine Monitoring Systems.
For more than 70 years their product range has included instruments to monitor critical functions. They have J1939/CAN instrumentation, compressor controls, custom panels auto start/stop controllers and more
MORESMITHS CLASSIC
Smiths style is timeless.
We have the best range of new Smiths Instruments in stock in Australia.
We restore many Smiths and Jaeger Instruments going back to Edwardian Vehicles.
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