i attached a wire to the sender and the other end to ground and hey presto the gauge shot
up to max, looks like it is a dodgy sender then, thanks a mill...

just got the 3 to sort out now, oil pressure, oil temp, and voltage.

they all appear to be wired up but i'll have to find out if they are done properly and if so
how to check the oil temp and pressure senders.. is it the same way as the temp sender?