Wiring How To

I will have to rewire my car and was wondering if anyone created or has a link to a good wiring how to.

I see lots of stories of people wiring incorrectly, making a mess, unsafe, etc. However, I don't see a lot of posts of GOOD wiring jobs.

Hopefully a good wiring how to would have:

How to solder correctly, how to use safety measures like relays and fuses, how to safely protect two wires joined together, etc.

A lot of people say that seeing awful wiring jobs scares people away from trying wiring themselves, but I haven't seen a good how to with pictures and the like. I'd love to tackle the rats nest and connect things correctly, but I need a how to. That's just how I learn. This doesn't seem like something you can just "try out" without keeping safety in mind.

There are a lot of commercially available wiring kits on the market.......some good and some not so good. I've heard good things about Ron Francis' kits and also American Autowire (which I bought for my Son........yet to be installed).

I've always done my own wiring from scratch, but we used a Summit kit that I think is made by Painless for my Son's T bucket. It was NOT painless. All three of us have done a fair amount of wiring (Dan did it professionally on cars and boats for some time) and at times we had to put our heads together to try to figure out what the instructions were saying. In the end we just did it our way, and it worked out.

As for the soldering vs crimp thing, you will get all kinds of opinions, but I crimp. I come out of the marine industry and soldering is a no no on boats as it can create hard spots and brittle wiring. If it is done right I guess it is fine on a car, but good quality crimp terminals are pretty idiot proof IMO.

Another consideration is if your 55 is a stock restoration or a hot rod. If stock you will want the original style harness, but if not stock the sky is the limit. I think as long as you don't go cheap you will be fine with one of the name brand units.

Don

It is certainly acceptable to crimp terminals....the auto factories have been successfully crimping for years. Solder does have its merits but it also has its drawbacks in a vibrating environment.

Regarding crimping, there are two common mistakes that the average person makes by using the "universal" AMP plier type crimper.....too loose a crimp and too heavy of a crimp. We all have seen too loose a crimp since the wire pulls out of the ferrule. If you crimp too tight, the strands of wire are damaged and can break; a few at first and then more.

IF you crimp, invest in a set of semi decent ratchet crimpers. It make the task much easier and you get a positive crimp each time.

Of course, if you are doing WeatherPak or MetriPak terminals, they each have their own crimp tools. You can buy them several places; Del City wiring has them. For just one car, they pay for themselves.

Part of a good crimp and terminal is the wire support to keep the load off of the wire connection. Use tie bases or some device to allow the use of either tie wraps or cable lacing to support the harness....do not let the weight and vibration of the harness (or wire) rest on the terminal junction.

The worst wiring connection is a butt splice that was done with a pair of amp pliers....a failure mode ready to happen.

mike in tucson

Robot....This is the crimper I have. I used it to install a few CD players. That's about it. I used it for crimp butt connectors. Is that what you were saying NOT to do?

http://rsk.imageg.net/graphics/produ...2266052t98.jpghttp://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1...10/crimper.jpg

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

There are a lot of commercially available wiring kits on the market.......some good and some not so good. I've heard good things about Ron Francis' kits and also American Autowire (which I bought for my Son........yet to be installed).

I've always done my own wiring from scratch, but we used a Summit kit that I think is made by Painless for my Son's T bucket. It was NOT painless. All three of us have done a fair amount of wiring (Dan did it professionally on cars and boats for some time) and at times we had to put our heads together to try to figure out what the instructions were saying. In the end we just did it our way, and it worked out.

As for the soldering vs crimp thing, you will get all kinds of opinions, but I crimp. I come out of the marine industry and soldering is a no no on boats as it can create hard spots and brittle wiring. If it is done right I guess it is fine on a car, but good quality crimp terminals are pretty idiot proof IMO.

Another consideration is if your 55 is a stock restoration or a hot rod. If stock you will want the original style harness, but if not stock the sky is the limit. I think as long as you don't go cheap you will be fine with one of the name brand units.

Don

---

Don....This is for a 36 dodge, not the 55.

The car had a new kit installed. It was just installed incorrectly. The wires are connected to the wrong things even though it states on the wire what to connect it to. I guess I was more or less speaking about how to join/connect the wires correctly.

Past owner, not the guy who actually wired it, said it needs to be rewired, but it comes with a complete 20 circuit wiring harness in the box and that the wiring in the car was new, just not connected to the right things! My first concern is that wires are connected to the proper components and that they are safe. Not necessarily that everything LOOKS beautiful.

You said above, "good quality crimp terminals are pretty idiot proof IMO." Guess I'm asking how to do a good quality crimp terminal.

Here is some of the fun I will have to deal with:

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1...936Dodge19.jpg

Yep, those are "amp" pliers....dangerous tools.

A good ratchet crimper is under $50.

mike in tucson

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by robot

Yep, those are "amp" pliers....dangerous tools.

A good ratchet crimper is under $50.

mike in tucson

---

If I get a good ratchet crimper, do I still connect the wires the same way with the butt connectors? Or is that looked down upon and viewed as a poor connection?

Also, you might think this is stupid but can you find a random link to what you would consider a good ratchet crimper so I know what you are talking about?

