Oldguy48 Posted August 14, 2011 Report Posted August 14, 2011 Spent the weekend at a car show in Bloomsburg, PA. It's a fund raiser for the local non-profit hospital. I decided to enter my P15, even though it's not finished. The car ran great on the drive to and from the show. The car got a lot of compliments, and surprisingly, no grumbling about it being powered by a Chevy engine !! Even entered it in the neon light competition, since I had installed a couple of LED light strips in the trunk that continuously varied the color. There were three other P15s at the show, and one went home with a trophy. We had a great time, except for some very heavy rain that put quite a damper on the festivities. Quote
Don Coatney Posted August 14, 2011 Report Posted August 14, 2011 Sounds like you had a great time. Is this your car? Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 14, 2011 Author Report Posted August 14, 2011 Sounds like you had a great time. Is this your car? Yep Don, it's mine Wayne Quote
Don Coatney Posted August 14, 2011 Report Posted August 14, 2011 (edited) So explain these circuit boards? I see a lot going on here for an old guy48! Did you build them? They look more complicated than the boards I upgraded to count money for the Federal Reserve Banks all across the country. Edited August 14, 2011 by Don Coatney Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 14, 2011 Author Report Posted August 14, 2011 So explain these circuit boards? I see a lot going on here for an old guy48! Did you build them? Don, I built those panels about two years ago (a winter project). I rewired the whole car, and used individually fused circuits for most everything, and provided a lot of spares in the event I need them. The panels use quite a few relays also, so there is very little current flowing through the headlight switch, etc. The relays do the heavy current switching. Also on the passenger side panel is a small audio amplifier that will be driven by a MP3 player in the glove compartment if we want to listen to some music. There is also a small inverter that will be used in conjunction with some digital voltmeters I installed in the original instrument cluster, (The voltmeters are 0-100 VDC so I need to build some circuitry to make them work, but they look good and I'm pretty sure I can come up with the circuitry to make them functional). The panels look more complicated than they really are, but it will make things much easier if I have an electrical problem and need to do some troubleshooting. Quote
Don Coatney Posted August 14, 2011 Report Posted August 14, 2011 Great job! What happens if you are smacked in the rear end by a beer truck? Will your car go up in flames? Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 14, 2011 Author Report Posted August 14, 2011 Great job! What happens if you are smacked in the rear end by a beer truck? Will your car go up in flames? Nah...probably just pop a couple of fuses...then I'll see what I can find on the beer truck to ease my pain:D:D Quote
FESTER60 Posted August 15, 2011 Report Posted August 15, 2011 Very cool. I like the seats too. What are they from? Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 15, 2011 Author Report Posted August 15, 2011 Very cool. I like the seats too. What are they from? The seats are from a 1995 Pontiac Bonneville. The Pontiac's engine went belly-up, so I saved the seats before sending it off to the boneyard. The back seat had to be narrowed about 8 or 9 inches, but the front buckets fit well. Had to fabricate a base for both front & back seats to fit properly, but overall they fit well and are very comfortable. Quote
BobT-47P15 Posted August 15, 2011 Report Posted August 15, 2011 The car is looking good. Those boards sound logical enough....they do look complicated to a person who is kind of electrically challenged. Is that an Optima battery with the yellow top, lying on its side? Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 15, 2011 Author Report Posted August 15, 2011 Good eye, Bob. Yes, thats an Optima. They can be mounted in any position desired. I attached some CPVC pipe over the vents, and routed it thru the inner fender as a precaution. The Optimas supposedly don't produce hydrogen gas when they charge, but I'm not sure I believe that. Quote
Dennis_MN Posted August 15, 2011 Report Posted August 15, 2011 In another thread about a trailer hitch, someone asked if he was going to convert his trailer to 6 volt. I always thought the solution to that problem was to carry a 12 volt battery and invent some relays that turned on the 12v source when the 6v functioned. For example; step on the brakes and the relay completed the circuit to the trailer brake lights. I bet if you had that problem you would just complete another circuit board. Nice work! Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 15, 2011 Author Report Posted August 15, 2011 In another thread about a trailer hitch, someone asked if he was going to convert his trailer to 6 volt.I always thought the solution to that problem was to carry a 12 volt battery and invent some relays that turned on the 12v source when the 6v functioned. For example; step on the brakes and the relay completed the circuit to the trailer brake lights. I bet if you had that problem you would just complete another circuit board. Nice work! Thanks to all for the kind words. I converted the whole car to 12V, but what you are saying is correct. You could utilize a 12V battery and some relays to accomodate trailer lighting fairly easily. Wayne Quote
Niel Hoback Posted August 15, 2011 Report Posted August 15, 2011 I pull a little trailer with my Plymouth and with a newer Buick. The solution was easy. Get a second set of trailer lights with separate pigtails to plug them in. One for 6 volts, the other for 12. Quote
Adam H P15 D30 Posted August 16, 2011 Report Posted August 16, 2011 Where did you get the radiator??? NICE RIDE!!! Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 17, 2011 Author Report Posted August 17, 2011 Where did you get the radiator??? NICE RIDE!!! The radiator was purchased from classicradiators@yahoo.com. The gentleman I spoke with when I ordered it was "Jeff", and his phone number was 714-225-4445. If memory serves me, it was a replacement for a mid 60's Ford Fairlane. The model number was "CC340B". The manufacturer was "Champion Pro Series". It's all aluminum and has a 3 row core. It had the correct size/location inlets/outlets for the SBC, but I needed to get a bit creative with the lower hose because of the angles needed to make the connections. I mounted it on the front of the original radiator support. So far, it's working OK. Quote
littlemo Posted August 17, 2011 Report Posted August 17, 2011 Hey Oldguy 48, cool ride, but with circuit boards like those you need to watch over your shoulder for "Homeland Security" lol... Seriosly, would love to see a schematic of your bucket seat bases or at the least pics of them being fabricated !!! Thanks, Cass, alias Littlemo..... Quote
NatesSedan Posted August 17, 2011 Report Posted August 17, 2011 Great looking car. Nice flake on the dash. I am not usually a fan of digital gauges but you did a nice job to make them blend in with the original look. :cool:I am also taking notes on your placement of your ac vents. That will be a winter project this year. Quote
Oldguy48 Posted August 17, 2011 Author Report Posted August 17, 2011 Hey Oldguy 48, cool ride, but with circuit boards like those you need to watch over your shoulder for "Homeland Security" lol... Seriosly, would love to see a schematic of your bucket seat bases or at the least pics of them being fabricated !!! Thanks, Cass, alias Littlemo..... I'll try to get a few photos of the seat bases this weekend for you. Wayne Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.