pulling the dash

[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!