Thanks so much. I really appreciate it. :D

Everybody has their favorite tools. We've got a bunch of different crimping tools ranging from simple plier types to the racheting ones. Our personal favorite is the simple Channel Lock brand cutter/crimper. Runs about $ 20.00 and does a good job.

Don

Don...thanks! You said above, "good quality crimp terminals are pretty idiot proof IMO." What does a good quality crimp terminal entail? Something I should look for? Something I should NOT do?

Well - here's my two cents.

Klein, in my humble opinion, makes the the best rachet-type crimpers for insulated terminals - they are expensive, but you will never need to buy another set as these will be tools that your grand kids will use.

I also have two sets like the The Channel Locks shown above however; they are for non-insulated terminals - typically copper crimps. In a re-wire, you will use insulated and bare terminals so both types are appropriate.

Regards All,
Glenn

Forgot Klein link:
http://www.ktool.net/servlet/the-285...h-Cycle/Detail

And for what it's worth, butt splices are fine if sized correctly and crimped with with a ratchet crimper.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 55Chieftan

Don...thanks! You said above, "good quality crimp terminals are pretty idiot proof IMO." What does a good quality crimp terminal entail? Something I should look for? Something I should NOT do?

---

I don't use the automotive grade terminals like you find at Autozone. Working in the marine industry I've come to like Ancor brand wire and terminals. Each strand in the wire is individually tinned, and the ends are a little thicker than the auto grade stuff. You can find these parts at most marine discount stores (any more there is pretty much only West Marine, the others have folded) But if you have a large boat yard kind of place in your town you might check there. Not real cheap, but good stuff. Some even feature built in heat shrink tubing, so after you crimp it you heat it with a heat gun or hair dryer and it will shrink up and seal any moisture out.

I wired my 27 20 years ago with Ancor parts and that car sat in the rain many times. Never had a wiring failure and I could probably still use all of it when I redo the car, but I won't just for GP.

Don

Crimper 101:

The plier-type crimpers DO NOT control the amount of "squish." The amount of crimp is controlled by how far you squeeze...you migh squeeze too much, too little, or just right.

Ratchet crimpers control the amount (or size) of the final crimp so every crimp is the same....ratchet crimpers have several jaw opening diameters so you get the correct diameter. Also, ratchet crimpers have wider jaws so that the crimp area is distributed along the length of the terminal.....cheap amp pliers crimp in a very short area so you usually end up making two crimps on the terminal barrel.

As several guys have said, good crimp tools are expensive but they last forever. We have several thousand dollars in specialized crimp tools.....but a single good set of crimpers can be pretty inexpensive....especially if a connection lets go in the middle of the night.

mike in tucson

Glennsexton wrote:

Quote:

---

Klein, in my humble opinion, makes the the best rachet-type crimpers for insulated terminals - they are expensive, but you will never need to buy another set as these will be tools that your grand kids will use.

---

This will only be true if you drill a hole in one of the handles, and then attach a 50 foot lightweight aircraft cable to the handle and the other end to a roof trust or other sturdy garage fixture. My crimpers and other select tools have bad habit of growing legs and taking leave of the premises.:LOL::LOL:

Del City and others, I'm sure, also sell a connector with the solder inside the terminal and a piece of shrink sleeve tube over it. Slip it on the sripped end of the wire and hit it with your heat gun, the solder melts and the shrink sleeve shrinks!!! Works great and holds tight. I use either these or solder type connectors with a QUALITY small tip soldering iron and shrink sleeve over the terminal. Also, don't forget to use a bunch of tie wraps, and anything that has a possibility of being pulled away from it's connection should have a strain relief on it.... On multiple wire looms, I also like to use the waxed string and convuluted tubing over the wires along with plenty of rubber insulated clamps to hold the loom. Takes time and costs a bit more, but quality usually does.......

TRASH those cheapier crimpers. They aren't worth the powder to blow them to hell.

The next pictured, was a STAKON type.. they can work well, IF you squeeze them hard enough. If you have a pile of crimps to do, your wrist will be mighty sore by the time you are done. I've come behind plenty of STAKON crimps, and had to replace them becaus they were under crimped. Again, it's a matter of squeezing them hard enough to do the job.

the ratchet style crimpers are also prone to failure.. due to over crimping. I beg to differ with the engineers whom made them, but one setting is not going to be perfect for every crimp.

Now, the ratchet style crimpers usually have great leverage, so you get a better crimp with less squeeze, and therefore your wrist is not so sore when the job is done. But, personally, I remove the ratchets.

Now, here is my favorite tool:
http://www.lobtex.co.jp/products/den...15a/index.html
LOBSTER crimper tool... I've never used better! This tool works well for insulated and non insulated terminals, although it is rated for non insulated only. As with any crimper tool with a ratchet design, they can be prone to over-crimping. SO.. I remove the ratchet. These particualr crimpers have excellent leverage, and will produce a perfect crimp every time ( once you get a feel for it ). I've spent entire 8 hour shifts crimping terminals, and my wrist is not sore at the end of the day.

