pulling the dash

[tucknroll]

man did I open a can of worms! I thought I would peek behind the dash to check a bulb and the next thing I know, I got the whole dash out. I thought I would clean it up since it's out. I know this would be no big deal to some of you but I'm still a beginner. wish me luck of getting everything back.

[tucknroll]

alright my first question. are there 2 extra bulbs in the dash? I have 2 bulbs that you turn to pull out and they are in a harness with no wire running to them and it looks like there never was a place for a wire to connect.

[tan top]

what year ? is it a charger ?

[tucknroll]

69 charger

[tan top]

 is there any chance  you could take a picture !! its difficult to figure out whats happening with out actually being there , especially  dash stuff  

,  these are the only pictures I have on my computer now , its of a 68 , but basically the same  , cant you see anything in these  ?

there are 3 bulbs ( capless )  that have no wiring going to them they  twist into the printed circuit board



forget where I saved this pictures from  ,  

[tucknroll]

on that bottom picture! that's the 2. why don't they have anything going to them? how do they work?

[Ghoste]

PC board, they get the current from the copper tracks in that green board.

[tucknroll]

thanks! that was driving me crazy.

[XH29N0G]

I pulled my dash apart for the first time a few weeks ago too.  All ended up being OK, but I had, and am still having a few connection issues with gauges connected to the printed circuit board.  The connections sometime are made and then sometimes they become disconnected.  The fix is pretty obvious, there are nuts that make the connection with the board that can be wiggled.  If it keeps up I may as about conducting paint.  I just thought I would mention this because you may run into the same problems.  This also applies to some of those bulbs.  The multimeter is a big help.  Other big helps are the information on clusters posted on the forum.

[tucknroll]

when I pulled it out, I didn't disconnect the battery at first and the wire running to the alt gauge hit metal and sparked. now im trying to put everything back but im not getting any power to the car. I checked the fuses in the glove box and they all look good. whats happening?

[ACUDANUT]

A in-line fusible wire ?

[tucknroll]

is there a way to crank and drive it with the dash out so I can take it to a friends house for help?

[tan top]

A in-line fusible wire ?

that's what i'm thinking  , have a look under the hood , for this below  , blue fusible link wire  , may well have burnt / fused


you can run with out the instrument cluster in , but you need to bolt the black & red thick amp gauge wires together , & make sure they are well insulated & not touching any metal , that  goes for all the disconnected wires back there from the disconnected instrument cluster ,

would not advise doing anything until you have  gone through all wiring &  seeing why there is no power !!

[XH29N0G]

Do you have a wiring diagram (like in the factory service manual)?  I had never looked closely at the diagram or the wiring, and am not electrically inclined, but I found that after some reading and matching, I could trace out the diagram to the car and  vice versa.  The only reason I bring this up is because it is a way to track down where things go on either side of the firewall.

[tan top]

69 wiring diagram

  http://www.mymopar.com/downloads/1969/69ChargerA.JPG

http://www.mymopar.com/downloads/1969/69ChargerB.JPG

[tucknroll]

I see that blue wire. now how do I check it? with a test light?  also, is connecting the red and black hotwiring? is that safe?

[XH29N0G]

If you don't have a multimeter, I would consider getting one.  I don't think it needs to be expensive (but others might suggest otherwise).  I think the test you would do would be for continuity (ohms) through the wire (others can pipe in if I am wrong).  My guess is that if a fusible link is blown that it will no longer be continuous.

I know nothing about connecting the other wires.

[Ghoste]

If the link popped you won't need a meter to check it.  Just feel it with your fingers and if it seems all flimsy like there is no wire in it then it's junk.  It should feel like there is wire in some of it but if it popped there will be a section that is gone and it will be like its just insulation there.
It's also possible that you smoked the guage itself.

[Dino]

The circuit board is old and will need some work to be reliable again.  Mine did the on off thing as well.  You can buy a new board but I cleaned mine with some isopropyl alcohol and acetone for the bad spots.  The pins felt tight until I gave them a gentle twist and 3 became loose.  I put a dab of solder on all pins to secure them to the board and now my resistance readings are as they should be.  Hopefully I don't bust anything come installation time. 

[tucknroll]

im going to give it another shot tomorrow and need to know if I can and how to lower the steering column? I don't want to pull the whole thing out if I don't have to because that's just one more can of worms.

[tucknroll]

also, other than the thick black and red wires going to the amp meter, I have only 2 more wires that I don't remember where they go. they have ends on them like the black and red wires. I'm guessing maybe the oil and gas gauge?

[XH29N0G]

I don't know enough to know how different my 70 is from yours.  I did notice on the wiring diagrams that were posted on the links that it looks like they have the colors and the connectors posted to the various gauges and switches. 

For the 70, the gas, oil, and temp were on a single plug.  The separate ones went to the wipers and washer (several went there) and the ammeter (but the ammeter had different connection from the others).  It looks similar on the A version wiring diagram that was posted. 

