Wiring needs

[speedyshark]

I know some of you guys have made your own wiring harness. My question is was it that hard? I am thinking of using the manual as a guide and to do it like stock. That way I can convert into 12v or stay 6v, Not sure if I want 12v right now. Does any one have a parts list put together as to what colors, size wires I would need? also what kind of connectors and rellays will be needed where to get them? One last question where or can I still get reproduction of the cloth covered wire like stock? Just want to see if someone by chance has the list they my have created and save alot of time.Thanks guys.

[Bodacious]

Although I've wired cars, trucks, heavy equipment, etc. from scratch I'd highly recommend a plug and play harness if it's available for your vehicle. Although it's not really that difficult to build harnesses, it's time consuming and requires some patience and pre-planning if you want it to come out nicely.

[BobT-47P15]

I believe Rhode Island Wiring makes harnesses for the old Mopars.

They probably sell the old style wire also. Probably not real cheap

nowadays.

Some people have taken the harness one wire at a time and followed it

out, then done it's replacement. Then, the next, etc. Many of the

connectors can be replaced by average everyday connectors found

in hardware stores.

[Young Ed]

I rewired the majority of my car but I didn't use old style wiring. The specialty wiring shops do sell the old fashioned wire. I bought all 6 colors of 14g the hardware store had. I bought I think 3 colors of 12g and then red and green 10g. I bought 100ft spools of 14 and used 14 in place of the 16g stuff. I still have a fair amount of wire left over for other stuff too. The 12 and 10 I bought smaller packages of. The only specialty ends are the flag terminals on the voltage regulator and the headlight junction block. You can easily substitute ring terminals or the U ones(I forget their proper term). I was able to find the proper flag ones but only in quantities of 100 each and there are 2 sizes. I spent about $100 on supplies but like I said I have quite a bit of wire left for other stuff.

[pflaming]

I am currently making a new harness for my Pilot-house per Dave Erbs layout. It is time consuming but interesting and not that difficult. To me it is the pride of eventually saying that I rebuilt this truck. But each to his own often determined on time and money.

PF

[oldmopar]

I have also rewired using newer wire like ed (young ed) suggested and basically replaced it one wire at a time easy to do and inexpensive and if you use the large gauge as he suggested you can go 6 or 12 volt. This is not the way to go for a show or historically correct car but works great for a driver.

Ed (or maybe I should say old ed )

[Oldguy48]

I'm also in the process of rewiring my P15, although it won't be in the original configuration. It's not really difficult, but is very time-consuming, and like a previous post stated...pre-plan before you get started. I already had some wire on hand, and I purchased the rest from a marine supply shop. They have wire that's tinned (solder coated, and less vulnerable to corrosion), and has finer strands than run-of-the-mill wire, so it's much more flexible, but still available in the standard wire gauges. They also have high current battery disconnect switches available that are of excellent quality. It's worth a search or two on the internet to take a look at what's available. I hadn't considered the boat folks before someone tipped me off. I'm glad I checked them out.

[speedyshark]

I did think of going with the plug-n-play. For the price and the look is no where near stock. I believe the harnesses are 12v and use thinner wire( not good for 6v) I am not making a compete original car, but if the price is the same as using regular wire as the cloth covered might try to make some of the car look stock. I do like the idea of marine wire and will look into that. I know it will take some time I think it would be about the same as a pre-made to install. Just the making of the harness it self. I guess I will look and see if I can completely make the harness then insert into the car.

[Young Ed]

There are plug and play ones that look exactly like stock. rhode island wiring has them and I think the other big place is called YnZ wiring. Expect to pay about $600 for a complete car's worth.

[Oldguy48]

speedyshark,

You didn't mention what specific vehicle you are working on, but on my P15, there is a wiring harness that runs from under the dashboard, and to the trunk area, and it's located between the headliner and the roof. I'm replacing that, and decided to use teflon insulated wire, and wrapped the harness with fiberglass electrical tape due to the high temperatures that will be present during the summer (I'm going to paint the car black). Might be overkill, but I tend to err on the conservative side when it comes to electrical work. If your car has a similar wiring set-up, and you can access it, it might be worth considering.

[speedyshark]

Thanks for your input oldguy. I am working on a '47 D-24. Will check into the way the harness runs and look into the wire you mentioned.

[Frank Elder]

Here's something you will really "enjoy" the harness from the dash doesn't run under the carpet like modern cars, You have to access it through the headliner, Pain in the rear but worth it!

[speedyshark]

I am going to have to rip out the headliner any way.

[Brendan D25]

I am going to have to rip out the headliner any way.

As a side note, be sure to wear breathing protection when you pull down the headliner. If there are mouse droppings you could get Hanta-virus without protection, even the dust can be nasty.

[Frank Elder]

Pro antique auto parts has everything you need,

1-860-623-8274. Including vintage style terminals, if you want a schematic{speedyshark} I'll send it SAT., with your script.

[Normspeed]

Frankie, that's a good tip. I used the standard terminals and the results would have been cleaner with the flag type. Especially on the regulator and the front lighting connector.

A nice thing about rewiring these cars is, you can do it in stages. I began with my under hood and overdrive stuff, then a few months later the front lights. Still need to do the dashboard and rear wiring.

Everyone has different approaches. I tagged each terminator as I unhooked them (used labels I would understand later, like regulator top, regulator middle, etc), then I laid out the removed harness, unwrapped it, cut new wires with the right gauge and color, and swapped each tag as I made up each wire. I left one end unfinished and a bit long, until I got the new stuff in place, then I finished by cutting that end to exact length and adding the terminal as I hooked them up. Under hood took about a day, maybe less.

[speedyshark]

Thnaks all. I sent you a PM Frankie.

[randroid]

Gents,

With all the excellent advice given here I can think of only one thing to add: Make notes in a little book as you are doing it and note the color and gauge of each wire as you go. I rewired my '67 VW Bug (engine fire caused all the wiring to burn from everywhere to the fuse block) and I never expected to forget the colors, but I've referred back to that little book on numerous occasions and it's saved me a lot of grief.

As has been said, it's not a quick job but one in which you'll have pride.

-Randy

[speedyshark]

Can anyone tell me the colors I would need in 14ga and colors in 12ga? also color of the 10ga? Thanks

[Normspeed]

I went by the diagrams in the manual (mine is a Plymouth). The diagrams gave all colors and gauges.

[Tim Frank]

These guys are also good.

http://www.ynzyesterdaysparts.com/our_products.htm

[Young Ed]

Can anyone tell me the colors I would need in 14ga and colors in 12ga? also color of the 10ga? Thanks

I bought all 6 colors that were available at the hardware store for 14. I believe red black blue green yellow um ok maybe I only had 5. I think I bought those same 5 colors for 12g. 10 was only green and red I believe. Red for the starter and green for the horns. The p15 chart doesnt show the wire gauges but if you look at the 49 ply chart it shows all the sizes and most of the wiring is the same. Only a few things changed for 49.

I made mine by copying the original harness from my car and comparing to the diagram. There is an early and a late wiring scheme for P15s so pay attention to what was there originally. The little pieces of tape in the pic mark where the tape started and ended on the factory wiring. After hooking it all up and trying it I taped the entire lengths of the harnesses.

[Young Ed]

Oh in the previous post you can just see at the top the wire wrack I made from 2x4s. Across the top is a piece of 1/2in electrical conduit with all the wire around it. Worked slick. I also made a wire holder for soldering all my connections out of a 2x4 and a clothespin. It worked great too.