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About to give up on getting fuel gauge to work in 54 Chevy . Are there any under dash alternatives for a 54 which has the pick up tube on the sender.????

My fuel gauge acted similarly, I was about to give up too but in one last try I took some sandpaper to all the grounds at both sides of each ground (back of gauge & where that grounds to cab) & (at sending unit & at cab)
It went from empty with a wiggle at start to floating somewhere in the middle (would be reading properly if my sending unit where functioning properly) its almost always grounds, even a clean looking ground may not be making proper contact

when you ground out the sending unit with the ignition in the on position does your gauge move?

not sure if adding an aftermarket fuel gauge will solve your problem. If your gauge moves when you ground out the sending unit it's still good and there is no need for a new gauge. It's likely the wiring.

I sanded the ground down to bare metal the first time with no result so I then grounded sender to the negative post on battery and still no movement. It is suppose to be a new sender and the gauge is also new and I grounded the gauge cluster to the bottom of dash to insure a good ground there...the wire from sender to gauge is also new. I have converted all to 12v but couldn’t get the 6 v set up to work either.

Some of the new “reproduction” gauges are thicker than the original. The needle is forced against the back side of the bezel. It will not move.

I fought a similar scenario for about 3 or 4 weekends. The gauge and sender worked great when we bench tested them. The gauge would not work when it was installed in the instrument cluster for a ‘49 3100.

Our solution was an NOS AC gauge.

I sure hate to get back under that dash but looks like that is going to be what I have to do...hard on an old fat man with fat arms and bad shoulders!!! I did notice the gauge was sitting different than old one. Guess I’ll bite the bullet and get back in there again!

Have you checked the float on the sender? I installed a brand new sending unit and gauge was not registering so pulled sender out again to find float was filled with gas. New plastic float solved issue. Now works. John

If you remove the seat and lay some plywood down it makes it all a bit easier on your back.

If you don't drive it much, you don't need a fuel gauge. If going across country, you may need one. A good original that is working is not very accurate. Adding one under the dash will not help anything. Just fill up every so often and chill.

"Just fill up every so often and chill."

I start looking for a gas station after 150 miles.

If I am on a lonely highway/interstate, I check for the signs that state the distance to the next gas station (some GPS units will tell you the distance to the next gas station).

Otherwise, I play it safe and stop for gas every two hours.

No shame in carrying a 5 gal. can of gas in the bed. My gauge is reasonably accurate but if traveling outside my home range I always carry a 5 gal. reserve. Been on the lookout for useable, original Jerry can. Somehow a red plastic gas container just looks wrong.

Good Luck

RonR

I know as of today that my gas gauge is pretty close to what is in the tank.
I ran my truck today well past the "Empty" mark! I put a record 22.23 gallons into it! It only takes 23 gallons!!

23 gallons?! Wow! My original tank behind the seat is only 13 gallons. Even carrying a 5 gallon Jerry can only gives me 18 gallons. At 13-14 mpg that’s aprox 230 miles driving the interstate. I usually stop for gas every 200 miles. My gauge bounces around so much it only gives me an aprox idea of how much gas is in the tank.
But in response to the original problem... I did the sanding of ground points with no luck. Turned out the bezel glass wasn’t seated properly so once I fixed that my problem went away.

I carry a 2 gal. all the time. I have a new rear-mounted 20 gal. tank but the gauge never has read full and it reads empty it still will not take more than 15 gallons. I am guessing the tank is not at the proper angle.

Well I’m back again...discovered I was having ground problems but now gauge reads full with key off and moves to empty or near empty when key is on...works fine with sender outside the tank..this a 12v conversion with a new 12 v gauge and 30 ohm sending unit. I have the sender grounded to negative post of battery. Don’t mind not against carrying gas can but Mema won’t ride with me since the only 2 times she rode with me we ran out of gas!😜😜😜

Did you make her push??

No...she refused!😇

Does your odometer read accurately ? If so, what kind of gas mileage do you get. I get around 15 miles to the gallon. So if I put a hundred+ miles on the rig, that's a half tank. 150 miles = 3/4 tank consumed. So, who needs a gas gauge. LOL, I would freak out if my gas gauge suddenly went ka poop...

My gauge went back to doing the same exact thing yours is doing now. soo... at least your not alone

I suspect it's the ground at the gauge itself, though it looks good the connection may not be strong enough (at least in my case).