Sorry to revisit this old thread, but I just ran acroos it.
68Restoman or anyone else,
Did you use the Centroid Product type cicuit with a Radio Shack voltage regulator? (7805 type)
Earlier this year, I made a voltage regulator much like the electronic one NDP sells. Initially, I didn't use a heat sink. It worked right at start up, but within a minute or two, all of the gauges began reading very low. I thought the voltage regulator was getting too hot.
I then added an aluminum heat sink I made with some scraps of aluminum, some white grease, and a hacksaw. It has worked for several months now, but yesterday, all of the gauges pegged out. I'm not sure what happened. I'm going to try it again this time using a store bought heat sink.
Has anyone else made their own voltage regulator from Radio Shack parts? I really don't want to spend $45 or $60 on a new one if I can do it for $5 or $6.