[tucknroll]

the two wires I didn't know I think are a the owner before me way of bypassing 2 of the missing poles on the circuit board that are missing. could that be? if your looking at the back, its the 2 from the left.

[XH29N0G]

Let's hope someone pipes in who knows the answer. 

Looking at the diagram posted by tan top, it looks like there should be 5 wires going into that plug, orange, black, dark blue, violet, and gray.  They are labeled as running the instr lights, volt limiter,  gas, temp and oil.  If the colors match, then I would think you have it figured out. 

[tucknroll]

I now know how everything goes back. my problem now is when the battery is hooked up and I use a test light, nothing in the dash is showing power. I bolted the red and black wires together and still nothing. any help please?

[Dino]

the two wires I didn't know I think are a the owner before me way of bypassing 2 of the missing poles on the circuit board that are missing. could that be? if your looking at the back, its the 2 from the left.

Besides the ammeter there should be no ring terminals going to any of the studs as the circuit board takes care of that.  Only the ammeter has separate wires and those are the thick red and black.

Seeing as apparently some circuit board studs are missing, I figure the po tried to bypass the circuit board.  You can 'make' new studs with a thin bolt or any other metal rod.  Just solder it to the board and lose the two wires.

[tucknroll]

do you think when the red wire hit metal and sparked before I took the battery out that something went bad. it sparked pretty good and melted the rubber protector on the end of the red wire a little?

[Dino]

do you think when the red wire hit metal and sparked before I took the battery out that something went bad. it sparked pretty good and melted the rubber protector on the end of the red wire a little?

You basically had positive and negative make out for a bit then!   

Check the fusible link coming out of the other end that runs to the starter relay.  Hopefully it caught it there.  If so, simply get another fusible link at your local auto parts store and you're back in business.  Also check your fuses behind the glove box and see what's going on there.  Remove the Phillips screw so you can see the back of the fuse box as well. 

Whenever something like this happens, go over as much of the wiring as you can.  Look for burns, rough insulation, cracked insulation and whatever else seems out of order.  Snap a pic and post it here so we can figure out what happened.  Never ever do anything to the electrical system with the battery hooked up, the list of things that can go wrong is endless.  In fact, with extensive work, remove the battery and put it far away.  Better safe than on fire...or something like that. 

If some of the wiring is in need of replacing we can help to tell you how, if a few wires look like they're okay but the rest is fubar then get yourself new harnesses.

[tucknroll]

I checked the fusible link and it is blown for sure. I ordered one from classic industries and put 2 day delivery on it so hopefully Saturday I will be back in business! I'm having trouble removing it from the firewall area. do I pinch it with needle nose or just pull?

[ACUDANUT]

A in-line fusible wire ?

Wow, I was right.  ....

[Dino]

I checked the fusible link and it is blown for sure. I ordered one from classic industries and put 2 day delivery on it so hopefully Saturday I will be back in business! I'm having trouble removing it from the firewall area. do I pinch it with needle nose or just pull?

Remove the middle plastic connector from the firewall and look at the terminals.  You will see a slit in them.  Take some needle nose pliers and squeeze the terminal blade so the slit closes, pull the wire from the other end and it'll slide out.  If the link you ordered already has that Packard terminal on it then just make note how it came out so you know how to insert the new one.  Do not just pull on it from the back or you may have a bit more work to do.

[tucknroll]

I'm back in business! we just replaced the fusible link and everything was back.

[ACUDANUT]

What did I say.  


NEXT TIME DIS-CONNECT THE BATTERY. 

[XH29N0G]

Now that all is well, would you mind telling me how big a spark it was.

[tucknroll]

it was 2 quick pretty big sparks and then I smelled the fusible link melting that second.

[tucknroll]

you guys won't believe this but I burnt it again. well, I didn't but my dad did. my alternator went out so I replaced it and asked my dad to check the belt to make sure it was not too tight. he said it was and loosened the alternator and it fell down the bracket and the part where the wire bolts to hit metal and the fusible link and the long wire running from the alternator to the firewall connector melted. it didn't hurt any other wires so I cut out the bad one and re-wraped the good ones together. this sucks! from now on, if the hood comes up, the battery get disconnected.

[Dino]

you guys won't believe this but I burnt it again. well, I didn't but my dad did. my alternator went out so I replaced it and asked my dad to check the belt to make sure it was not too tight. he said it was and loosened the alternator and it fell down the bracket and the part where the wire bolts to hit metal and the fusible link and the long wire running from the alternator to the firewall connector melted. it didn't hurt any other wires so I cut out the bad one and re-wraped the good ones together. this sucks! from now on, if the hood comes up, the battery get disconnected.

Glad to hear the damage was limited.  This may be the time to get a quick disconnect on that battery!

[tucknroll]

good idea!