Thanks

Your 97 would have the older swinging float style sending unit.

A good place to start would be to check that all the connections on the gauge and the sending unit are clean and tight

If you find the Pink wire attached to the sending unit you can check that the gauge responds but it won't tell you much about accuracy.

To check response, disconnect the pink wire from the sender, don't let it touch anything and turn the key to the Run position...........the gauge should peg low

Now with the key still in Run, touch the end of the pink wire to the ground connection on the sending unit and the gauge should peg High

Then turn the key to Off and restore the wire to normal

If the gauge acted like it should, then the wiring from the sending unit to the gauge is good and the gauge responds. Whether the gauge is responding right through it's whole range, you really don't know though.

That might narrow it down to the sending unit for you.

Being the old swinging float type, you can remove it and bend the wire arm to try to make it read right. You'd need the tank slid forward to accomplish this.

It's trial and error doing it this way.

Or........you can get one of the newer style reed switch units like KUS, Moeller or a number of other brands.

Here's a link to a KUS unit as an example

http://kus-usa.com/product/sss-ssl-sender/" rel="nofollow - link

On a 97, there's not much working room to swap sending units, but people have been known to mangle the old one to get it out and have room to slide the new one into place. (Or you remove the tank or slide it forward enough to make the installation a lot easier).

Here's a link to a thread where Slmskrs did the mangle and replace with the new style 

http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=49509&KW=sending+unit&title=replace-fuel-sender-on-97-sn-was-replace-on" rel="nofollow - link

For the new style, you need to know the depth of your tank and get the assembly one inch shorter per most manufacturers instructions.

If you decide you going with the new style, ask questions here to make sure you're getting the right sending unit.

I've got the interior ripped out and I've just started putting it back in.  After I get the coaming pads installed I may try and tackle the float issue.  

I wasn't sure if it was the old style float or built into the sending unit somehow.  

I've got 1/2 a tank in there now and removing the other two side panels (carpet only) would not be too tough since the back seat is already removed.

They're compatible, 33-240 ohm range on the sender and the gauge.

33 is full on the gauge and 240 is empty.

When you ground it and it indicates full and then with an open circuit (wire disconnected and touching nothing), it indicates empty that tells you that the gauge responds and goes from one end of it's range to the other, but doesn't tell you for sure that it reads accurately between those two extremes............but it's usually a sender issue and the new sender is a starting point if the gauge acts like mentioned above..

If the sender doesn't cure the issue. then you're on to a new gauge.