Stack displays and Caterham

[GarageQueen]

Hi all,

I have been considering asking Caterham to install a stack display and savage buttons in place of the standard round dials on a recent order.

Could anyone advise on the advantages / disadvantages of this? I really like the fact that the stack display would put the rev counter in the middle of the display and clean up the dash area and really liked the look on the R500, but have no experience of using it like that.



cheers

[sfaulds]

It's no longer an option on road cars - those buttons and the underlying circuitry were st, and Stack's are increasingly expensive and increasingly outdated.

[anonymous-user]

sfaulds said:

It's no longer an option on road cars - those buttons and the underlying circuitry were st, and Stack's are increasingly expensive and increasingly outdated.

What was wrong with those buttons and circuitry?

[GarageQueen]

they must be similar to these:

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/performance/switches...

[anonymous-user]

GarageQueen said:

they must be similar to these:

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/performance/switches...

.

They look similar but it's not them. They're a Swiss made (EAO 61 series) high quality modular, momentary switch. Very reliable and not too expensive. That's why I asked what's supposed to be wrong with them.

Theyre readily available from Farnell or RS.

I know the main control board can go wrong but even they're OK once mounted properly, in my experience.

Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 7th April 21:29

[sfaulds]

REALIST123 said:

They look similar but it's not them. They're a Swiss made (EAO 61 series) high quality modular, momentary switch. Very reliable and not too expensive. That's why I asked what's supposed to be wrong with them.

Theyre readily available from Farnell or RS.

I know the main control board can go wrong but even they're OK once mounted properly, in my experience.

The faces fall off them, the lights fail on them, the control boards do fail with no warning and they're an absolute pig to diagnose. Just my experience though.

[anonymous-user]

sfaulds said:

REALIST123 said:

They look similar but it's not them. They're a Swiss made (EAO 61 series) high quality modular, momentary switch. Very reliable and not too expensive. That's why I asked what's supposed to be wrong with them.

Theyre readily available from Farnell or RS.

I know the main control board can go wrong but even they're OK once mounted properly, in my experience.

The faces fall off them, the lights fail on them, the control boards do fail with no warning and they're an absolute pig to diagnose. Just my experience though.

That's interesting. The board issue is, I think, usually because CC screwed it directly to the bulkhead and they're affected by vibration and road shock. I remounted mine on anti vibration mounts which seems to protect it but also makes it very easy to change, if needed.

As for the switches, though I've not had any fail as you indicate, i was already familiar with this type of switch, commonly used in other applications. The push button mechanism is so simple it's quite foolproof IMO, and the switch modules are extremely reliable and easily changed with the EAO toolkit. (£13!)
I do find the fact that all the switches are alike a little confusing, especially in the main bank, but the self cancelling indicators are handy.

Anyway, it's probably all academic, I doubt CC would want to revert to them for the odd car now that they've reverted to the cheaper option.

[GarageQueen]

REALIST123 said:

Anyway, it's probably all academic, I doubt CC would want to revert to them for the odd car now that they've reverted to the cheaper option.

I fear this also, but looking at some previous threads there was a right stink kicked up when they decided to ditch the stack display on the 620R release.

I'd be very interested to see the next model they go back to the stack unit with.

Edited by GarageQueen on Saturday 8th April 10:57

[sfaulds]

GarageQueen said:

I'd be very interested to see the next model they go back to the stack unit with.

Edited by GarageQueen on Saturday 8th April 10:57

I'll be astonished if they ever go back to a Stack.

[coppice]

Tempting fate but I never knew the Stack display in my R400 was both unreliable and a bit ste. Oddly enough , in ten years use it has behaved perfectly apart from a bit of condensation. Its principal attraction is that enables me more easily to imagine I am driving a sports prototype down the Mulsanne - instead of ambling down to Easingwold. Still not sure what sure half the buttons do but I do like scrolling across various readings to confirm that all is well. and I love the emphasis on the tacho. .

[GarageQueen]

coppice said:

Tempting fate but I never knew the Stack display in my R400 was both unreliable and a bit ste. Oddly enough , in ten years use it has behaved perfectly apart from a bit of condensation. Its principal attraction is that enables me more easily to imagine I am driving a sports prototype down the Mulsanne - instead of ambling down to Easingwold. Still not sure what sure half the buttons do but I do like scrolling across various readings to confirm that all is well. and I love the emphasis on the tacho. .

I think I read somewhere the tacho on the stack units moves with a move 'wobbly' action compared with an analogue gauge, is this true?

[coppice]

Not really ., no . It is slightly different to a normal tacho but I'd struggle to tell you why .
I must admit I have always had a soft spot for the old style mechanical gauges often seen in 60s single seaters

[Amris]

coppice said:

... apart from a bit of condensation.

I'm told you can get rid of this by drilling a tiny hole in the perspex which allows the moisture to escape. Admittedly, i have fried the fix in my car yet though