A QUALITY crimp tool makes all the difference. Same with your strippers. Get a good quality KLEIN wire stripper and you'll thank yourself. When I have a whole day of stripping wires, I really like to use an automatic stripper. Talk about saving your wrist and fingers! Just lay the end of the wire in the tool, and squeeze. Perfect strip every time!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

TRASH those cheapier crimpers. They aren't worth the powder to blow them to hell.

The next pictured, was a STAKON type.. they can work well, IF you squeeze them hard enough. If you have a pile of crimps to do, your wrist will be mighty sore by the time you are done. I've come behind plenty of STAKON crimps, and had to replace them becaus they were under crimped. Again, it's a matter of squeezing them hard enough to do the job.

the ratchet style crimpers are also prone to failure.. due to over crimping. I beg to differ with the engineers whom made them, but one setting is not going to be perfect for every crimp.

Now, the ratchet style crimpers usually have great leverage, so you get a better crimp with less squeeze, and therefore your wrist is not so sore when the job is done. But, personally, I remove the ratchets.

Now, here is my favorite tool:
http://www.lobtex.co.jp/products/den...15a/index.html
LOBSTER crimper tool... I've never used better! This tool works well for insulated and non insulated terminals, although it is rated for non insulated only. As with any crimper tool with a ratchet design, they can be prone to over-crimping. SO.. I remove the ratchet. These particualr crimpers have excellent leverage, and will produce a perfect crimp every time ( once you get a feel for it ). I've spent entire 8 hour shifts crimping terminals, and my wrist is not sore at the end of the day.

A QUALITY crimp tool makes all the difference. Same with your strippers. Get a good quality KLEIN wire stripper and you'll thank yourself. When I have a whole day of stripping wires, I really like to use an automatic stripper. Talk about saving your wrist and fingers! Just lay the end of the wire in the tool, and squeeze. Perfect strip every time!

---

That website is literally in japanese lol. Thanks, I will look into those products.



I appreciate all the suggestions, tips, and opinions thus far. Keep them coming!

I never could solder wires, maybe didn't have a good gun. Well anyway I use crimp connectors for everything. I have a good Thomas and Betts crimper, Channelock sells the same one (Don already mentioned). I do use the insulated connectors a lot but for a harness I would get the uninsulated ones and use heat shrink on them. Tear apart a factory harness and that's what you will probably find. Very few soldered connections in one. I also like to index the seam on the connectors so the dimple on the crimp is opposite of the seam in the connector, seems anal but it is a much better crimp than any other position IMO.
Other than that just keep it clean, keep the wires cut at the correct lengths, use good wire, lots of retaining clips and loom. Plastic loom is easiest but I like the old braided kind better. Also I tear apart factory looms for the wire, it is good quality and you get lots of different colors.

I use crimps and lots of heat shrink. My current car has no tape anywhere on wires. Tape just make a gooy mess IMHO.
Here is a site to get about any wire related stuff.
http://www.waytekwire.com/CatPDF.htm
I probably have in excess of $700 in terminals, wire, and connectors. As it turns out just as with nuts and bolts, you always seem to be short of the last connector of don't stock them so Monday you have to order another pack. haha
The dash shot is similar to mine today. I added and AFR gage and a transmission oil temp. Simple enough. haha
Drain the trans pan...Exon Valdez on the floor. Clean the pan and floor figure out where to put the sensor bung...oops welded on the front instead of the side. Luckily it clears and may be a better choice anyway. Install Lokar locking dip stick...no problem, slick item fixes major leak. Re install pan with new filter and gasket and fluid. Carefully torque the bolts. No leaks. Then....
Drop the exhaust pipes and install O2 sensor bungs after making sure the sensors can be installed. Reinstall pipes.
Mark dash for 2 new gages and find that 2 in hole saw has seen better days so use 1 7/8. have to ream out holes being careful not to chip gel coat. Also add holes for LED indicator and calibration switch. AFR module has 6 wires to connect. Simple hahah They are micro wires probably 28 gage or smaller I can hardly see them. It takes the better part of the afernoon to route the module wires then I have to hook them to the gage and the cal swith and LED. Oh I forgot my car is plastic so I need good grounds. My big ground terminal board is full so I have to connect up another one. AFR recommends grounding directly to the block so another wire has to go thru the firewall grommet. More time. Finally get everytime hooked up. Then....
On to the AM temp gage. Already have run the sensor wire up thru the firewall grommet. It needs a ground, good, already have a nice new ground board. have to make it removable with connectors so the dash can be later painted so more time making secure but removable connections. Try to keep things neat and orderly. Luckily I had all the right color wires and the small connectors from another install. Finished except for re hanging the dash and its attachments. Sure would have been nice to think about these additions when I did the original gage install.

Moral of story is; plan far, far ahead and don't go cheapo on supplies and crimpers. Add ons and redos really take their toll later on.

Interesting side. I recently completed a wiring job that I quoted and the customer choked at the price. So I said well, line out the items you don't want me to install and I'll adjust the price according. He chopped about 1/3 of the price off. As I was nearing completion of my part he simple said just go and finish what I lined out too plus install the AC. Net affect was increase the bill to original (agreed on) plus agreed cost of AC install.