Electrical issues. Am I good or not?

[grizparker]

I've recently got into my '69 Charger.  I'll admit, I'm a novice at electrical systems.  However, I'm still trying to figure out what all the previous owners have done.  There must be a million splices and 73 naked spots in the wires.  

From what I can tell, the wiring setup seems fairly stock...except for:
Added electronic ignition
The orangeb electronic ignition control unit box
Has Duralast two-pulley dual-field alternator (65 Amp, I believe)
Has newer replacement electronic voltage regulator

When I got it, the alternator was shot (verified at Autozone) and the electronic voltage regulator had a burnt spot on the circuit.  So, I bought a new alternator and a new voltage regulator.  Both were identical matches to what I was replacing.  I also replaced the ballast resistor while I was at it, because I noticed one of the tabs seemed a little weak and since the part was only $4, I figured it was worth replacing.

Over the course of finding out that I had an alternator problem, I had been driving the car a small amount.  The battery has drained down to 11.6 volts.

After installing everything, when I crank the car, the ammeter immediately jumps to +20 at idle.  If I rev the engine, it jumps to +40.  I revved the engine 3-4 times then I noticed smoke coming from the ballast resistor, so I immediately killed the engine.  The ballast problem could have been caused by a poor ground on the ballast resistor.     I didn't feel as if I had it screwed down tightly to the firewall.  So, for the meantime, I put the old ballast resistor back on there and reconnected everything.

When I was revving the engine, the voltage at the battery terminals did not get higher than 12.8 volts.

I've been reading so many posts on here about the downfall of the electrical setup on these cars.  I may just be paranoid about burning my bulkhead connectors or blowing out my ammeter.  But when I saw the ammeter shoot up and the voltage not get any higher than 12.8, I got worried and shut it all down.  I've spent the last day scouring the internet more for more info on the matter.  I've read just about everything I can find from Nacho and have looked over all the Mad Electrical setup.  I just don't know if I need to go ahead and make all these wiring changes just yet.  It's an A/C car, but the A/C is currently not working and the stereo is a cheap tape player, so I'm sure it's just super low amp.  I don't have anything special the car is having to carry the electrical load of.

My questions are:
 1.)  Does there sound like an obvious problem?  Maybe a wiring problem or short?
 2.)  Is my ammeter shooting so high because my battery is lightly drained?  Maybe charging the battery back to full voltage will make things different (will test this tonight).
 3.)  Should I just go ahead and change my wiring setup while I'm thinking about it?

Any insight would be appreciated.  Also, if you know a way to pinpoint where the wiring problem could be, any insight into that would also be great.  As I mentioned earlier...I'm an electrical novice...  

[grizparker]

 

[JB400]

I think your best start would be to get a new engine harness and then go from there.  Year one has them for a little over $100.  Well worth it in my book.  They come already made for your electronic ignition.  Start there, and then see if you have any issues.

[Fred]

That's the road I'd go down too. Why take chances with an old harness.

[myk]

Agreed with everyone above.  The BEST thing I did for my '69 was trash the hopelessly cut up and brittle spaghetti mess of a wiring system I had been running and just rewired it stem to stern.  There is no price for peace of mind, lemme tell ya.  Painless, EZ harnesses and internally regulated 'alts FTW...

[Cooter]

Oh and BTW: Best money I ever spent was doing away with that BS Voltage reg. (Electronic AND Mechanical), went with a GM 1 Wire alt.

[grizparker]

Thanks everyone for the advice.  So, on these wiring harnesses...I'm sure everyone would suggest going from front to back of the car, replacing not only the engine harness, but also the headlights, dash, console, rear harnesses, etc.  However, if I wanted to just start with the engine harness and then update all the rest at a later date, is that just as easy?

Also, I believe this is the link to the harness Stroker440 is suggesting:  https://www.yearone.com/Product/DisplayProduct/158921

From the looks of the picture of the harness on YearOne, all the wires from this harness runs back to one bulkhead connection plug.  What about the other 2 plugs which are also quite worn on my car?  Are those different harnesses?

I've attached pictures of my bulkhead.  Mainly to show current wear and to get your input on how worn it looks compared to "normal."

[grizparker]

Also, wouldn't I want to change the female side of the bulkhead connectors if I changed the wiring harness?  That side doesn't come with the harness itself, right?  Where would I get it?

[grizparker]

Question, does the painless wiring system use the bulkhead connectors or does it just pass all of that?

[Cooter]

I don't think the "Painless" has the factory style bulkhead connectors, as that was the reason for the new harness. Very problematic in the original design.

[grizparker]

Well, after some deliberation, I've made the decision to order a Painless mopar wiring kit (#10127).
http://www.painlessperformance.com/webcatalog/largeview.php?SearchField=10127

I've been reading other people's installs and it looks like I can just drill through the old bulkhead connectors and run my new wires.  I've been hesitant because I hate to get keep changing "original" to aftermarket...but from everything I'm reading about the downfall of the electrical system in this car, I think it is going to be worth it.  I'll definitely keep the bulk of the exterior and interior original.

If you have any tips about the install of the painless system on an A/C car, let me know.  Or either point me to some links that you know of.

[jlatessa]

You can save all the old connectors at the bulkhead for the future
if you or a new owner wants to go 'original'.

But I took mine out because Painless has a alum. cover with a grommet that fits over
the old connector hole for routing their wires.
I'm in the middle of routing and fastening my Painless kit.
Good instruction and a well-made set-up.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of questions yet, but every wire is well identified
as to where it's going and coming from.

Grounds are your responsibility and I'm going to over-engineer that aspect!!

Good luck...Joe

[grizparker]

Great to hear about the bulkhead replacement grommet.  That is even better than drilling through.

Hope your install goes well.  Please let me know if there are any "kinks" or "headaches" that you work through and can pass along the knowledge... 

[70 Charger RT]

What I did on my last Charger re-wire was take out all the terminals in the bulkhead connector (male and female) and when I installed a new wiring harness.  I drilled wire sized holes through the bulkhead connectors where the old terminals used to be and fed the new wire through each hole and in the end appeared to be factory but with no connection point at the bulkhead.  Problem fixed.