Which tire pressure guage?
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My Longacre digital gauge has proven quite accurate and reliable (Longacre Digital Tire Pressure Gauges 53006).
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548 Posts
I second Treemagnet. I have this gauge as well, it works great and has been very accurate.
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Agree with all of the above -- I use a Longacre for my racing go-kart (and CGTS) and try to come off track within a 1/10th of a pound all around. Did I mention that I am a black belt anal retentive?
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I have a Longacre and I recently picked up a Steelman because the steelman can quick connect to my compressor for quick and easy top off’s while at home. Www.steelmantools.com
Thanks for the great info. I’ve been wondering what to get for an accurate gauge. I LOVE that your link above opens at Summit Racing! I’ve been driving past the Summit Racing building on my way to visit my in-laws the past 20 years, but never had a reason to stop in. I love what they do, and the idea of a company near Akron, Ohio, being such a great supporter of the motor enthusiast world. It also reminds me of when I was very young, traveling through Akron on family trips to visit my Grandparents, and smelling the tire manufactures. We could always tell when we were getting near Akron, due to the smell. I can’t say it was a pleasant aroma, but it wasn’t terrible either. If I’d known then how much I’d enjoy using the product, riding motorcycles, driving cars, I might have actually enjoyed it! And of course, it was the smell of money!! I’ll be ordering my new Longacre analog gauge from Summit today.
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Fits in the center console so I have it on visits to the service station. Get gas and get air.
Edit: not sure why the link isn't working but it's available at Pepboys. The bleeder valve is invaluable for getting the pressure spot on. Just overfill a little and then bleed it down to pressure.
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Edit: not sure why the link isn't working but it's available at Pepboys. The bleeder valve is invaluable for getting the pressure spot on. Just overfill a little and then bleed it down to pressure.
I use a large Longacre analog gauge similar to this link, but mine is all black. I used digital gauges be fore this but it would run out of batteries at the worst time so I switched to analog. This gauge is over kill for street use, but since I have it for my race cars I use it for my street cars also.
www.longacreracing.com
Longacre Pro Precision Tire Pressure Gauge 52000
<p><strong>Tire Pressure Gauge</strong> - Reads in 1/2 lb increments, includes both angle and ball chucks and dual bleed buttons for faster setting.</p> <...
www.longacreracing.com
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I've got that large Longacre, but I think mine reads a pound high.
I've got a 28 year old Moroso that I believe to be perfect. It doesn't hold the reading when removed.
I've got a 28 year old Moroso that I believe to be perfect. It doesn't hold the reading when removed.
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How do you know that they are accurate?
Before you discount this question, it's a serious question. I have 3 different quality gauges and they each read slightly different than the next. Which one's correct? No clue. What if they all read the same. Does that mean they are all correct? No. They could all be consistently inaccurate.
I have tried to find how to calibrate an air gauge but have not found anything of value or substantial. Without a true reference gauge I don't think there is any way to really know if a gauge is accurate. Hence my question. Is there something I'm missing?
BTW, I've just accepted that there is a slight difference between them all and then I don't lose sleep over it!😁
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No kidding.
My statement about the Moroso's accuracy was just based on thousands of readings over 30 years, and several gages, and several vehicles, and comparisons to vehicle TPMS readings. Without an external standard for verification, and then ideally calibration (the Moroso can be calibrated - but where's my non-zero standard?), where all just swimming in a soup of readings within a pound or two of one another.
One would hope that overall the industry gives us accuracy, but if we want to be able to distinguish 32 lb from 33 lb, they've hardly given us the precision we need. But, overall, the market does not demand that precision.
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Yes, I think that pretty much sums it up. We sort of need to accept that they give us a quality product. It bothers me that I have found no good way to confirm though. I'll keep looking!😊
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I had the same question when mine arrived last year, just before a local PCA autocross. Apparently, Longacre gauges are fairly ubiquitous (both digital and analog), as at least 7 participants had one or the other. So, I embarked on a short mission to compare readings and found no more than 0.6 PSI variance amongst the 3 digitals and 1.0 variance (visual angle related?) amongst the 4 analogs.
Of course, we had no way of knowing whether all our gauges were reading several PSI's higher or lower than the actual PSI. Thus, I cannot state with any degree of certainty that our gauges were accurate. Regardless, relative to each other, we were all effectively measuring pressure in the same universe from a very similar point of reference, which was sufficient to satisfy my concerns. The bottom line is if I only use my gauge as the frame of reference (occasionally comparing it with others for relative accuracy) I won't lose any sleep either.
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A little research I found that gauges can be and are tested and certified to ANSI standards in NIST labs. Now obviously they're not all tested individually, but manufacturers submit their gauge for testing and certification. These will then be in a production run to make tire pressure gauges they offer. Just look for one that advertises the certification in their product literature.
As for the accuracy, it seems +- 1.5% error is within an acceptable range according to ANSI standards. So a gauge for our purposes should be within +-.5psi. There are also a few YT videos on how to calibrate a gauge. It seems that even the most rudimentary gauge can be calibrated.
As for the accuracy, it seems +- 1.5% error is within an acceptable range according to ANSI standards. So a gauge for our purposes should be within +-.5psi. There are also a few YT videos on how to calibrate a gauge. It seems that even the most rudimentary gauge can be calibrated.
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When I cleaned and renewed my very elderly gauge I went to some tyre fitters and asked them to check it's accuracy. They were all within a pound of the same reading, except for one place that told me it was broken and wanted to sell me a new one. (I'll never go back there for anything!)
I don't worry if it's a pound or so off absolute accuracy—it's better than the service station gauges, and more consistent than the in-tyre monitoring. Driving with one side of the car in the sun can raise the pressures on that side 1.5 pounds anyway.
I don't worry if it's a pound or so off absolute accuracy—it's better than the service station gauges, and more consistent than the in-tyre monitoring. Driving with one side of the car in the sun can raise the pressures on that side 1.5 pounds anyway.
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I'll need to look again. It was a couple years ago that I last went through this.
Thanks!
Longacre are popular: decent quality and pretty easily available. I use an Intercomp, though, because it is more accurate (0.1%) and you can send it to Intercomp for recalibration/certification any time you want (usually during the off-season).
Probably more important than accuracy is repeatability, though, and almost any quality gauge should be pretty good there, with a slight edge for the digital ones.
Probably more important than accuracy is repeatability, though, and almost any quality gauge should be pretty good there, with a slight edge for the digital ones.
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