what the heck?

[Brent B3B]

I have recently purchased a b4d, hasn't ran since '77. I had a 6v starter and solenoid from a car so the "stomp" starter was disabled, if you turn the key past the "on position" it would turn over.

I was having problems with the starter dragging so I switched it out with a starter from a b3b. just wanting to get the truck started, I bypassed the ignition and hooked up the two battery cables (positive ground) and ran a new power wire to the coil from the negative.

so far so good?  the other day when I started it up to move it, I was sitting inside and decided to see if the electric wiper switch would turn.... it did, and the wipers came on?

ignition off, battery positive to transmission cover, battery negative direct to starter and a new wire direct from battery to coil. What gives? originally, I was thinking short but nothing else is hooked up. 

 

[Jeff Balazs]

Sounds like the wiper switch (at least) is getting power getting power from a hot terminal on the Ignition switch. A lot if not all ignition switches have or can have a terminal that is hot all the time if the battery is hooked up. I have also seen stuff like this happen when an ignition switch has started to go bad.

Jeff

[jpartington]

Is it apparent that the truck has had any rewiring done in it? Maybe it could have been wired incorrectly?

[cavisco1]

Since it was converted to key start with a solenoid, it was probably mis-wired when the ignition switch was changed.

[Don Coatney]

8 hours ago, Brent B3B said:

I have recently purchased a b4d, hasn't ran since '77. I had a 6v starter and solenoid from a car so the "stomp" starter was disabled, if you turn the key past the "on position" it would turn over.

I was having problems with the starter dragging so I switched it out with a starter from a b3b. just wanting to get the truck started, I bypassed the ignition and hooked up the two battery cables (positive ground) and ran a new power wire to the coil from the negative.

so far so good?  the other day when I started it up to move it, I was sitting inside and decided to see if the electric wiper switch would turn.... it did, and the wipers came on?

ignition off, battery positive to transmission cover, battery negative direct to starter and a new wire direct from battery to coil. What gives? originally, I was thinking short but nothing else is hooked up. 

 

The new power wire to the coil is back feeding the old wire to the ignition switch and powering up everything that the switch normally powers up.

[Brent B3B]

Jp, the wiring was modified some what for the new solenoid set up but other than that looks original.

Guess I'll disconnect the wires from the back of the ignition this weekend and try it. I didn't think that was a possibility because the main power wire from the amp to the starter is disconnected.... 

could the generator back feed the ignition when it is turning? Or is that even possible without the battery hooked up to any part of the ignition?

[Don Coatney]

When you hooked up the new negative power wire to the coil did you disconnect the original wire from the ignition switch  to the coil?

[cavisco1]

17 hours ago, Brent B3B said:

 and ran a new power wire to the coil from the negative.

9 hours ago, Don Coatney said:

The new power wire to the coil is back feeding the old wire to the ignition switch and powering up everything that the switch normally powers up.

I think Don is correct. Pull the new wire from battery negative to coil and the problem will go away.

 

[Brent B3B]

4 hours ago, Don Coatney said:

When you hooked up the new negative power wire to the coil did you disconnect the original wire from the ignition switch  to the coil?

Yes, I did. The only wire connected is the single wire from the negative post on the battery to the coil ( cavisco1, if I pull that wire there won't be power to give me spark) no other wires are connected to the battery or starter

only two cables ( clean and untampered) from the battery to the trans top and battery to the starter. 

Weird huh 

[Don Coatney]

Can you trace the power supply wire from your wiper motor and see where it is connected?

[Brent B3B]

I'll do that, thanks all for the imput. Sometimes I work at the opposite end of things