Aftermarket gauges

Pretty funny reading this thread, because I went through this exact scenario, to the point of purchasing an expensive aluminum (o-ring sealed) water neck spacer specifically for adapting a probe - yet the autometer probe still hit the thermostat. It won't directly thread into even a Performer intake manifold as it's too long. We ended up purchasing a brass pipe thread fitting and a threaded brass piece of pipe to use as an extension @ Home Depot. I don't use the factory probe.